Only when apps and sites run slowly or freeze do we really notice the importance of how well they function. Applications and networks that support these services are under extreme pressure to perform flawlessly.
Ed Curran
Compounding the problem are short time-to-market requirements, as well as complexities related to integrating many third-party components, and the adoption of outsourcing. With compressed test cycles, many organizations have turned to automation, for functional testing and performance testing, as the best answer to these challenges.
In this White Paper, by XBOSoft vice president of engineering Ed Curran, we lay out the challenges to using automated performance testing to measure response times under expected site traffic (loads). We focus on three key areas that, if mastered, can truly empower your automated performance testing capabilities.
Create Realistic Tests. The ultimate goal is to generate test scenarios that are as realistic to the actual application as it will exist in its production environment as possible. This white paper is designed to aid the tester in identifying key points that should be carefully considered when determining critical areas to be tested.
Standalone Performance Tests Have Merit. Even without creating a multi-dimensional, multi-process test, there is still value to conducting automated performance testing against a single process or user flow. The scenario is still not “complete,” but critical software problems can still be identified.
Avoid Non-Critical Areas. Arguably one of the largest and most common risks in automated performance testing is focusing on non-critical areas and wasting a lot of time. Don’t develop a sense of false security by having lots of performance tests that give you results on non-critical functionality.
Automated load testing tools aren’t silver bullets; software testing requires an ongoing commitment to quality from the beginning to the end of the software development process. But just as shovels, hoes, wheelbarrows and sprinkler systems can make the gardener’s job easier and more productive, so do testing tools improve both the efficiency and productivity of the testing strategy — when used to their potential. Download this white paper, and find other resources for better utilizing automated tools on the XBOSoft website.
Please direct questions about automated performance testing tools to Curran [[email protected] ] or CEO Philip Lew [[email protected]].
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