The Test Automation Strategy is crucial for the success of test automation, and it is important to spend sufficient time defining a well-defined strategy. Without a proper strategy, automation can lose its focus. When choosing the right automation tool, several factors should be considered:
1. Software nature: Determine whether the application being tested is web-based or mobile-based. For web-based testing, tools like Selenium are suitable, while Appium is recommended for mobile-based testing.
2. Programmer experience: Choose frameworks, languages, and tools that match the testers’ expertise and comfort. Popular languages for automation testing include Java, JavaScript, Ruby, and C#.
3. Open Source or commercial: Depending on budget constraints, one may opt for open-source tools like Selenium or Appium. It’s essential to note that open-source tools are not necessarily inferior to commercial ones. For example, Selenium Webdriver is widely favored by automated testers worldwide.
4. Real device access: Testing websites or apps requires real devices and browsers. With a wide range of device-browser-OS combinations and device fragmentation, websites must be optimized for different configurations, viewports, and screen resolutions.
To build an effective Test Automation Strategy, follow these best practices:
1. Define goals: Clearly articulate the long-term and short-term goals of test automation, including the expected business value, scope, and automation percentage.
2. Test approach planning: Understand the different levels of testing and create a test pyramid that includes unit testing, integration/API testing, UI testing, and end-to-end testing.
3. Choose a framework: Evaluate various automation frameworks like linear (record & playback), data-driven, keyword-driven, page object model, modular-driven, library architecture, behavior-driven, or hybrid. Each framework has its pros and cons.
4. Evaluate and choose the tool: Evaluate testing tools based on the scope, functionality, supported platforms, cost, programming language support, community support, and learning curve. Perform a proof of concept (POC) to assess the tool’s suitability.
5. Test automation environment: Define where test data will be stored, how automation execution and reporting will be managed, and which environments (e.g., dev, staging, production) will be used for validation.
6. Risk analysis: Identify potential risks associated with automation testing, such as separate credentials for testing and production environments, and develop mitigation plans.
7. Define automation team working strategy: Assign roles and responsibilities, decide when to automate test cases, and consider different team structures like separate automation teams, combined manual and automation teams, or scrum teams.
8. Learning goals: Consider the learning curve when adopting new tools or transitioning from manual to automation testing. Set learning goals and communicate the expected impact on productivity.
9. Create, execute, and maintain tests: Implement automation scripts for critical features and prioritize timely maintenance due to ongoing development.
10. Execution plans and DevOps integration: Plan test suite creation, execution strategies (e.g., smoke, regression), feature-wise test suites, and consider integrating with DevOps practices to streamline testing processes.
11. Reporting: Create clear and concise reports that focus on essential information, such as the number of test cases, pass/fail status, and include graphs and trends for better understanding. Define a strategy for sharing and storing reports.
12. Review, analyze, and retrospect: Continuously review and improve test scripts, identify causes of false failures, and make adjustments to the automation strategy. Seek feedback and opinions from the team and make decisions collectively.
Overall, the success of test automation relies on a well-defined strategy and careful implementation. The Test Automation Strategy should be transparent to management, and decisions should be based on collected feedback and opinions.