When it comes to website testing, many different types of tests can be performed to ensure that the website is functioning properly. But exactly what is web application testing? As Rootshell explains, one of the most important types of tests is usability testing, which is used to determine how easy the website is to use. Another important type of test is database testing, which is used to ensure that the website’s database is functioning properly. Compatibility testing is also important, as it ensures that the website is compatible with different browsers and operating systems.
In this article, we will discuss the different types of website testing and the importance of each type. We will also provide tips on how to perform these tests.
What is Web Application Testing?
Also known as web testing, web application testing is a practice that assesses the quality and functionality of a particular website to see whether it’s working as per the requirements or as intended. Web testing helps you to spot bugs at any particular time, before a release, or regularly.
Testing is of great significance to software development. Every time there’s a code change no matter how tiny; bugs are bound to appear in the system. These bugs not only require high costs to fix but they also take a considerable amount of time that the organization would use elsewhere. Therefore, it is important to have effective and efficient web testing to save time and organizational resources during app development.
How Can You Test Web Applications?
Developing a high-quality web app takes plenty of testing which can be quite time-consuming and tedious if done manually. That is why many quality assurance teams depend on automation to develop reliable, efficient and fast test cases for their web apps.
Automation of tests helps to assign these repetitive and routine tasks to machines. The tests usually compare actual results against the forecasted results. This technique helps to notice bugs in simple use cases and specific operations, including the login process, password resets, registering a new account, and more.
When web tests are automated, the testers can save plenty of time and effort that otherwise would have been spent doing monotonous tasks. This is because automated tests can be scheduled at intervals or carried out continuously. When the testers are relieved of these time-consuming activities, they can concentrate on exploratory testing and other types of testing that require human intervention.
Types of Web Application Testing
1. Performance Testing
Performance testing makes sure that your website can operate under all loads. Some of the tasks involved in this process include:
- Response times at various connection speeds
- Load test the web app to assess its behavior under peak and normal loads
- Stress testing the site to assess its breakpoint if pushed beyond its normal loads
- Test to see if a crash can occur because of peak load
2. Compatibility Testing
Compatibility tests help to make sure that your site is correctly displayed across various devices. It includes a browser compatibility test to check if the same site is displayed differently across various browsers. You want to make sure your web app is correctly displayed across different browsers, AJAX, JavaScript, and the authentication process is working correctly.
3. Interface Testing
Here, three layers are tested – application, database server and Web. You should test how the system responds when a connection between these three layers can’t be established and whether the right message is displayed to the user.
4. Usability Testing
Here, test the navigation of the site and test the website content to check for grammatical errors.
What is Web Application Testing in Summary
As a tester, it’s essential to understand that web application testing is a tedious and time-consuming process and you’re highly likely to encounter obstacles along the way. Among the key challenges that you’re likely to face is deadline pressure. Also, you need to determine the number of times you will change the code.
Ensure that you plan your tasks and understand what is expected of you. You want to define all the activities involved in web app testing and then design a work chart for precise planning and estimates.
