What distinguishes a great software program from numerous ones? Beyond essential features, what makes an application run smoothly under pressure and provide a great user experience? Non-Functional Testing (NFT) holds the crucial link to the solution.
According to a Statista survey, 67% of software development teams prioritized non-functional testing more in 2023 than 59% in 2022.
In today’s digital world, it’s essential to be updated with novel trends. Usage of apps has risen tremendously and major shifts take place in them almost every day. With changes becoming trendsetters, firms shouldn’t limit themselves to functional testing alone but should equally emphasize NFT before releasing their software or product.
Uncover the best practices that revolutionize your software quality procedures, ensuring that your apps are not only operational but also robust, effective, and easy to use.
Best Practices for NFT
Software application performance and overall quality are enhanced by non-functional testing. The following are some recommended procedures for efficient non-functional testing:
- Determine clear non-functional requirements: Collaborate with stakeholders to accurately document non-functional requirements, including those related to scalability, performance, security, and usability. This prepares the ground for thorough testing.
- Implement a variety of non-functional tests: Perform several types of non-functional tests, such as scalability, compatibility, security, performance, and reliability tests. This gives an overall picture of the behavior of the software.
- Set priorities for important non-functional scenarios: Based on the planned use of the product and user expectations, determine and concentrate on the most significant non-functional testing cases. This guarantees the effective use of testing.
- Utilizing automation to achieve scalability: To facilitate repeatable and scalable testing, automate non-functional tests like load and stress tests. This assists in locating vulnerabilities and performance bottlenecks.
- Keep up thorough documentation: To show compliance and make maintenance easier in the future, record non-functional testing procedures, outcomes, and any necessary compliance requirements.
- Continuously integrate NFT: To find and fix problems early, incorporate non-functional testing throughout the software development lifecycle from the beginning to the finish.
Best Practices for various types of NFT:
With various types of non-functional testing, 5 types of NFTs with their best practices are discussed here.
1.Performance Testing
- Performance Metrics: Clearly define Performance Testing KPIs, including throughput, response time, and resource usage.
- Stress Testing: Test the system’s limits to see how it responds to extreme conditions. Determine the system’s weak points and ensure it recovers gracefully..
- Load Testing: Evaluate if the system can manage the anticipated load. As the load is increased gradually, keep an eye on the system’s performance.
- Testing for Scalability: Make sure the system can adjust its size in response to load. Verify both the vertical and horizontal scaling procedures.
2. Security Testing
- Penetration Testing: To find and exploit vulnerabilities, do both automated and manual penetration testing that mimics attacks by malevolent users.
- Access Control Testing: Make sure the right access controls are in place by verifying that users can only access the resources permitted for their utilization.
- Data Security: Verify that sensitive data is protected both in transit and at rest by data security testing in software testing through various encryption techniques.
- Testing for Compliance: Verify that the system abides with all applicable security guidelines and laws
3. Usability Testing
- Accessibility Testing: Make sure people of all sectors may utilize the application without restriction on access. Use tools to verify adherence to standards.
- UI consistency: Check whether the UI remains consistent across various screens and devices. Ensure the layout and navigation make sense.
- Documentation: Assist customers in comprehending and efficiently utilizing the application by offering clear and concise documentation and help guides.
4. Compatibility Testing in Software Testing
- Testing Across Browsers: Check if the program functions properly in several web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
- Testing Across Platforms: Make sure the program works correctly on a range of devices (such as smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers) and operating systems (such as Windows, macOS, and Linux).
- Backward Compatibility: Verify that the application functions as intended by testing its compatibility with earlier software versions.
5. Reliability Testing
- Testing for failover: Check the system’s resistance to failures and ensure backup mechanisms can be used without causing data loss or downtime.
- Recovery Testing: Verify the system can promptly and fully recover from crashes, hardware malfunctions, and other disturbances.
- Testing for Stability: Ensure the system remains stable under normal and peak loads.
- Data Accuracy: Ensure data remains correct and consistent even after recovery from failures.
Use Cases of Non-Functional Testing
- NFT in Insurance
Objective: The client is a popular Insurance Firm with several branches around the UK. They wanted to create a direct-to-consumer, new brand for their insurance products.
Role of NFT: During the design phase, more than 300 Non-Functional Requirements (NFRs) were found. The NFT approach verified that the system satisfies capacity and scalability requirements, eliminating potential disruptions to client service.
Benefits
- Performance and load tests showed the system met capacity and scalability requirements and was appropriately sized to handle target volumes.
- Early in the development process, several basic architectural and infrastructure constraints were fixed, lowering delivery costs.
- NFT enhanced the performance of the solution along with assuring the governance of third-party suppliers.
NFT in Healthcare
Problem Statement: The Home Healthcare client wanted to reduce the possibility of an application failure due to a lack of QA experience and bandwidth.
Impact of Non-Functional Testing: Non-functional testing identified performance issues and validated that the application could support more users. NFT produced code-level modifications, which improved the application’s reliability, effectiveness, and user experience.
Result: Extensive testing produced an efficient application with all performance issues resolved, assuring steady use even with heavy user loads.
Conclusion
Software quality must be ensured by putting best practices for non-functional testing (NFT) into practice. Non-functional testing improves the efficiency, reliability, and customer satisfaction of software applications by locating and resolving possible bottlenecks, security flaws, and problems with the user experience. Organizations can develop reliable and high-performing software that meets user expectations and endures real-world challenges by using an organized and comprehensive approach to NFT.