ISTQB Glossary Terms

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benchmark test

(1) A standard against which measurements or comparisons can be made. (2) A test that is be used to compare components or systems to each other or to a standard as in (1). [After IEEE 610]

test design

(1) See test design specification. (2) The process of transforming general testing objectives into tangible test conditions and test cases.

maturity

(1) The capability of an organization with respect to the effectiveness and efficiency of its processes and work practices. See also Capability Maturity Model, Test Maturity Model. (2) The capability of the software product to avoid failure as a result of defects in the software. [ISO 9126] See also reliability. The ability of the software product to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time, or for a specified number of operations. [ISO 9126]

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orthogonal array

A 2-dimensional array constructed with special mathematical properties, such that choosing any two columns in the array provides every pair combination of each number in the array.

LCSAJ

A Linear Code Sequence And Jump, consisting of the following three items (conventionally identified by line numbers in a source code listing): the start of the linear sequence of executable statements, the end of the linear sequence, and the target line to which control flow is transferred at the end of the linear sequence.

branch

A basic block that can be selected for execution based on a program construct in which one of two or more alternative program paths is available, e.g. case, jump, go to, if-then-else.

boundary value analysis

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed based on boundary values. See also boundary value. 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.

syntax testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed based upon the definition of the input domain and/or output domain.

cause-effect graphing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed from cause-effect graphs. [BS 7925/2]

pairwise testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute all possbile discrete combinations of each pair of input parameters. See also orthogonal array testing. A systematic way of testing all-pair combinations of variables using orthogonal arrays. It significantly reduces the number of all combinations of variables to test all pair combinations.

process cycle test

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute business procedures and processes. [TMap] See also procedure testing. Testing aimed at ensuring that the component or system can operate in conjunction with new or existing users' business procedures or operational procedures.

elementary comparison testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute combinations of inputs using the concept of condition determination coverage. [TMap]

equivalence partitioning

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.

decision table testing

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. [Veenendaal] See also decision table. 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.

use case testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute user scenarios.

state transition testing

A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute valid and invalid state transitions. See also N-switch testing. A form of state transition testing in which test cases are designed to execute all valid sequences of N+1 transitions. [Chow]

classification tree method

A black box test design technique in which test cases, described by means of a classification tree, are designed to execute combinations of representatives of input and/or output domains. [Grochtmann]

random testing

A black box test design technique where test cases are selected, possibly using a pseudo-random generation algorithm, to match an operational profile. This technique can be used for testing non-functional attributes such as reliability and performance.

continuous representation

A capability maturity model structure wherein capability levels provide a recommended order for approaching process improvement within specified process areas. [CMMI]

test log

A chronological record of relevant details about the execution of tests. [IEEE 829]

system

A collection of components organized to accomplish a specific function or set of functions. [IEEE 610]

finite state machine

A computational model consisting of a finite number of states and transitions between those states, possibly with accompanying actions. [IEEE 610]

requirement

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. [After IEEE 610]

Test Process Improvement (TPI)

A continuous framework for test process improvement that describes the key elements of an effective test process, especially targeted at system testing and acceptance testing.

pointer

A data item that specifies the location of another data item; for example, a data item that specifies the address of the next employee record to be processed. [IEEE 610]

memory leak

A defect in a program's dynamic store allocation logic that causes it to fail to reclaim memory after it has finished using it, eventually causing the program to fail due to lack of memory.

component specification

A description of a component's function in terms of its output values for specified input values under specified conditions, and required non-functional behavior (e.g. resource utilization).

testability review

A detailed check of the test basis to determine whether the test basis is at an adequate quality level to act as an input document for the test process. [After TMap]

incremental development model

A development life cycle where a project is broken into a series of increments, each of which delivers a portion of the functionality in the overall project requirements. The requirements are prioritized and delivered in priority order in the appropriate increment. In some (but not all) versions of this life cycle model, each subproject follows a 'mini V-model' with its own design, coding and testing phases.

iterative development model

A development life cycle where a project is broken into a usually large number of iterations. An iteration is a complete development loop resulting in a release (internal or external) of an executable product, a subset of the final product under development, which grows from iteration to iteration to become the final product.

buffer

A device or storage area used to store data temporarily for differences in rates of data flow, time or occurrence of events, or amounts of data that can be handeld by the devices or processes involved in the transfer or use of the data. [IEEE 610]

simulator

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. [After IEEE 610, DO178b] See also emulator. A device, computer program, or system that accepts the same inputs and produces the same outputs as a given system. [IEEE 610]

emulator

A device, computer program, or system that accepts the same inputs and produces the same outputs as a given system. [IEEE 610] See also simulator. 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. [After IEEE 610, DO178b]

state diagram

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. [IEEE 610]

configuration management

A discipline applying technical and administrative direction and surveillance to: identify and document the functional and physical characteristics of a configuration item, control changes to those characteristics, record and report change processing and implementation status, and verify compliance with specified requirements. [IEEE 610]

test phase

A distinct set of test activities collected into a manageable phase of a project, e.g. the execution activities of a test level. [After Gerrard]

test plan

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. [After IEEE 829]

release note

A document identifying test items, their configuration, current status and other delivery information delivered by development to testing, and possibly other stakeholders, at the start of a test execution phase. [After IEEE 829]

test evaluation report

A document produced at the end of the test process summarizing all testing activities and results. It also contains an evaluation of the test process and lessons learned.

incident report

A document reporting on any event that occurred, e.g. during the testing, which requires investigation. [After IEEE 829]

defect report

A document reporting on any flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function. [After IEEE 829]

test procedure specification

A document specifying a sequence of actions for the execution of a test. Also known as test script or manual test script. [After IEEE 829]

test case specification

A document specifying a set of test cases (objective, inputs, test actions, expected results, and execution preconditions) for a test item. [After IEEE 829]

test design specification

A document specifying the test conditions (coverage items) for a test item, the detailed test approach and identifying the associated high level test cases. [After IEEE 829]

test progress report

A document summarizing testing activities and results, produced at regular intervals, to report progress of testing activities against a baseline (such as the original test plan) and to communicate risks and alternatives requiring a decision to management.

test summary report

A document summarizing testing activities and results. It also contains an evaluation of the corresponding test items against exit criteria. [After IEEE 829]

test specification

A document that consists of a test design specification, test case specification and/or test procedure specification.

specification

A document that specifies, ideally in a complete, precise and verifiable manner, the requirements, design, behavior, or other characteristics of a component or system, and, often, the procedures for determining whether these provisions have been satisfied. [After IEEE 610]

risk

A factor that could result in future negative consequences; usually expressed as impact and likelihood.

quality attribute

A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality. [IEEE 610]

Test Maturity Model (TMM)

A five level staged framework for test process improvement, related to the Capability Maturity Model (CMM), that describes the key elements of an effective test process.

Test Maturity Model Integrated (TMMi)

A five level staged framework for test process improvement, related to the Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), that describes the key elements of an effective test process.

Capability Maturity Model (CMM)

A five level staged framework that describes the key elements of an effective software process. The Capability Maturity Model covers best-practices for planning, engineering and managing software development and maintenance. [CMM] See also Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). A framework that describes the key elements of an effective product development and maintenance process. The Capability Maturity Model Integration covers best-practices for planning, engineering and managing product development and maintenance. CMMI is the designated successor of the CMM. [CMMI]

defect

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.

N-switch testing

A form of state transition testing in which test cases are designed to execute all valid sequences of N+1 transitions. [Chow] See also state transition testing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute valid and invalid state transitions.

control flow analysis

A form of static analysis based on a representation of sequences of events (paths) in the execution through a component or system.

data flow analysis

A form of static analysis based on the definition and usage of variables.

Test Point Analysis (TPA)

A formula based test estimation method based on function point analysis. [TMap]

Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI)

A framework that describes the key elements of an effective product development and maintenance process. The Capability Maturity Model Integration covers best-practices for planning, engineering and managing product development and maintenance. CMMI is the designated successor of the CMM. [CMMI] See also Capabilit Maturity Model (CMM). A five level staged framework that describes the key elements of an effective software process. The Capability Maturity Model covers best-practices for planning, engineering and managing software development and maintenance. [CMM]

V-model

A framework to describe the software development life cycle activities from requirements specification to maintenance. The V-model illustrates how testing activities can be integrated into each phase of the software development life cycle.

cause-effect graph

A graphical representation of inputs and/or stimuli (causes) with their associated outputs (effects), which can be used to design test cases.

state table

A grid showing the resulting transitions for each state combined with each possible event, showing both valid and invalid transitions.

configuration control board (CCB)

A group of people responsible for evaluating and approving or disapproving proposed changes to configuration items, and for ensuring implementation of approved changes. [IEEE 610]

test type

A group of test activities aimed at testing a component or system focused on a specific test objective, i.e. functional test, usability test, regression test etc. A test type may take place on one or more test levels or test phases. [After TMap]

test level

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. [After TMap]

test policy

A high level document describing the principles, approach and major objectives of the organization regarding testing.

performance indicator

A high level metric of effectiveness and/or efficiency used to guide and control progressive development, e.g. lead-time slip for software development. [CMMI]

test performance indicator

A high level metric of effectiveness and/or efficiency used to guide and control progressive test development, e.g. Defect Detection Percentage (DDP).

test strategy

A high-level description of the test levels to be performed and the testing within those levels for an organization or programme (one or more projects).

error

A human action that produces an incorrect result. [After IEEE 610]

test schedule

A list of activities, tasks or events of the test process, identifying their intended start and finish dates and/or times, and interdependencies.

condition

A logical expression that can be evaluated as True or False, e.g. A>B. See also test condition. 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.

metric

A measurement scale and the method used for measurement. [ISO 14598]

retrospective meeting

A meeting at the end of a project during which the project team members evaluate the project and learn lessons that can be applied to the next project.

buffer overflow

A memory access defect due to the attempt by a process to store data beyond the boundaries of a fixed length buffer, resulting in overwriting of adjacent memory areas or the raising of an overflow exception. See also buffer. A device or storage area used to store data temporarily for differences in rates of data flow, time or occurrence of events, or amounts of data that can be handeld by the devices or processes involved in the transfer or use of the data. [IEEE 610]

mutation analysis

A method to determine test suite thoroughness by measuring the extent to which a test suite can discriminate the program from slight variants (mutants) of the program.

component

A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.

staged representation

A model structure wherein attaining the goals of a set of process areas establishes a maturity level; each level builds a foundation for subsequent levels. [CMMI]

reliability growth model

A model that shows the growth in reliability over time during continuous testing of a component or system as a result of the removal of defects that result in reliability failures.

audit trail

A path by which the original input to a process (e.g. data) can be traced back through the process, taking the process output as a starting point. This facilitates defect analysis and allows a process audit to be carried out. [After TMap]

feasible path

A path for which a set of input values and preconditions exists which causes it to be executed.

infeasible path

A path that cannot be exercised by any set of possible input values.

technical review

A peer group discussion activity that focuses on achieving consensus on the technical approach to be taken. [Gilb and Graham, IEEE 1028] See also peer review. A review of a software work product by colleagues of the producer of the product for the purpose of identifying defects and improvements. Examples are inspection, technical review and walkthrough.

milestone

A point in time in a project at which defined (intermediate) deliverables and results should be ready.

wild pointer

A pointer that references a location that is out of scope for that pointer or that does not exist. See also pointer. A data item that specifies the location of another data item; for example, a data item that specifies the address of the next employee record to be processed. [IEEE 610]

hyperlink

A pointer within a web page that leads to other web pages.

equivalence partition

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.

defect based test design technique

A procedure to derive and/or select test cases targeted at one or more defect categories, with tests being developed from what is known about the specific defect category. See also defect taxonomy. A system of (hierarchical) categories designed to be a useful aid for reproducibly classifying defects.

exercised

A program element is said to be exercised by a test case when the input value causes the execution of that element, such as a statement, decision, or other structural element.

process improvement

A program of activities designed to improve the performance and maturity of the organization's processes, and the result of such a program. [CMMI]

decision

A program point at which the control flow has two or more alternative routes. A node with two or more links to separate branches.

scripting language

A programming language in which executable test scripts are written, used by a test execution tool (e.g. a capture/playback tool).

project

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. [ISO 9000]

Software Usability Measurement Inventory (SUMI)

A questionnaire based usability test technique to evaluate the usability, e.g. user-satisfaction, of a component or system. [Veenendaal]

test objective

A reason or purpose for designing and executing a test.

non-functional requirement

A requirement that does not relate to functionality, but to attributes such as reliability, efficiency, usability, maintainability and portability.

functional requirement

A requirement that specifies a function that a component or system must perform. [IEEE 610]

formal review

A review characterized by documented procedures and requirements, e.g. inspection.

informal review

A review not based on a formal (documented) procedure.

peer review

A review of a software work product by colleagues of the producer of the product for the purpose of identifying defects and improvements. Examples are inspection, technical review and walkthrough.

product risk

A risk directly related to the test object. See also risk. A factor that could result in future negative consequences; usually expressed as impact and likelihood.

project risk

A risk related to management and control of the (test) project, e.g. lack of staffing, strict deadlines, changing requirements, etc. See also risk. A factor that could result in future negative consequences; usually expressed as impact and likelihood.

measurement scale

A scale that constrains the type of data analysis that can be performed on it. [ISO 14598]

test execution schedule

A scheme for the execution of test procedures. The test procedures are included in the test execution schedule in their context and in the order in which they are to be executed.

data driven testing

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. [Fewster and Graham] See also keyword driven testing. 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.

keyword driven testing

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. See also data driven testing. 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. [Fewster and Graham]

control flow

A sequence of events (paths) in the execution through a component or system.

path

A sequence of events, e.g. executable statements, of a component or system from an entry point to an exit point.

subpath

A sequence of executable statements within a component.

basic block

A sequence of one or more consecutive executable statements containing no branches. Note: A node in a control flow graph represents a basic block.

use case

A sequence of transactions in a dialogue between a user and the system with a tangible result.

pseudo-random

A series which appears to be random but is in fact generated according to some prearranged sequence.

test target

A set of exit criteria.

test case

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. [After IEEE 610]

process

A set of interrelated activities, which transform inputs into outputs. [ISO 12207]

test

A set of one or more test cases. [IEEE 829]

test suite

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.

basis test set

A set of test cases derived from the internal structure of a component or specification to ensure that 100% of a specified coverage criterion will be achieved.

stub

A skeletal or special-purpose implementation of a software component, used to develop or test a component that calls or is otherwise dependent on it. It replaces a called component. [After IEEE 610]

tester

A skilled professional who is involved in the testing of a component or system.

driver

A software component or test tool that replaces a component that takes care of the control and/or the calling of a component or system. [After TMap]

pair programming

A software development approach whereby lines of code (production and/or test) of a component are written by two programmers sitting at a single computer. This implicitly means ongoing real-time code reviews are performed.

off-the-shelf software

A software product that is developed for the general market, i.e. for a large number of customers, and that is delivered to many customers in identical format.

test tool

A software product that supports one or more test activities, such as planning and control, specification, building initial files and data, test execution and test analysis. [TMap] See also CAST. Acronym for Computer Aided Software Testing.

monitor

A software tool or hardware device that runs concurrently with the component or system under test and supervises, records and/or analyses the behavior of the component or system. [After IEEE 610]

compiler

A software tool that translates programs expressed in a high order language into their machine language equivalents. [IEEE 610]

instrumenter

A software tool used to carry out instrumentation.

root cause

A source of a defect such that if it is removed, the occurance of the defect type is decreased or removed. [CMMI]

test oracle

A source to determine expected results to compare with the actual result of the software under test. An oracle may be the existing system (for a benchmark), a user-manual, or an individual's specialized knowledge, but should not be the code. [After Adrion]

intake test

A special instance of a smoke test to decide if the component or system is ready for detailed and further testing. An intake test is typically carried out at the start of the test execution phase. See also smoke test. A subset of all defined/planned test cases that cover the main functionality of a component or system, to ascertaining that the most crucial functions of a program work, but not bothering with finer details. A daily build and smoke test is among industry best practices.

risk type

A specific category of risk related to the type of testing that can mitigate (control) that category. For example the risk of user-interactions being misunderstood can be mitigated by usability testing.

load profile

A specification of the activity which a component or system being tested may experience in production. A load profile consists of a designated number of virtual users who process a defined set of transactions in a specified time period and according to a predefined operational profile. See also operational profile. The representation of a distinct set of tasks performed by the component or system, possibly based on user behavior when interacting with the component or system, and their probabilities of occurance. A task is logical rather that physical and can be executed over several machines or be executed in non-contiguous time segments.

baseline

A specification or software product that has been formally reviewed or agreed upon, that thereafter serves as the basis for further development, and that can be changed only through a formal change control process. [After IEEE 610]

test charter

A statement of test objectives, and possibly test ideas about how to test. Test charters are used in exploratory testing. See also exploratory testing. An informal test design technique where the tester actively controls the design of the tests as those tests are performed and uses information gained while testing to design new and better tests. [After Bach]

executable statement

A statement which, when compiled, is translated into object code, and which will be executed procedurally when the program is running and may perform an action on data.

heuristic evaluation

A static usability test technique to determine the compliance of a user interface with recognized usability principles (the so-called "heuristics").

walkthrough

A step-by-step presentation by the author of a document in order to gather information and to establish a common understanding of its content. [Freedman and Weinberg, IEEE 1028] See also peer review. A review of a software work product by colleagues of the producer of the product for the purpose of identifying defects and improvements. Examples are inspection, technical review and walkthrough.

smoke test

A subset of all defined/planned test cases that cover the main functionality of a component or system, to ascertaining that the most crucial functions of a program work, but not bothering with finer details. A daily build and smoke test is among industry best practices. See also intake test. A special instance of a smoke test to decide if the component or system is ready for detailed and further testing. An intake test is typically carried out at the start of the test execution phase. See also smoke test. A subset of all defined/planned test cases that cover the main functionality of a component or system, to ascertaining that the most crucial functions of a program work, but not bothering with finer details. A daily build and smoke test is among industry best practices.

best practice

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.

defect taxonomy

A system of (hierarchical) categories designed to be a useful aid for reproducibly classifying defects.

safety critical system

A system whose failure or malfunction may result in death or serious injury to people, or loss or severe damage to equipment, or environmental harm.

Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA)

A systematic approach to risk identification and analysis of identifying possible modes of failure and attempting to prevent their occurrence. See also Failure Mode, Effect and Criticality Analysis (FMECA).

management review

A systematic evaluation of software acquisition, supply, development, operation, or maintenance process, performed by or on behalf of management that monitors progress, determines the status of plans and schedules, confirms requirements and their system allocation, or evaluates the effectiveness of management approaches to achieve fitness for purpose. [After IEEE 610, IEEE 1028]

orthogonal array testing

A systematic way of testing all-pair combinations of variables using orthogonal arrays. It significantly reduces the number of all combinations of variables to test all pair combinations. See also pairwise testing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute all possbile discrete combinations of each pair of input parameters.

decision table

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.

Fault Tree Analysis (FTA)

A technique used to analyze the causes of faults (defects). The technique visually models how logical relationships between failures, human errors, and external events can combine to cause specific faults to disclose.

hazard analysis

A technique used to characterize the elements of risk. The result of a hazard analysis will drive the methods used for development and testing of a system. See also risk analysis. The process of assessing identified risks to estimate their impact and probability of occurrence (likelihood).

exhaustive testing

A test approach in which the test suite comprises all combinations of input values and preconditions.

frozen test basis

A test basis document that can only be amended by a formal change control process. See also baseline. A specification or software product that has been formally reviewed or agreed upon, that thereafter serves as the basis for further development, and that can be changed only through a formal change control process. [After IEEE 610]

blocked test case

A test case that cannot be executed because the preconditions for its execution are not fulfilled.

low level test case

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. See also high level test case. 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.

high level test case

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. See also low level test case. 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.

statistical testing

A test design technique in which a model of the statistical distribution of the input is used to construct representative test cases. See also operational profile testing. Statistical testing using a model of system operations (short duration tasks) and their probability of typical use. [Musa]

error guessing

A test design technique where the experience of the tester is used to anticipate what defects might be present in the component or system under test as a result of errors made, and to design tests specifically to expose them.

test harness

A test environment comprised of stubs and drivers needed to execute a test.

fail

A test is deemed to fail if its actual result does not match its expected result.

pass

A test is deemed to pass if its actual result matches its expected result.

test control

A test management task that deals with developing and applying a set of corrective actions to get a test project on track when monitoring shows a deviation from what was planned. See also test management. The planning, estimating, monitoring and control of test activities, typically carried out by a test manager.

test monitoring

A test management task that deals with the activities related to periodically checking the status of a test project. Reports are prepared that compare the actuals to that which was planned. See also test management. The planning, estimating, monitoring and control of test activities, typically carried out by a test manager.

master test plan

A test plan that typically addresses multiple test levels. See also test plan. 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. [After IEEE 829]

level test plan

A test plan that typically addresses one test level. See also test plan. 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. [After IEEE 829]

phase test plan

A test plan that typically addresses one test phase. See also test plan. 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. [After IEEE 829]

false-fail result

A test result in which a defect is reported although no such defect actually exists in the test object.

false-pass result

A test result which fails to identify the presence of a defect that is actually present in the test object.

test comparator

A test tool to perform automated test comparison of actual results with expected results.

user test

A test whereby real-life users are involved to evaluate the usability of a component or system.

fault seeding tool

A tool for seeding (i.e. intentionally inserting) faults in a component or system.

static analyzer

A tool that carries out static analysis.

static code analyzer

A tool that carries out static code analysis. The tool checks source code, for certain properties such as conformance to coding standards, quality metrics or data flow anomalies.

defect management tool

A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of defects and changes. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the allocation, correction and re-testing of defects and provide reporting facilities. See also incident management tool. A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of incidents. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the allocation, correction and re-testing of incidents and provide reporting facilities.

incident management tool

A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of incidents. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the allocation, correction and re-testing of incidents and provide reporting facilities. See also defect management tool. A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of defects and changes. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the allocation, correction and re-testing of defects and provide reporting facilities.

unit test framework

A tool that provides an environment for unit or component testing in which a component can be tested in isolation or with suitable stubs and drivers. It also provides other support for the developer, such as debugging capabilities. [Graham]

coverage tool

A tool that provides objective measures of what structural elements, e.g. statements, branches have been exercised by a test suite.

dynamic analysis tool

A tool that provides run-time information on the state of the software code. These tools are most commonly used to identify unassigned pointers, check pointer arithmetic and to monitor the allocation, use and de-allocation of memory and to flag memory leaks.

security testing tool

A tool that provides support for testing security characteristics and vulnerabilities.

configuration management tool

A tool that provides support for the identification and control of configuration items, their status over changes and versions, and the release of baselines consisting of configuration items.

review tool

A tool that provides support to the review process. Typical features include review planning and tracking support, communication support, collaborative reviews and a repository for collecting and reporting of metrics.

test management tool

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.

security tool

A tool that supports operational security.

stress testing tool

A tool that supports stress testing.

requirements management tool

A tool that supports the recording of requirements, requirements attributes (e.g. priority, knowledge responsible) and annotation, and facilitates traceability through layers of requirements and requirements change management. Some requirements management tools also provide facilities for static analysis, such as consistency checking and violations to pre-defined requirements rules.

test design tool

A tool that supports the test design activity by generating test inputs from a specification that may be held in a CASE tool repository, e.g. requirements management tool, from specified test conditions held in the tool itself, or from code.

modelling tool

A tool that supports the validation of models of the software or system [Graham].

performance testing tool

A tool to support performance testing and that usually has two main facilities: load generation and test transaction measurement. Load generation can simulate either multiple users or high volumes of input data. During execution, response time measurements are taken from selected transactions and these are logged. Performance testing tools normally provide reports based on test logs and graphs of load against response times.

debugging tool

A tool used by programmers to reproduce failures, investigate the state of programs and find the corresponding defect. Debuggers enable programmers to execute programs step by step, to halt a program at any program statement and to set and examine program variables.

hyperlink tool

A tool used to check that no brtoken hyperlinks are present on a web site.

state transition

A transition between two states of a component or system.

classification tree

A tree showing equivalence parititions hierarchically ordered, which is used to design test cases in the classification tree method. See also classification tree method. A black box test design technique in which test cases, described by means of a classification tree, are designed to execute combinations of representatives of input and/or output domains. [Grochtmann]

big-bang testing

A type of integration testing in which software elements, hardware elements, or both are combined all at once into a component or an overall system, rather than in stages. [After IEEE 610] See also integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems.

inspection

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. [After IEEE 610, IEEE 1028] See also peer review. A review of a software work product by colleagues of the producer of the product for the purpose of identifying defects and improvements. Examples are inspection, technical review and walkthrough.

stress testing

A type of performance testing conducted to evaluate a system or component at or beyond the limits of its anticipated or specified work loads, or with reduced availability of resources such as access to memory or servers. [After IEEE 610] See also performance testing, load testing. The process of testing to determine the performance of a software product.

load testing

A type of performance testing conducted to evaluate the behavior of a component or system with increasing load, e.g. numbers of parallel users and/or numbers of transactions, to determine what load can be handled by the component or system. See also performance testing, stress testing. The process of testing to determine the performance of a software product.

capture/playback tool

A type of test execution tool where inputs are recorded during manual testing in order to generate automated test scripts that can be executed later (i.e. replayed). These tools are often used to support automated regression testing.

capture/replay tool

test data preparation tool

A type of test tool that enables data to be selected from existing databases or created, generated, manipulated and edited for use in testing.

test execution tool

A type of test tool that is able to execute other software using an automated test script, e.g. capture/playback. [Fewster and Graham]

input

A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is read by a component.

output

A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is written by a component.

thread testing

A version of component integration testing where the progressive integration of components follows the implementation of subsets of the requirements, as opposed to the integration of components by levels of a hierarchy.

test driven development

A way of developing software where the test cases are developed, and often automated, before the software is developed to run those test cases.

LCSAJ testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute LCSAJs.

branch testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute branches.

multiple condition testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute combinations of single condition outcomes (within one statement).

decision condition testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute condition outcomes and decision outcomes.

condition testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute condition outcomes.

decision testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute decision outcomes.

data flow testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute definition and use pairs of variables.

path testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute paths.

condition determination testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute single condition outcomes that independently affect a decision outcome.

statement testing

A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute statements.

site acceptance testing

Acceptance testing by users/customers at their site, to determine whether or not a component or system satisfies the user/customer needs and fits within the business processes, normally including hardware as well as software.

COTS

Acronym for Commercial Off-The-Shelf software. See off-the-shelf software. A software product that is developed for the general market, i.e. for a large number of customers, and that is delivered to many customers in identical format.

CASE

Acronym for Computer Aided Software Engineering.

CAST

Acronym for Computer Aided Software Testing. See also test automation.The use of software to perform or support test activities, e.g. test management, test design, test execution and results checking.

test basis

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. [After TMap]

control flow graph

An abstract representation of all possible sequences of events (paths) in the execution through a component or system.

data flow

An abstract representation of the sequence and possible changes of the state of data objects, where the state of an object is any of: creation, usage, or destruction. [Beizer]

configuration item

An aggregation of hardware, software or both, that is designated for configuration management and treated as a single entity in the configuration management process. [IEEE 610]

code coverage

An analysis method that determines which parts of the software have been executed (covered) by the test suite and which parts have not been executed, e.g. statement coverage, decision coverage or condition coverage.

root cause analysis

An analysis technique aimed at identifying the root causes of defects. By directing corrective measures at root causes, it is hoped that the likelihood of defect recurrence will be minimized.

business process-based testing

An approach to testing in which test cases are designed based on descriptions and/or knowledge of business processes.

requirements-based testing

An approach to testing in which test cases are designed based on test objectives and test conditions derived from requirements, e.g. tests that exercise specific functions or probe non-functional attributes such as reliability or usability.

design-based testing

An approach to testing in which test cases are designed based on the architecture and/or detailed design of a component or system (e.g. tests of interfaces between components or systems).

risk-based testing

An approach to testing to reduce the level of product risks and inform stakeholders on their status, starting in the initial stages of a project. It involves the identification of product risks and their use in guiding the test process.

feature

An attribute of a component or system specified or implied by requirements documentation (for example reliability, usability or design constraints). [After IEEE 1008]

test reproduceability

An attribute of a test indicating whether the same results are produced each time the test is executed.

configuration identification

An element of configuration management, consisting of selecting the configuration items for a system and recording their functional and physical characteristics in technical documentation. [IEEE 610]

configuration control

An element of configuration management, consisting of the evaluation, co-ordination, approval or disapproval, and implementation of changes to configuration items after formal establishment of their configuration identification. [IEEE 610]

status accounting

An element of configuration management, consisting of the recording and reporting of information needed to manage a configuration effectively. This information includes a listing of the approved configuration identification, the status of proposed changes to the configuration, and the implementation status of the approved changes. [IEEE 610]

variable

An element of storage in a computer that is accessible by a software program by referring to it by a name.

statement

An entity in a programming language, which is typically the smallest indivisible unit of execution.

coverage item

An entity or property used as a basis for test coverage, e.g. equivalence partitions or code statements.

test environment

An environment containing hardware, instrumentation, simulators, software tools, and other support elements needed to conduct a test. [After IEEE 610]

review

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. [After IEEE 1028]

data definition

An executable statement where a variable is assigned a value.

Wide Band Delphi

An expert based test estimation technique that aims at making an accurate estimation using the collective wisdom of the team members.

Failure Mode, Effect and Criticality Analysis (FMECA)

An extension of FMEA, as in addition to the basic FMEA, it includes a criticality analysis, which is used to chart the probability of failure modes against the severity of their consequences. The result highlights failure modes with relatively high probability and severity of consequences, allowing remedial effort to be directed where it will produce the greatest value. See also Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA).

top-down testing

An incremental approach to integration testing where the component at the top of the component hierarchy is tested first, with lower level components being simulated by stubs. Tested components are then used to test lower level components. The process is repeated until the lowest level components have been tested. See also integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems.

bottom-up testing

An incremental approach to integration testing where the lowest level components are tested first, and then used to facilitate the testing of higher level components. This process is repeated until the component at the top of the hierarchy is tested. See also integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems.

audit

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: (1) the form or content of the products to be produced (2) the process by which the products shall be produced (3) how compliance to standards or guidelines shall be measured. [IEEE 1028]

exploratory testing

An informal test design technique where the tester actively controls the design of the tests as those tests are performed and uses information gained while testing to design new and better tests. [After Bach]

specified input

An input for which the specification predicts a result.

boundary value

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.

input value

An instance of an input. See also input. A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is read by a component.

output value

An instance of an output. See also output.A variable (whether stored within a component or outside) that is written by a component.

functional integration

An integration approach that combines the components or systems for the purpose of getting a basic functionality working early. See also integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems. See also component integration testing, system integration testing.

interface testing

An integration test type that is concerned with testing the interfaces between components or systems.

test condition

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.

defect masking

An occurrence in which one defect prevents the detection of another. [After IEEE 610]

test session

An uninterrupted period of time spent in executing tests. In exploratory testing, each test session is focused on a charter, but testers can also explore new opportunities or issues during a session. The tester creates and executes test cases on the fly and records their progress. See also exploratory testing. An informal test design technique where the tester actively controls the design of the tests as those tests are performed and uses information gained while testing to design new and better tests. [After Bach]

static analysis

Analysis of software artifacts, e.g. requirements or code, carried out without execution of these software artifacts.

static code analysis

Analysis of source code carried out without execution of that software.

deliverable

Any (work) product that must be delivered to someone other than the (work) product's author.

anomaly

Any condition that deviates from expectation based on requirements specifications, design documents, user documents, standards, etc. or from someone's perception or experience. Anomalies may be found during, but not limited to, reviewing, testing, analysis, compilation, or use of software products or applicable documentation. [IEEE 1044] See also bug, defect, deviation, error, fault, failure, incident, problem. 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.

incident

Any event occurring that requires investigation. [After IEEE 1008]

testware

Artifacts produced during the test process required to plan, design, and execute tests, such as documentation, scripts, inputs, expected results, set-up and clear-up procedures, files, databases, environment, and any additional software or utilities used in testing. [After Fewster and Graham]

security

Attributes of software products that bear on its ability to prevent unauthorized access, whether accidental or deliberate, to programs and data. [ISO 9126] See also functionality. The capability of the software product to provide functions which meet stated and implied needs when the software is used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

exception handling

Behavior of a component or system in response to erroneous input, from either a human user or from another component or system, or to an internal failure.

path sensitizing

Choosing a set of input values to force the execution of a given path.

unreachable code

Code that cannot be reached and therefore is impossible to execute.

test script

Commonly used to refer to a test procedure specification, especially an automated one.

post-execution comparison

Comparison of actual and expected results, performed after the software has finished running.

dynamic comparison

Comparison of actual and expected results, performed while the software is being executed, for example by a test execution tool.

code

Computer instructions and data definitions expressed in a programming language or in a form output by an assembler, compiler or other translator. [IEEE 610]

software

Computer programs, procedures, and possibly associated documentation and data pertaining to the operation of a computer system. [IEEE 610]

verification

Confirmation by examination and through provision of objective evidence that specified requirements have been fulfilled. [ISO 9000]

validation

Confirmation by examination and through provision of objective evidence that the requirements for a specific intended use or application have been fulfilled. [ISO 9000]

quality management

Coordinated activities to direct and control an organization with regard to quality. Direction and control with regard to quality generally includes the establishment of the quality policy and quality objectives, quality planning, quality control, quality assurance and quality improvement. [ISO 9000]

structural coverage

Coverage measures based on the internal structure of a component or system.

test data

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.

pass/fail criteria

Decision rules used to determine whether a test item (function) or feature has passed or failed a test. [IEEE 829]

performance profiling

Definition of user profiles in performance, load and/or stress testing. Profiles should reflect anticipated or actual usage based on an operational profile of a component or system, and hence the expected workload. See also load profile, operational profile. A specification of the activity which a component or system being tested may experience in production. A load profile consists of a designated number of virtual users who process a defined set of transactions in a specified time period and according to a predefined operational profile.

failure

Deviation of the component or system from its expected delivery, service or result. [After Fenton]

attack

Directed and focused attempt to evaluate the quality, especially reliability, of a test object by attempting to force specific failures to occur.

test closure

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. See also test process. 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.

postcondition

Environmental and state conditions that must be fulfilled after the execution of a test or test procedure.

precondition

Environmental and state conditions that must be fulfilled before the component or system can be executed with a particular test or test procedure.

test run

Execution of a test on a specific version of the test object.

test cycle

Execution of the test process against a single identifiable release of the test object.

development testing

Formal or informal testing conducted during the implementation of a component or system, usually in the development environment by developers. [After IEEE 610]

acceptance testing

Formal testing with respect to user needs, requirements, and business processes conducted to determine whether or not a system satisfies the acceptance criteria and to enable the user, customers or other authorized entity to determine whether or not to accept the system. [After IEEE 610]

operational environment

Hardware and software products installed at users' or customers' sites where the component or system under test will be used. The software may include operating systems, database management systems, and other applications.

coverage analysis

Measurement of achieved coverage to a specified coverage item during test execution referring to predetermined criteria to determine whether additional testing is required and if so, which test cases are needed.

Function Point Analysis (FPA)

Method aiming to measure the size of the functionality of an information system. The measurement is independent of the technology. This measurement may be used as a basis for the measurement of productivity, the estimation of the needed resources, and project control.

maintenance

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. [IEEE 1219]

system of systems

Multiple heterogeneous, distributed systems that are embedded in networks at multiple levels and in multiple domains interconnected addressing large-scale inter-disciplinary common problems and purposes.

non-conformity

Non fulfillment of a specified requirement. [ISO 9000]

beta testing

Operational testing by potential and/or existing users/customers at an external site not otherwise involved with the developers, to determine whether or not a component or system satisfies the user/customer needs and fits within the business processes. Beta testing is often employed as a form of external acceptance testing for off-the-shelf software in order to acquire feedback from the market.

operational acceptance testing

Operational testing in the acceptance test phase, typically performed in a simulated real-life operational environment by operator and/or administrator focusing on operational aspects, e.g. recoverability, resource-behavior, installability and technical compliance. See also operational testing. Testing conducted to evaluate a component or system in its operational environment. [IEEE 610]

quality assurance

Part of quality management focused on providing confidence that quality requirements will be fulfilled. [ISO 9000]

white-box test design technique

Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the internal structure of a component or system.

functional test design technique

Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification of the functionality of a component or system without reference to its internal structure. See also black box test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

black-box test design technique

Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

experienced-based test design technique

Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on the tester's experience, knowledge and intuition.

non-functional test design techniques

Procedure to derive and/or select test cases for nonfunctional testing based on an analysis of the specification of a component or system without reference to its internal structure. See also black box test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

test design technique

Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.

incident logging

Recording the details of any incident that occurred, e.g. during testing.

Fault Detection Percentage (FDP)

See Defect Detection Percentage (DDP). The number of defects found by a test phase, divided by the number found by that test phase and any other means afterwards.

Software Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (SFMEA)

See Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA). A systematic approach to risk identification and analysis of identifying possible modes of failure and attempting to prevent their occurrence. See also Failure Mode, Effect and Criticality Analysis (FMECA).

Software Failure Mode Effect, and Criticality Analysis (SFMECA)

See Failure Mode and Effect, and Criticality Analysis (FMECA). An extension of FMEA, as in addition to the basic FMEA, it includes a criticality analysis, which is used to chart the probability of failure modes against the severity of their consequences. The result highlights failure modes with relatively high probability and severity of consequences, allowing remedial effort to be directed where it will produce the greatest value.

Software Fault Tree Analysis (SFTA)

See Fault Tree Analysis (FTA). A technique used to analyze the causes of faults (defects). The technique visually models how logical relationships between failures, human errors, and external events can combine to cause specific faults to disclose.

Chow's coverage metrics

See N-switch coverage. [Chow] The percentage of sequences of N+1 transitions that have been exercised by a test suite. [Chow]

acceptance

See acceptance testing. Formal testing with respect to user needs, requirements, and business processes conducted to determine whether or not a system satisfies the acceptance criteria and to enable the user, customers or other authorized entity to determine whether or not to accept the system. [After IEEE 610]

user acceptance testing

actual outcome

See actual result. The behavior produced/observed when a component or system is tested.

software attack

See attack. Directed and focused attempt to evaluate the quality, especially reliability, of a test object by attempting to force specific failures to occur.

fault attack

See attack.Directed and focused attempt to evaluate the quality, especially reliability, of a test object by attempting to force specific failures to occur.

mutation testing

See back-to-back testing.Testing in which two or more variants of a component or system are executed with the same inputs, the outputs compared, and analyzed in cases of discrepancies. [IEEE 610]

custom software

See bespoke software. Software developed specifically for a set of users or customers. The opposite is off-the-shelf software.

field testing

See beta testing. Operational testing by potential and/or existing users/customers at an external site not otherwise involved with the developers, to determine whether or not a component or system satisfies the user/customer needs and fits within the business processes. Beta testing is often employed as a form of external acceptance testing for off-the-shelf software in order to acquire feedback from the market.

black-box technique

See black box test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

specification-based technique

specification-based test design technique

specification-based testing

See black box testing. Testing, either functional or non-functional, without reference to the internal structure of the component or system. Black-box test design technique Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

boundary value testing

See boundary value analysis. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed based on boundary values.

algorithm test [TMap]

See branch testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute branches.

arc testing

See branch testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute branches.

record/playback tool

See capture/playback tool. A type of test execution tool where inputs are recorded during manual testing in order to generate automated test scripts that can be executed later (i.e. replayed). These tools are often used to support automated regression testing.

cause-effect analysis

See cause-effect graphing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed from cause-effect graphs. [BS 7925/2]

conformance testing

See compliance testing. The process of testing to determine the compliance of the component or system.

regulation testing

See compliance testing. The process of testing to determine the compliance of the component or system.

standards testing

See compliance testing. The process of testing to determine the compliance of the component or system.

link testing

See component integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and interaction between integrated components.

integration testing in the small

See component integration testing.Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and interaction between integrated components.

module testing

See component testing. The testing of individual software components. [After IEEE 610]

program testing

See component testing. The testing of individual software components. [After IEEE 610]

unit testing

See component testing. The testing of individual software components. [After IEEE 610]

module

See component. A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.

unit

See component. A minimal software item that can be tested in isolation.

multiple condition

See compound condition. Two or more single conditions joined by means of a logical operator (AND, OR or XOR), e.g. 'A>B AND C>1000'.

branch condition coverage

See condition coverage.The percentage of condition outcomes that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% condition coverage requires each single condition in every decision statement to be tested as True and False.

modified condition decision coverage

See condition determination coverage. The percentage of all single condition outcomes that independently affect a decision outcome that have been exercised by a test case suite. 100% condition determination coverage implies 100% decision condition coverage.

modified multiple condition coverage

modified condition decision testing

See condition determination testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute single condition outcomes that independently affect a decision outcome.

modified multiple condition testing

See condition determination testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute single condition outcomes that independently affect a decision outcome.

branch condition

See condition. A logical expression that can be evaluated as True or False, e.g. A>B.

change control board

See configuration control board. A group of people responsible for evaluating and approving or disapproving proposed changes to configuration items, and for ensuring implementation of approved changes. [IEEE 610]

change control

See configuration control. An element of configuration management, consisting of the evaluation, co-ordination, approval or disapproval, and implementation of changes to configuration items after formal establishment of their configuration identification. [IEEE 610]

version control

migration testing

See conversion testing. Testing of software used to convert data from existing systems for use in replacement systems.

coverage measurement tool

See coverage tool. A tool that provides objective measures of what structural elements, e.g. statements, branches have been exercised by a test suite.

test coverage

See coverage. The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which a specified coverage item has been exercised by a test suite.

cyclomatic number

See cyclomatic complexity.The number of independent paths through a program. Cyclomatic complexity is defined as: L - N + 2P, where - L = the number of edges/links in a graph - N = the number of nodes in a graph - P = the number of disconnected parts of the graph (e.g. a called graph and a subroutine) [After McCabe]

data integrity testing

See database integrity testing. Testing the methods and processes used to access and manage the data(base), to ensure access methods, processes and data rules function as expected and that during access to the database, data is not corrupted or unexpectedly deleted, updated or created.

debugger

See debugging tool. The process of finding, analyzing and removing the causes of failures in software.

cause-effect decision table

See decision table. 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.

defect based technique

See defect based test design technique. A procedure to derive and/or select test cases targeted at one or more defect categories, with tests being developed from what is known about the specific defect category.

fault density

See defect density. The number of defects identified in a component or system divided by the size of the component or system (expressed in standard measurement terms, e.g. lines-of-code, number of classes or function points).

bug tracking tool

See defect management tool. A tool that facilitates the recording and status tracking of defects and changes. They often have workflow-oriented facilities to track and control the allocation, correction and re-testing of defects and provide reporting facilities.

defect tracking tool

problem management

See defect management. The process of recognizing, investigating, taking action and disposing of defects. It involves recording defects, classifying them and identifying the impact. [After IEEE 1044]

fault masking

See defect masking. An occurrence in which one defect prevents the detection of another. [After IEEE 610]

bug report

See defect report. A document reporting on any flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function. [After IEEE 829]

problem report

See defect report. A document reporting on any flaw in a component or system that can cause the component or system to fail to perform its required function. [After IEEE 829]

bug taxonomy

See defect taxonomy.A system of (hierarchical) categories designed to be a useful aid for reproducibly classifying defects.

bug

See defect. 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.

fault

problem

test driver

See driver. A software component or test tool that replaces a component that takes care of the control and/or the calling of a component or system. [After TMap]

equivalence class

See equivalence partition.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.

partition testing

See equivalence partitioning. [Beizer] 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.

mistake

See error. A human action that produces an incorrect result. [After IEEE 610]

complete testing

See exhaustive testing.A test approach in which the test suite comprises all combinations of input values and preconditions.

completion criteria

See exit criteria. 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. [After Gilb and Graham]

test completion criteria

expected outcome

See expected result. The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.

predicted outcome

See expected result. The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.

experienced-based technique

See experienced-based test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on the tester's experience, knowledge and intuition.

test fail

See fail. A test is deemed to fail if its actual result does not match its expected result.

false-positive result

See false-fail result. A test result in which a defect is reported although no such defect actually exists in the test object.

false-negative result

See false-pass result. A test result which fails to identify the presence of a defect that is actually present in the test object.

bebugging

See fault seeding. [Abbott] The process of intentionally adding known defects to those already in the component or system for the purpose of monitoring the rate of detection and removal, and estimating the number of remaining defects. [IEEE 610]

error seeding

See fault seeding.error seeding tool: See fault seeding tool. The process of intentionally adding known defects to those already in the component or system for the purpose of monitoring the rate of detection and removal, and estimating the number of remaining defects. [IEEE 610]

software feature

See feature. An attribute of a component or system specified or implied by requirements documentation (for example reliability, usability or design constraints). [After IEEE 1008]

abstract test case

See high level test case. 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.

logical test case

deviation report

See incident report. A document reporting on any event that occurred, e.g. during the testing, which requires investigation. [After IEEE 829]

software test incident report

See incident report. A document reporting on any event that occurred, e.g. during the testing, which requires investigation. [After IEEE 829]

test incident report

See incident report. A document reporting on any event that occurred, e.g. during the testing, which requires investigation. [After IEEE 829]

deviation

See incident. Any event occurring that requires investigation. [After IEEE 1008]

software test incident

See incident. Any event occurring that requires investigation. [After IEEE 1008]

test incident

See incident. Any event occurring that requires investigation. [After IEEE 1008]

ad hoc review

See informal review. A review not based on a formal (documented) procedure.

program instrumenter

See instrumenter. A software tool used to carry out instrumentation.

pretest

See intake test. A special instance of a smoke test to decide if the component or system is ready for detailed and further testing. An intake test is typically carried out at the start of the test execution phase. See also smoke test. A subset of all defined/planned test cases that cover the main functionality of a component or system, to ascertaining that the most crucial functions of a program work, but not bothering with finer details. A daily build and smoke test is among industry best practices.

compatibility testing

See interoperability testing. The process of testing to determine the interoperability of a software product.

action word driven testing

See keyword driven testing. 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.

concrete test case

See low level test case. 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.

serviceability testing

See maintainability testing. The process of testing to determine the maintainability of a software product.

project test plan

See master test plan. A test plan that typically addresses multiple test levels. See also test plan. 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. [After IEEE 829]

inspection leader

See moderator. The leader and main person responsible for an inspection or other review process.

monitoring tool

See monitor. A software tool or hardware device that runs concurrently with the component or system under test and supervises, records and/or analyses the behavior of the component or system. [After IEEE 610]

branch condition combination coverage

See multiple condition coverage. The percentage of combinations of all single condition outcomes within one statement that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% multiple condition coverage implies 100% condition determination coverage.

condition combination coverage

branch condition combination testing

See multiple condition testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute combinations of single condition outcomes (within one statement).

condition combination testing

See multiple condition testing. A white box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute combinations of single condition outcomes (within one statement).

dirty testing

See negative testing. Tests aimed at showing that a component or system does not work. Negative testing is related to the testers' attitude rather than a specific test approach or test design technique, e.g. testing with invalid input values or exceptions. [After Beizer].

commercial off-the-shelf software

See off the shelf software.A software product that is developed for the general market, i.e. for a large number of customers, and that is delivered to many customers in identical format.

standard software

See off-the-shelf software. A software product that is developed for the general market, i.e. for a large number of customers, and that is delivered to many customers in identical format.

production acceptance testing

See operational acceptance testing. Operational testing in the acceptance test phase, typically performed in a simulated real-life operational environment by operator and/or administrator focusing on operational aspects, e.g. recoverability, resource-behavior, installability and technical compliance. See also operational testing. Testing conducted to evaluate a component or system in its operational environment. [IEEE 610]

test pass

See pass. A test is deemed to pass if its actual result matches its expected result.

control flow path

See path. A sequence of events, e.g. executable statements, of a component or system from an entry point to an exit point.

key performance indicator

See performance indicator. A high level metric of effectiveness and/or efficiency used to guide and control progressive development, e.g. lead-time slip for software development. [CMMI]

time behavior

See performance. The degree to which a system or component accomplishes its designated functions within given constraints regarding processing time and throughput rate. [After IEEE 610]

configuration testing

See portability testing. The process of testing to determine the portability of a software product.

quality characteristic

See quality attribute. A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality. [IEEE 610]

software product characteristic

See quality attribute. A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality. [IEEE 610]

software quality characteristic

See quality attribute. A feature or characteristic that affects an item's quality. [IEEE 610]

confirmation testing

See re-testing. Testing that runs test cases that failed the last time they were run, in order to verify the success of corrective actions.

recovery testing

See recoverability testing. The process of testing to determine the recoverability of a software product.

item transmittal report

See release note. A document identifying test items, their configuration, current status and other delivery information delivered by development to testing, and possibly other stakeholders, at the start of a test execution phase. [After IEEE 829]

test item transmittal report

storage testing

See resource utilization testing. The process of testing to determine the resource-utilization of a software product. See also efficiency testing. The process of testing to determine the efficiency of a software product.

storage

See resource utilization. The capability of the software product to use appropriate amounts and types of resources, for example the amounts of main and secondary memory used by the program and the sizes of required temporary or overflow files, when the software performs its function under stated conditions. [After ISO 9126]

test outcome

See result. The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test. It includes outputs to screens, changes to data, reports, and communication messages sent out

outcome

See result. The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test. It includes outputs to screens, changes to data, reports, and communication messages sent out.

test result

See result. The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test. It includes outputs to screens, changes to data, reports, and communication messages sent out.

inspector

See reviewer. The person involved in the review that identifies and describes anomalies in the product or project under review. Reviewers can be chosen to represent different viewpoints and roles in the review process.

checker

See reviewer.The person involved in the review that identifies and describes anomalies in the product or project under review. Reviewers can be chosen to represent different viewpoints and roles in the review process.

risk mitigation

See risk control. The process through which decisions are reached and protective measures are implemented for reducing risks to, or maintaining risks within, specified levels.

recorder

See scribe. The person who records each defect mentioned and any suggestions for process improvement during a review meeting, on a logging form. The scribe has to ensure that the logging form is readable and understandable.

confidence test

See smoke test. A subset of all defined/planned test cases that cover the main functionality of a component or system, to ascertaining that the most crucial functions of a program work, but not bothering with finer details. A daily build and smoke test is among industry best practices.

sanity test

finite state testing

See state transition testing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute valid and invalid state transitions.

source statement

See statement. An entity in a programming language, which is typically the smallest indivisible unit of execution.

analyzer

See static analyzer. A tool that carries out static analysis.

static analysis tool

See static analyzer. A tool that carries out static analysis.

code analyzer

See static code analyzer. Analysis of source code carried out without execution of that software.

integration testing in the large

See system integration testing.Testing the integration of systems and packages; testing interfaces to external organizations (e.g. Electronic Data Interchange, Internet).

comparator

See test comparator.A test tool to perform automated test comparison of actual results with expected results.

test requirement

See test condition. 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.

test situation

See test condition. 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.

test generator

See test data preparation tool. A type of test tool that enables data to be selected from existing databases or created, generated, manipulated and edited for use in testing.

test case design technique

See test design technique. Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.

test specification technique

See test design technique. Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.

test technique

See test design technique. Procedure used to derive and/or select test cases.

test bed

See test environment. An environment containing hardware, instrumentation, simulators, software tools, and other support elements needed to conduct a test. [After IEEE 610]

test rig

See test environment. An environment containing hardware, instrumentation, simulators, software tools, and other support elements needed to conduct a test. [After IEEE 610]

test stage

See test level.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. [After TMap]

test record

See test log. A chronological record of relevant details about the execution of tests. [IEEE 829]

test run log

See test log.A chronological record of relevant details about the execution of tests. [IEEE 829]

test recording

See test logging. The process of recording information about tests executed into a test log.

test leader

See test manager. 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.

oracle

See test oracle. A source to determine expected results to compare with the actual result of the software under test. An oracle may be the existing system (for a benchmark), a user-manual, or an individual's specialized knowledge, but should not be the code. [After Adrion]

test procedure

See test procedure specification. A document specifying a sequence of actions for the execution of a test. Also known as test script or manual test script. [After IEEE 829]

test scenario

See test procedure specification. A document specifying a sequence of actions for the execution of a test. Also known as test script or manual test script. [After IEEE 829]

test case suite

See test suite. 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.

test set

See test suite. 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.

test report

See test summary report. A document summarizing testing activities and results. It also contains an evaluation of the corresponding test items against exit criteria. [After IEEE 829]

evaluation

See testing. The process consisting of all life cycle 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.

dead code

See unreachable code. Code that cannot be reached and therefore is impossible to execute.

scenario testing

See use case testing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute user scenarios.

user scenario testing

See use case testing. A black box test design technique in which test cases are designed to execute user scenarios.

structured walkthrough

See walkthrough. A step-by-step presentation by the author of a document in order to gather information and to establish a common understanding of its content. [Freedman and Weinberg, IEEE 1028]

structural test design technique

See white box test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the internal structure of a component or system.

structure-based technique

See white box test design technique. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the internal structure of a component or system.

logic-driven testing

See white box testing. Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

structural testing

See white box testing. Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

logic-coverage testing

See white box testing. [Myers] Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

code-based testing

See white box testing.Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

glass box testing

See white box testing.Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

white-box techniques

See white-box test design techniques. Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the internal structure of a component or system.

structurebased testing

See white-box testing. Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

independence of testing

Separation of responsibilities, which encourages the accomplishment of objective testing. [After DO-178b]

alpha testing

Simulated or actual operational testing by potential users/customers or an independent test team at the developers' site, but outside the development organization. Alpha testing is often employed for off-the-shelf software as a form of internal acceptance testing.

bespoke software

Software developed specifically for a set of users or customers. The opposite is off-the-shelf software.

operational profile testing

Statistical testing using a model of system operations (short duration tasks) and their probability of typical use. [Musa]

installation guide

Supplied instructions on any suitable media, which guides the installer through the installation process. This may be a manual guide, step-by-step procedure, installation wizard, or any other similar process description.

installation wizard

Supplied software on any suitable media, which leads the installer through the installation process. It normally runs the installation process, provides feedback on installation results, and prompts for options.

risk management

Systematic application of procedures and practices to the tasks of identifying, analyzing, prioritizing, and controlling risk.

scripted testing

Test execution carried out by following a previously documented sequence of tests.

procedure testing

Testing aimed at ensuring that the component or system can operate in conjunction with new or existing users' business procedures or operational procedures.

white-box testing

Testing based on an analysis of the internal structure of the component or system.

functional testing

Testing based on an analysis of the specification of the functionality of a component or system. See also black box testing. Testing, either functional or non-functional, without reference to the internal structure of the component or system. Black-box test design technique Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

monkey testing

Testing by means of a random selection from a large range of inputs and by randomly pushing buttons, ignorant on how the product is being used.

ad hoc testing

Testing carried out informally; no formal test preparation takes place, no recognized test design technique is used, there are no expectations for results and arbitrariness guides the test execution activity.

operational testing

Testing conducted to evaluate a component or system in its operational environment. [IEEE 610]

back-to-back testing

Testing in which two or more variants of a component or system are executed with the same inputs, the outputs compared, and analyzed in cases of discrepancies. [IEEE 610]

static testing

Testing of a component or system at specification or implementation level without execution of that software, e.g. reviews or static code analysis.

regression testing

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.

isolation testing

Testing of individual components in isolation from surrounding components, with surrounding components being simulated by stubs and drivers, if needed.

desk checking

Testing of software or specification by manual simulation of its execution. See also static analysis. Analysis of software artifacts, e.g. requirements or code, carried out without execution of these software artifacts.

conversion testing

Testing of software used to convert data from existing systems for use in replacement systems.

integration testing

Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and in the interactions between integrated components or systems. See also component integration testing, system integration testing. Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and interaction between integrated components.

component integration testing

Testing performed to expose defects in the interfaces and interaction between integrated components.

agile testing

Testing practice for a project using agile methodologies, such as extreme programming (XP), treating development as the customer of testing and emphasizing the test first design paradigm. See also test driven development. A way of developing software where the test cases are developed, and often automated, before the software is developed to run those test cases.

dynamic testing

Testing that involves the execution of the software of a component or system.

re-testing

Testing that runs test cases that failed the last time they were run, in order to verify the success of corrective actions.

non-functional testing

Testing the attributes of a component or system that do not relate to functionality, e.g. reliability, efficiency, usability, maintainability and portability.

maintenance testing

Testing the changes to an operational system or the impact of a changed environment to an operational system.

system integration testing

Testing the integration of systems and packages; testing interfaces to external organizations (e.g. Electronic Data Interchange, Internet).

database integrity testing

Testing the methods and processes used to access and manage the data(base), to ensure access methods, processes and data rules function as expected and that during access to the database, data is not corrupted or unexpectedly deleted, updated or created.

documentation testing

Testing the quality of the documentation, e.g. user guide or installation guide.

concurrency testing

Testing to determine how the occurrence of two or more activities within the same interval of time, achieved either by interleaving the activities or by simultaneous execution, is handled by the component or system. [After IEEE 610]

accessibility testing

Testing to determine the ease by which users with disabilities can use a component or system. [Gerrard]

usability testing

Testing to determine the extent to which the software product is understood, easy to learn, easy to operate and attractive to the users under specified conditions. [After ISO 9126]

robustness testing

Testing to determine the robustness of the software product.

safety testing

Testing to determine the safety of a software product.

scalability testing

Testing to determine the scalability of the software product.

security testing

Testing to determine the security of the software product. See also functionality testing. The process of testing to determine the functionality of a software product.

invalid testing

Testing using input values that should be rejected by the component or system. See also error tolerance. The ability of a system or component to continue normal operation despite the presence of erroneous inputs. [After IEEE 610].

incremental testing

Testing where components or systems are integrated and tested one or some at a time, until all the components or systems are integrated and tested.

volume testing

Testing where the system is subjected to large volumes of data. See also resource-utilization testing. The process of testing to determine the resource-utilization of a software product.

black-box testing

Testing, either functional or non-functional, without reference to the internal structure of the component or system. Black-box test design technique Procedure to derive and/or select test cases based on an analysis of the specification, either functional or non-functional, of a component or system without reference to its internal structure.

negative testing

Tests aimed at showing that a component or system does not work. Negative testing is related to the testers' attitude rather than a specific test approach or test design technique, e.g. testing with invalid input values or exceptions. [After Beizer].

automated testware

Testware used in automated testing, such as tool scripts.

error tolerance

The ability of a system or component to continue normal operation despite the presence of erroneous inputs. [After IEEE 610].

reliability

The ability of the software product to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time, or for a specified number of operations. [ISO 9126]

traceability

The ability to identify related items in documentation and software, such as requirements with associated tests. See also horizontal traceability, vertical traceability. The tracing of requirements for a test level through the layers of test documentation (e.g. test plan, test design specification, test case specification and test procedure specification or test script).

test planning

The activity of establishing or updating a test plan.

impact analysis

The assessment of change to the layers of development documentation, test documentation and components, in order to implement a given change to specified requirements.

definition-use pair

The association of the definition of a variable with the use of that variable. Variable uses include computational (e.g. multiplication) or to direct the execution of a path ("predicate" use).

expected result

The behavior predicted by the specification, or another source, of the component or system under specified conditions.

actual result

The behavior produced/observed when a component or system is tested.

test estimation

The calculated approximation of a result (e.g. effort spent, completion date, costs involved, number of test cases, etc.) which is usable even if input data may be incomplete, uncertain, or noisy.

safety

The capability of the software product to achieve acceptable levels of risk of harm to people, business, software, property or the environment in a specified context of use. [ISO 9126]

compliance

The capability of the software product to adhere to standards, conventions or regulations in laws and similar prescriptions. [ISO 9126]

stability

The capability of the software product to avoid unexpected effects from modifications in the software. [ISO 9126] See also maintainability. 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. [ISO 9126]

adaptability

The capability of the software product to be adapted for different specified environments without applying actions or means other than those provided for this purpose for the software considered. [ISO 9126] See also portability. The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

attractiveness

The capability of the software product to be attractive to the user. [ISO 9126] See also usability. The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

analyzability

The capability of the software product to be diagnosed for deficiencies or causes of failures in the software, or for the parts to be modified to be identified. [ISO 9126] See also maintainability. 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. [ISO 9126]

installability

The capability of the software product to be installed in a specified environment [ISO 9126]. See also portability. The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

scalability

The capability of the software product to be upgraded to accommodate increased loads. [After Gerrard]

replaceability

The capability of the software product to be used in place of another specified software product for the same purpose in the same environment. [ISO 9126] See also portability. The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

co-existence

The capability of the software product to co-exist with other independent software in a common environment sharing common resources. [ISO 9126] See also portability. The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

testability

The capability of the software product to enable modified software to be tested. [ISO 9126] See also maintainability. 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. [ISO 9126]

changeability

The capability of the software product to enable specified modifications to be implemented. [ISO 9126] See also maintainability. 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. [ISO 9126]

learnability

The capability of the software product to enable the user to learn its application. [ISO 9126] See also usability. The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

operability

The capability of the software product to enable the user to operate and control it. [ISO 9126] See also usability. The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

understandability

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. [ISO 9126] See also usability. The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

interoperability

The capability of the software product to interact with one or more specified components or systems. [After ISO 9126] See also functionality. The capability of the software product to provide functions which meet stated and implied needs when the software is used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

fault tolerance

The capability of the software product to maintain a specified level of performance in cases of software faults (defects) or of infringement of its specified interface. [ISO 9126] See also reliability, robustness. The ability of the software product to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time, or for a specified number of operations. [ISO 9126]

suitability

The capability of the software product to provide an appropriate set of functions for specified tasks and user objectives. [ISO 9126] See also functionality. The capability of the software product to provide functions which meet stated and implied needs when the software is used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

efficiency

The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance, relative to the amount of resources used under stated conditions. [ISO 9126]

functionality

The capability of the software product to provide functions which meet stated and implied needs when the software is used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

accuracy

The capability of the software product to provide the right or agreed results or effects with the needed degree of precision. [ISO 9126] See also functionality testing. Testing based on an analysis of the specification of the functionality of a component or system.

recoverability

The capability of the software product to re-establish a specified level of performance and recover the data directly affected in case of failure. [ISO 9126] See also reliability. The ability of the software product to perform its required functions under stated conditions for a specified period of time, or for a specified number of operations. [ISO 9126]

resource utilization

The capability of the software product to use appropriate amounts and types of resources, for example the amounts of main and secondary memory used by the program and the sizes of required temporary or overflow files, when the software performs its function under stated conditions. [After ISO 9126] See also efficiency. The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance, relative to the amount of resources used under stated conditions. [ISO 9126]

usability

The capability of the software to be understood, learned, used and attractive to the user when used under specified conditions. [ISO 9126]

test object

The component or system to be tested. See also test item. The individual element to be tested. There usually is one test object and many test items. See also test object. A reason or purpose for designing and executing a test.

configuration

The composition of a component or system as defined by the number, nature, and interconnections of its constituent parts.

result

The consequence/outcome of the execution of a test. It includes outputs to screens, changes to data, reports, and communication messages sent out. See also actual result, expected result. The behavior produced/observed when a component or system is tested.

suspension criteria

The criteria used to (temporarily) stop all or a portion of the testing activities on the test items. [After IEEE 829]

test input

The data received from an external source by the test object during test execution. The external source can be hardware, software or human.

severity

The degree of impact that a defect has on the development or operation of a component or system. [After IEEE 610]

consistency

The degree of uniformity, standardization, and freedom from contradiction among the documents or parts of a component or system. [IEEE 610]

robustness

The degree to which a component or system can function correctly in the presence of invalid inputs or stressful environmental conditions. [IEEE 610] See also error-tolerance, fault-tolerance. The ability of a system or component to continue normal operation despite the presence of erroneous inputs. [After IEEE 610].

complexity

The degree to which a component or system has a design and/or internal structure that is difficult to understand, maintain and verify. See also cyclomatic complexity. The number of independent paths through a program. Cyclomatic complexity is defined as: L - N + 2P, where - L = the number of edges/links in a graph - N = the number of nodes in a graph - P = the number of disconnected parts of the graph (e.g. a called graph and a subroutine) [After McCabe]

availability

The degree to which a component or system is operational and accessible when required for use. Often expressed as a percentage. [IEEE 610]

quality

The degree to which a component, system or process meets specified requirements and/or user/customer needs and expectations. [After IEEE 610]

testable requirements

The degree to which a requirement is stated in terms that permit establishment of test designs (and subsequently test cases) and execution of tests to determine whether the requirements have been met. [After IEEE 610]

performance

The degree to which a system or component accomplishes its designated functions within given constraints regarding processing time and throughput rate. [After IEEE 610] See also efficiency. The capability of the software product to provide appropriate performance, relative to the amount of resources used under stated conditions. [ISO 9126]

coverage

The degree, expressed as a percentage, to which a specified coverage item has been exercised by a test suite.

maintainability

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. [ISO 9126]

portability

The ease with which the software product can be transferred from one hardware or software environment to another. [ISO 9126]

probe effect

The effect on the component or system by the measurement instrument when the component or system is being measured, e.g. by a performance testing tool or monitor. For example performance may be slightly worse when performance testing tools are being used.

condition outcome

The evaluation of a condition to True or False.

acceptance criteria

The exit criteria that a component or system must satisfy in order to be accepted by a user, customer, or other authorized entity. [IEEE 610]

entry point

The first executable statement within a component.

configuration auditing

The function to check on the contents of libraries of configuration items, e.g. for standards compliance. [IEEE 610]

test process

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.

test approach

The implementation of the test strategy for a specific project. It typically includes the decisions made that follow based on the (test) project's goal and the risk assessment carried out, starting points regarding the test process, the test design techniques to be applied, exit criteria and test types to be performed.

risk level

The importance of a risk as defined by its characteristics impact and likelihood. The level of risk can be used to determine the intensity of testing to be performed. A risk level can be expressed either qualitatively (e.g. high, medium, low) or quantitatively.

test item

The individual element to be tested. There usually is one test object and many test items. See also test object. A reason or purpose for designing and executing a test.

instrumentation

The insertion of additional code into the program in order to collect information about program behavior during execution, e.g. for measuring code coverage.

exit point

The last executable statement within a component.

moderator

The leader and main person responsible for an inspection or other review process.

priority

The level of (business) importance assigned to an item, e.g. defect.

test execution technique

The method used to perform the actual test execution, either manual or automated.

Defect Detection Percentage (DDP)

The number of defects found by a test phase, divided by the number found by that test phase and any other means afterwards.

defect density

The number of defects identified in a component or system divided by the size of the component or system (expressed in standard measurement terms, e.g. lines-of-code, number of classes or function points).

cyclomatic complexity

The number of independent paths through a program. Cyclomatic complexity is defined as: L - N + 2P, where - L = the number of edges/links in a graph - N = the number of nodes in a graph - P = the number of disconnected parts of the graph (e.g. a called graph and a subroutine) [After McCabe]

measure

The number or category assigned to an attribute of an entity by making a measurement. [ISO 14598]

test infrastructure

The organizational artifacts needed to perform testing, consisting of test environments, test tools, office environment and procedures.

LCSAJ coverage

The percentage of LCSAJs of a component that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% LCSAJ coverage implies 100% decision coverage.

decision condition coverage

The percentage of all condition outcomes and decision outcomes that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% decision condition coverage implies both 100% condition coverage and 100% decision coverage.

condition determination coverage

The percentage of all single condition outcomes that independently affect a decision outcome that have been exercised by a test case suite. 100% condition determination coverage implies 100% decision condition coverage.

boundary value coverage

The percentage of boundary values that have been exercised by a test suite.

branch coverage

The percentage of branches that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% branch coverage implies both 100% decision coverage and 100% statement coverage.

multiple condition coverage

The percentage of combinations of all single condition outcomes within one statement that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% multiple condition coverage implies 100% condition determination coverage.

condition coverage

The percentage of condition outcomes that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% condition coverage requires each single condition in every decision statement to be tested as True and False.

decision coverage

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.

data flow coverage

The percentage of definition-use pairs that have been exercised by a test suite.

equivalence partition coverage

The percentage of equivalence partitions that have been exercised by a test suite.

statement coverage

The percentage of executable statements that have been exercised by a test suite.

path coverage

The percentage of paths that have been exercised by a test suite. 100% path coverage implies 100% LCSAJ coverage.

N-switch coverage

The percentage of sequences of N+1 transitions that have been exercised by a test suite. [Chow]

test execution phase

The period of time in a software development life cycle during which the components of a software product are executed, and the software product is evaluated to determine whether or not requirements have been satisfied. [IEEE 610]

requirements phase

The period of time in the software life cycle during which the requirements for a software product are defined and documented. [IEEE 610]

software life cycle

The period of time that begins when a software product is conceived and ends when the software is no longer available for use. The software life cycle typically includes a concept phase, requirements phase, design phase, implementation phase, test phase, installation and checkout phase, operation and maintenance phase, and sometimes, retirement phase. Note these phases may overlap or be performed iteratively.

reviewer

The person involved in the review that identifies and describes anomalies in the product or project under review. Reviewers can be chosen to represent different viewpoints and roles in the review process.

test manager

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.

scribe

The person who records each defect mentioned and any suggestions for process improvement during a review meeting, on a logging form. The scribe has to ensure that the logging form is readable and understandable.

failure mode

The physical or functional manifestation of a failure. For example, a system in failure mode may be characterized by slow operation, incorrect outputs, or complete termination of execution. [IEEE 610]

test management

The planning, estimating, monitoring and control of test activities, typically carried out by a test manager.

testing

The process consisting of all life cycle 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.

risk analysis

The process of assessing identified risks to estimate their impact and probability of occurrence (likelihood).

measurement

The process of assigning a number or category to an entity to describe an attribute of that entity. [ISO 14598]

integration

The process of combining components or systems into larger assemblies.

certification

The process of confirming that a component, system or person complies with its specified requirements, e.g. by passing an exam.

qualification

The process of demonstrating the ability to fulfill specified requirements. Note the term 'qualified' is used to designate the corresponding status. [ISO 9000]

test implementation

The process of developing and prioritizing test procedures, creating test data and, optionally, preparing test harnesses and writing automated test scripts.

dynamic analysis

The process of evaluating behavior, e.g. memory performance, CPU usage, of a system or component during execution. [After IEEE 610]

debugging

The process of finding, analyzing and removing the causes of failures in software.

test comparison

The process of identifying differences between the actual results produced by the component or system under test and the expected results for a test. Test comparison can be performed during test execution (dynamic comparison) or after test execution.

risk identification

The process of identifying risks using techniques such as brainstorming, checklists and failure history.

fault seeding

The process of intentionally adding known defects to those already in the component or system for the purpose of monitoring the rate of detection and removal, and estimating the number of remaining defects. [IEEE 610]

defect management

The process of recognizing, investigating, taking action and disposing of defects. It involves recording defects, classifying them and identifying the impact. [After IEEE 1044]

incident management

The process of recognizing, investigating, taking action and disposing of incidents. It involves logging incidents, classifying them and identifying the impact. [After IEEE 1044]

test logging

The process of recording information about tests executed into a test log.

test execution

The process of running a test on the component or system under test, producing actual result(s).

system testing

The process of testing an integrated system to verify that it meets specified requirements. [Hetzel]

installability testing

The process of testing the installability of a software product. See also portability testing. The process of testing to determine the portability of a software product.

compliance testing

The process of testing to determine the compliance of the component or system.

efficiency testing

The process of testing to determine the efficiency of a software product.

functionality testing

The process of testing to determine the functionality of a software product.

interoperability testing

The process of testing to determine the interoperability of a software product. See also functionality testing. The process of testing to determine the functionality of a software product.

maintainability testing

The process of testing to determine the maintainability of a software product.

performance testing

The process of testing to determine the performance of a software product. See also efficiency testing. The process of testing to determine the efficiency of a software product.

portability testing

The process of testing to determine the portability of a software product.

recoverability testing

The process of testing to determine the recoverability of a software product. See also reliability testing. The process of testing to determine the reliability of a software product.

reliability testing

The process of testing to determine the reliability of a software product.

resource utilization testing

The process of testing to determine the resource-utilization of a software product. See also efficiency testing. The process of testing to determine the efficiency of a software product.

risk control

The process through which decisions are reached and protective measures are implemented for reducing risks to, or maintaining risks within, specified levels.

failure rate

The ratio of the number of failures of a given category to a given unit of measure, e.g. failures per unit of time, failures per number of transactions, failures per number of computer runs. [IEEE 610]

operational profile

The representation of a distinct set of tasks performed by the component or system, possibly based on user behavior when interacting with the component or system, and their probabilities of occurance. A task is logical rather that physical and can be executed over several machines or be executed in non-contiguous time segments.

simulation

The representation of selected behavioral characteristics of one physical or abstract system by another system. [ISO 2382/1]

behavior

The response of a component or system to a set of input values and preconditions.

decision outcome

The result of a decision (which therefore determines the branches to be taken).

domain

The set from which valid input and/or output values can be selected.

input domain

The set from which valid input values can be selected. See also domain. The set from which valid input and/or output values can be selected.

output domain

The set from which valid output values can be selected. See also domain. The set from which valid input and/or output values can be selected.

entry criteria

The set of generic and specific conditions for permitting a process to go forward with a defined task, e.g. test phase. The purpose of entry criteria is to prevent a task from starting which would entail more (wasted) effort compared to the effort needed to remove the failed entry criteria. [Gilb and Graham]

exit criteria

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. [After Gilb and Graham]

resumption criteria

The testing activities that must be repeated when testing is re-started after a suspension. [After IEEE 829]

component testing

The testing of individual software components. [After IEEE 610]

cost of quality

The total costs incurred on quality activities and issues and often split into prevention costs, appraisal costs, internal failure costs and external failure costs.

software quality

The totality of functionality and features of a software product that bear on its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs. [After ISO 9126]

horizontal traceability

The tracing of requirements for a test level through the layers of test documentation (e.g. test plan, test design specification, test case specification and test procedure specification or test script).

vertical traceability

The tracing of requirements through the layers of development documentation to components.

test automation

The use of software to perform or support test activities, e.g. test management, test design, test execution and results checking.

test execution automation

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.

compound condition

Two or more single conditions joined by means of a logical operator (AND, OR or XOR), e.g. 'A>B AND C>1000'.

pair testing

Two persons, e.g. two testers, a developer and a tester, or an end-user and a tester, working together to find defects. Typically, they share one computer and trade control of it while testing.

daily build

a development activity where a complete system is compiled and linked every day (usually overnight), so that a consistent system is available at any time including all latest changes.

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