Terms related to Foundation Extension - Model-Based Testing 2015

A test case without concrete (implementation level) values for input data and expected results. Logical operators are used: instances of the actual values are not yet defined and/or available.
A scripting technique that uses data files to contain not only test data and expected results, but also keywords related to the application being tested. The keywords are interpreted by special supporting scripts that are called by the control script for the test.
User or any other person or system that interacts with the test object in a specific way.
An independent evaluation of software products or processes to ascertain compliance to standards, guidelines, specifications, and/or procedures based on objective criteria, including documents that specify: the form or content of the products to be produced, the process by which the products shall be produced, and how compliance to standards or guidelines shall be measured.
The degree to which a component or system is operational and accessible when required for use. Often expressed as a percentage.
A superior method or innovative practice that contributes to the improved performance of an organization under given context, usually recognized as "best" by other peer organizations.
An input value or output value which is on the edge of an equivalence partition or at the smallest incremental distance on either side of an edge, for example the minimum or maximum value of a range.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed based on boundary values.
The coverage of all possible combinations of all single condition outcomes within one statement.
The coverage of condition outcomes.
The percentage of branches that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% branch coverage implies both 100% decision coverage and 100% statement coverage.
Bug
A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function, e.g., an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.
A table showing combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their associated outputs and/or actions (effects), which can be used to design test cases.
The process of confirming that a component, system or person complies with its specified requirements.
(1) A structured approach to transitioning individuals and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. (2) Controlled way to effect a change, or a proposed change, to a product or service.
The set of generic and specific conditions, agreed upon with the stakeholders for permitting a process to be officially completed. The purpose of exit criteria is to prevent a task from being considered completed when there are still outstanding parts of the task which have not been finished. Exit criteria are used to report against and to plan when to stop testing.
The degree to which a component or system has a design and/or internal structure that is difficult to understand, maintain and verify.
A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.
A test case with concrete (implementation level) values for input data and expected results. Logical operators from high-level test cases are replaced by actual values that correspond to the objectives of the logical operators.
The coverage of all possible combinations of all single condition outcomes within one statement.
The coverage of condition outcomes.
The composition of a component or system as defined by the number, nature, and interconnections of its constituent parts.
A sequence of consecutive edges in a directed graph.
The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which a specified coverage item has been exercised by a test suite.
An entity or property used as a basis for test coverage, e.g., equivalence partitions or code statements.
A scripting technique that stores test input and expected results in a table or spreadsheet, so that a single control script can execute all of the tests in the table. Data-driven testing is often used to support the application of test execution tools such as capture/playback tools.
A program point at which the control flow has two or more alternative routes. A node with two or more links to separate branches.
The percentage of decision outcomes that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% decision coverage implies both 100% branch coverage and 100% statement coverage.
A table showing combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their associated outputs and/or actions (effects), which can be used to design test cases.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute the combinations of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) shown in a decision table.
A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function, e.g., an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.
The process of recognizing, investigating, taking action and disposing of defects. It involves recording defects, classifying them and identifying the impact.
The set of generic and specific conditions, agreed upon with the stakeholders for permitting a process to be officially completed. The purpose of exit criteria is to prevent a task from being considered completed when there are still outstanding parts of the task which have not been finished. Exit criteria are used to report against and to plan when to stop testing.
A type of testing in which business processes are tested from start to finish under production-like circumstances.
The capability of producing an intended result.
(1) The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance, relative to the amount of resources used, under stated conditions. (2) The capability of a process to produce the intended outcome, relative to the amount of resources used.
A type of testing in which business processes are tested from start to finish under production-like circumstances.
A portion of an input or output domain for which the behavior of a component or system is assumed to be the same, based on the specification.
A portion of an input or output domain for which the behavior of a component or system is assumed to be the same, based on the specification.
The coverage of equivalence partitions.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute representatives from equivalence partitions. In principle, test cases are designed to cover each partition at least once.
A human action that produces an incorrect result.
A source code statement that, when translated into object code, can be executed in a procedural manner.
The set of generic and specific conditions, agreed upon with the stakeholders for permitting a process to be officially completed. The purpose of exit criteria is to prevent a task from being considered completed when there are still outstanding parts of the task which have not been finished. Exit criteria are used to report against and to plan when to stop testing.
The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.
The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.
A flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function, e.g., an incorrect statement or data definition. A defect, if encountered during execution, may cause a failure of the component or system.
A distinguishing characteristic of a component or system.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute valid and invalid state transitions.
A requirement that specifies a function that a component or system must perform.
The capability of the software product to provide functions which meet stated and implied needs when the software is used under specified conditions.
A type of interface that allows users to interact with a component or system through graphical icons and visual indicators.
A test case without concrete (implementation level) values for input data and expected results. Logical operators are used: instances of the actual values are not yet defined and/or available.
The assessment of change to the layers of development documentation, test documentation and components, in order to implement a given change to specified requirements.
Attributes of software products that bear on its ability to prevent unauthorized access, whether accidental or deliberate, to programs and data.
A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is read by a component.
A type of peer review that relies on visual examination of documents to detect defects, e.g., violations of development standards and non-conformance to higher level documentation. The most formal review technique and therefore always based on a documented procedure.
The process of combining components or systems into larger assemblies.
Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems.
A metric that supports the judgment of process performance.
A scripting technique that uses data files to contain not only test data and expected results, but also keywords related to the application being tested. The keywords are interpreted by special supporting scripts that are called by the control script for the test.
The activities performed at each stage in software development, and how they relate to one another logically and chronologically.
A test case without concrete (implementation level) values for input data and expected results. Logical operators are used: instances of the actual values are not yet defined and/or available.
A test case with concrete (implementation level) values for input data and expected results. Logical operators from high-level test cases are replaced by actual values that correspond to the objectives of the logical operators.
The ease with which a software product can be modified to correct defects, modified to meet new requirements, modified to make future maintenance easier, or adapted to a changed environment.
Modification of a software product after delivery to correct defects, to improve performance or other attributes, or to adapt the product to a modified environment.
Degree of process improvement across a predefined set of process areas in which all goals in the set are attained.
Any model used in model-based testing.
The number or category assigned to an attribute of an entity by making a measurement.
A measurement scale and the method used for measurement.
A human action that produces an incorrect result.
The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which model elements are planned to be or have been exercised by a test suite.
Testing based on or involving models.
A tool that supports the creation, amendment, and verification of models of the component or system.
A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.
The coverage of all possible combinations of all single condition outcomes within one statement.
Model-based test approach whereby test cases are generated into a repository for future execution.
Model-based test approach whereby test cases are generated and executed simultaneously.
Model-based test approach whereby test cases are generated and executed simultaneously.
The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test.
A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is written by a component.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute representatives from equivalence partitions. In principle, test cases are designed to cover each partition at least once.
A sequence of consecutive edges in a directed graph.
The percentage of paths that have been exercised by a test suite.
The degree to which a system or component accomplishes its designated functions within given constraints regarding processing time and throughput rate.
A metric that supports the judgment of process performance.
Environmental and state conditions that must be fulfilled before the component or system can be executed with a particular test or test procedure.
The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.
The level of (business) importance assigned to an item, e.g., defect.
A set of interrelated activities, which transform inputs into outputs.
A framework in which processes of the same nature are classified into an overall model.
A project is a unique set of coordinated and controlled activities with start and finish dates undertaken to achieve an objective conforming to specific requirements, including the constraints of time, cost and resources.
The degree to which a component, system or process meets specified requirements and/or user/customer needs and expectations.
Part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled.
A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality.
Testing of a previously tested program following modification to ensure that defects have not been introduced or uncovered in unchanged areas of the software, as a result of the changes made. It is performed when the software or its environment is changed.
Testing to determine the reliability of a software product.
A condition or capability needed by a user to solve a problem or achieve an objective that must be met or possessed by a system or system component to satisfy a contract, standard, specification, or other formally imposed document.
The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test.
An evaluation of a product or project status to ascertain discrepancies from planned results and to recommend improvements. Examples include management review, informal review, technical review, inspection, and walkthrough.
A factor that could result in future negative consequences.
An approach to testing to reduce the level of product risks and inform stakeholders of their status, starting in the initial stages of a project. It involves the identification of product risks and the use of risk levels to guide the test process.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute scenarios of use cases.
Attributes of software products that bear on its ability to prevent unauthorized access, whether accidental or deliberate, to programs and data.
Testing to determine the security of the software product.
The representation of selected behavioral characteristics of one physical or abstract system by another system.
A device, computer program or system used during testing, which behaves or operates like a given system when provided with a set of controlled inputs.
Computer programs, procedures, and possibly associated documentation and data pertaining to the operation of a computer system.
The activities performed at each stage in software development, and how they relate to one another logically and chronologically.
A distinguishing characteristic of a component or system.
A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality.
A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality.
An entity in a programming language, which is typically the smallest indivisible unit of execution.
Documentation that provides a detailed description of a component or system for the purpose of developing and testing it.
Formal, possibly mandatory, set of requirements developed and used to prescribe consistent approaches to the way of working or to provide guidelines (e.g., ISO/IEC standards, IEEE standards, and organizational standards).
A diagram that depicts the states that a component or system can assume, and shows the events or circumstances that cause and/or result from a change from one state to another.
A transition between two states of a component or system.
A diagram that depicts the states that a component or system can assume, and shows the events or circumstances that cause and/or result from a change from one state to another.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute valid and invalid state transitions.
An entity in a programming language, which is typically the smallest indivisible unit of execution.
The percentage of executable statements that have been exercised by a test suite.
A type of performance testing conducted to evaluate a system or component at or beyond the limits of its anticipated or specified workloads, or with reduced availability of resources such as access to memory or servers.
The capability of the software product to provide an appropriate set of functions for specified tasks and user objectives.
A collection of components organized to accomplish a specific function or set of functions.
Testing an integrated system to verify that it meets specified requirements.
See test object.
A set of one or more test cases.
The layer in a test automation architecture which provides the necessary code to adapt test scripts on an abstract level to the various components, configuration or interfaces of the SUT.
The use of software to perform or support test activities, e.g., test management, test design, test execution and results checking.
A tool that provides an environment for test automation. It usually includes a test harness and test libraries.
All documents from which the requirements of a component or system can be inferred. The documentation on which the test cases are based. If a document can be amended only by way of formal amendment procedure, then the test basis is called a frozen test basis.
A set of input values, execution preconditions, expected results and execution postconditions, developed for a particular objective or test condition, such as to exercise a particular program path or to verify compliance with a specific requirement.
Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.
The disproportionate growth of the number of test cases with growing size of the test basis, when using a certain test design technique. Test case explosion may also happen when applying the test design technique systematically for the first time.
A set of several test cases for a component or system under test, where the post condition of one test is often used as the precondition for the next one.
During the test closure phase of a test process data is collected from completed activities to consolidate experience, testware, facts and numbers. The test closure phase consists of finalizing and archiving the testware and evaluating the test process, including preparation of a test evaluation report.
The set of generic and specific conditions, agreed upon with the stakeholders for permitting a process to be officially completed. The purpose of exit criteria is to prevent a task from being considered completed when there are still outstanding parts of the task which have not been finished. Exit criteria are used to report against and to plan when to stop testing.
An item or event of a component or system that could be verified by one or more test cases, e.g., a function, transaction, feature, quality attribute, or structural element.
The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which a specified coverage item has been exercised by a test suite.
Data that exists (for example, in a database) before a test is executed, and that affects or is affected by the component or system under test.
A type of test tool that enables data to be selected from existing databases or created, generated, manipulated and edited for use in testing.
The process of transforming general test objectives into tangible test conditions and test cases.
Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.
The process of running a test on the component or system under test, producing actual result(s).
The use of software, e.g., capture/playback tools, to control the execution of tests, the comparison of actual results to expected results, the setting up of test preconditions, and other test control and reporting functions.
A type of test tool that enables data to be selected from existing databases or created, generated, manipulated and edited for use in testing.
A test environment comprised of stubs and drivers needed to execute a test.
The process of developing and prioritizing test procedures, creating test data and, optionally, preparing test harnesses and writing automated test scripts.
A group of test activities that are organized and managed together. A test level is linked to the responsibilities in a project. Examples of test levels are component test, integration test, system test and acceptance test.
The planning, estimating, monitoring and control of test activities, typically carried out by a test manager.
A tool that provides support to the test management and control part of a test process. It often has several capabilities, such as testware management, scheduling of tests, the logging of results, progress tracking, incident management and test reporting.
The person responsible for project management of testing activities and resources, and evaluation of a test object. The individual who directs, controls, administers, plans and regulates the evaluation of a test object.
A model describing testware that is used for testing a component or a system under test.
The component or system to be tested.
A reason or purpose for designing and executing a test.
The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test.
A distinct set of test activities collected into a manageable phase of a project, e.g., the execution activities of a test level.
A document describing the scope, approach, resources and schedule of intended test activities. It identifies amongst others test items, the features to be tested, the testing tasks, who will do each task, degree of tester independence, the test environment, the test design techniques and entry and exit criteria to be used, and the rationale for their choice, and any risks requiring contingency planning. It is a record of the test planning process.
The activity of establishing or updating a test plan.
A document specifying a sequence of actions for the execution of a test. Also known as test script or manual test script.
The fundamental test process comprises test planning and control, test analysis and design, test implementation and execution, evaluating exit criteria and reporting, and test closure activities.
An item or event of a component or system that could be verified by one or more test cases, e.g., a function, transaction, feature, quality attribute, or structural element.
The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test.
A document specifying a sequence of actions for the execution of a test. Also known as test script or manual test script.
Commonly used to refer to a test procedure specification, especially an automated one.
The criteria used to guide the generation of test cases or to select test cases in order to limit the size of a test.
A set of several test cases for a component or system under test, where the post condition of one test is often used as the precondition for the next one.
An item or event of a component or system that could be verified by one or more test cases, e.g., a function, transaction, feature, quality attribute, or structural element.
Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.
A group of test activities that are organized and managed together. A test level is linked to the responsibilities in a project. Examples of test levels are component test, integration test, system test and acceptance test.
A set of several test cases for a component or system under test, where the post condition of one test is often used as the precondition for the next one.
The capability of the software product to enable modified software to be tested.
A skilled professional who is involved in the testing of a component or system.
The process consisting of all lifecycle activities, both static and dynamic, concerned with planning, preparation and evaluation of software products and related work products to determine that they satisfy specified requirements, to demonstrate that they are fit for purpose and to detect defects.
The ability to identify related items in documentation and software, such as requirements with associated tests.
A two-dimensional table, which correlates two entities (e.g., requirements and test cases). The table allows tracing back and forth the links of one entity to the other, thus enabling the determination of coverage achieved and the assessment of impact of proposed changes.
The capability of the software product to enable the user to understand whether the software is suitable, and how it can be used for particular tasks and conditions of use.
A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.
The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions.
A sequence of transactions in a dialogue between an actor and a component or system with a tangible result, where an actor can be a user or anything that can exchange information with the system.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute scenarios of use cases.
A black-box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute scenarios of use cases.
Confirmation by examination and through provision of objective evidence that the requirements for a specific intended use or application have been fulfilled.
Confirmation by examination and through provision of objective evidence that specified requirements have been fulfilled.