Topic: Test Strategy

Test Strategy:

How we plan to cover the product so as to develop an adequate assessment of quality.

A good test strategy is:

Specific
Practical
Justified

The purpose of a test strategy is to clarify the major tasks and challenges of the test project.

Test Approach and Test Architecture are other terms commonly used to describe what I’m calling test strategy.

Example of a poorly stated (and probably poorly conceived) test strategy:

"We will use black box testing, cause-effect graphing, boundary testing, and white box testing to test this product against its specification."

Test Strategy: Type of Project, Type of Software, when Testing will occur, Critical Success factors, Tradeoffs

Test Plan - Why

• Identify Risks and Assumptions up front to reduce surprises later.
• Communicate objectives to all team members.
• Foundation for Test Spec, Test Cases, and ultimately the Bugs we find.
  
Failing to plan = planning to fail.

Test Plan - What

• Derived from Test Approach, Requirements, Project Plan, Functional Spec., and Design Spec.
• Details out project-specific Test Approach.
• Lists general (high level) Test Case areas.
• Include testing Risk Assessment.
• Include preliminary Test Schedule
• Lists Resource requirements.

Edited by moderator - 26Apr2007 at 11:26pm