STLC - Software Testing Life Cycle

Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC) is a very important concept that we need to know if we wants to understand testing process in detail. Many people think testing is a static task and finds it boring, but it is definitely not. STLC shows the different phases which are essential for quality control of any software project.

Every company follows its own Software Testing Life Cycle. STLC is affected by the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) implemented by the company as well as the management’s views towards Quality Assurance & Control activities. In this post we will discuss about the different stages/phases of STLC.

1.    Requirement Analysis/Review

·         This is a very important phase in STLC. Here the focus is on understanding the requirements of the system with the viewpoint of testing in mind.

·         In this phase the QA interacts with the Business Analyst, System Analyst, Development Manager/Team Lead, etc. or if required the QA may also interact with Client to completely understand the requirements of the system.

·         During this phase the QA takes many important decisions like what are the testing types & techniques to be performed, feasibility for automation testing implementation, etc.

2.    Test Planning

·         In this phase the QA/QA Lead/QA Manager plans for the complete testing process. Important documents like Test Strategy, Test Plan and Effort Estimation are derived from this phase.

·         Everything regarding testing like selection of the testing tools, test efforts estimations, planning resources, determining roles and responsibilities of the personnel involved in the process, planning for the training required, etc. are decided in this phase.

·         This phase is very important as any small mistake in this phase can result in major issues in the project regarding time, money, efforts, etc.

3.    Test Designing

·         Creation, Review & Update of Test Cases as well as Test Scripts are done in this phase. The test cases prepared by the QA team are reviewed and approved.

·         Test data may also be created in this phase by the QA team if test environment is available to them.

4.    Test Environment Setup

·         Test Environment is the actual system/environment/setup where the testing team will be testing the application. Test environment is prepared by understanding the required system architecture, software & hardware requirements, etc.

·         Many times it happens that testing team is not involved in setting up the test environment. In such scenarios, it is preferable that the testing team should implement Smoke Testing to verify the readiness of the test environment before starting the actual testing.

5.    Test Execution

·         The test cases which were prepared earlier are executed in this phase. In this phase, the testers test the websites. Different testing techniques as well as methods are implemented and executed on the software/application to break the system and find bugs.

·         Bugs are reported to the development team. The development team resolves the bugs and the system is retested to ensure that it is bug free and ready to go live.

6.    Test Closure

·         When the testing team is confident that all the reported bugs are resolved and the system is ready according to the client’s requirements, the software testing life cycle enters the last stage ie. Test Closure stage.

·         In this stage, evaluation is done for the complete testing cycle, test closure reports are prepared, proper analysis and documentation is done for the major or critical bugs so that such situations can be handled efficiently and effectively in future projects, etc.

Each of these phases of STLC has their Entry & Exit criterias. We will put a detail article on the Entry & Exit Criterias of different stages of Software Testing Life Cycle in coming days. Hope this article will help you in understanding the Software Testing Life Cycle in detail.