Smoke Testing is a critical phase in the testing process. When a new build is delivered by the development team, Smoke Testing determines if the build is stable and functional. This process is also referred to as “Day-0” testing.
This guide covers Smoke Testing, its various types, how it differs from other testing methods, and how to effectively conduct Smoke Testing.
What is Smoke Testing?
Smoke Testing is a software testing method used to determine if a new build from the Development team is free of critical bugs. It provides the QA team with the green light to proceed with further testing phases.
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Also known as Confidence Testing or Build Verification/Build Promotion Testing, this approach involves a set of tests performed on each build during the software development lifecycle to assess its stability.
In simple terms, Smoke tests ensure that the most critical features are functioning as expected and that there are no severe issues in the build that could hinder the entire testing team. This helps in determining whether the build is reliable or flawed, thereby preventing the team from wasting time and resources.
Why is Smoke Testing important?
Smoke Testing is important because it:
- Confirms that the product is testable, preventing the QA teams from encountering blockers.
- Identifies major issues early in the sprint, giving both Development and QA teams ample time to address and retest the problem.
- Ensures that the critical functionalities of the product are operating correctly.
- Assesses the overall stability of the system or application.
Types of Smoke Testing
There are three types of Smoke Testing:
- Manual Testing: In Manual Testing, QA teams perform Smoke Testing by hand. They write, develop, and execute smoke tests manually for both existing and new features. Although time-consuming, Manual Testing benefits from human intelligence and insight.
- Automated Testing: In Automated Testing, QA teams use automation tools to conduct the tests instead of performing them manually. Automation Testing can be highly beneficial for the entire organization, saving considerable time and resources. It also spares testers from the repetitive task of running the same tests repeatedly.
- Hybrid Testing: Hybrid Testing is a combination of both Manual and Automated testing methods. It incorporates automation in some stages of Smoke Testing while allowing for manual intervention by testers in others. Hybrid Testing is often considered superior to the other two methods, as it combines the strengths of both approaches, making it more advantageous.
- Daily Smoke Testing: This involves performing smoke tests on a daily basis, especially for projects with frequent builds and continuous integration. It ensures that each daily build meets the minimal quality requirements.
- Acceptance Smoke Testing: These tests assess whether the software meets the requirements and specifications of stakeholders or end users. They are typically conducted after the development phase is complete and before the software is released to users.
- UI Smoke Testing: This type of smoke testing concentrates on the application’s user interface components. It verifies that the essential user interface elements and interactions function as expected.
Advantages of Smoke Testing
Some of the key advantages of Smoke Testing include:
- Detecting critical issues early in the process.
- Saving the team’s time and resources, which in turn lowers risk.
- Enhancing the robustness of the application.
- Minimizing integration problems.
- Allowing sufficient time to address any major issues that arise.
Disadvantages of smoke testing
Some of the disadvantages include:
- This testing is ineffective if the inputs are invalid.
- There is no assurance that errors won’t appear even after completing this testing.
- In large applications, manual testing can be very time-consuming.
- This testing only covers specific functionalities of the application, rather than every functionality.
When to perform Smoke Testing?
Smoke testing is a crucial part of the software development process. Here are the steps to perform smoke testing:
Step 1: Identify the Scope: Begin by defining the scope of the testing. Determine the software’s most critical functionalities that need to be tested. For example, in a banking application, key features might include login, account balance check, and fund transfer.
Step 2: Create Test Cases: After identifying the scope, create test cases that cover the critical functionalities identified. For instance, in the banking application, a test case might be: “Verify that a user can successfully log in with valid credentials.”
Step 3: Execute Smoke Tests: Execute the created test cases. This can be done manually or using automated testing tools. The aim is to verify that the critical functionalities operate as expected.
Step 4: Analyze Results: Analyze the results of the smoke tests. Determine whether the tests passed or failed and understand the implications of these results.
Step 5: Report and Communicate: Report the findings and communicate them to relevant stakeholders, such as developers, project managers, and quality assurance teams. This helps in making informed decisions on whether to proceed with further testing or address any issues identified during smoke testing.
What happens if Smoke Testing is not performed?
If Smoke Tests are not conducted early in the Software Development Life Cycle, discovering critical issues later can be costly in terms of time, resources, and money for the entire team. These issues can also disrupt the overall release schedule and significantly damage the product’s reputation.
Smoke Test Cases: Example
Differences between Smoke and Sanity Testing
| Smoke Testing | Sanity Testing |
|---|---|
| Ensures that the critical functionalities of the product are working correctly | Ensures that existing functionalities, along with the bug fixes in the latest build, are working as intended. |
| Considered a subset of Acceptance Testing | Considered a subset of Regression Testing |
| Can be performed by Developers or Testers | Primarily performed by Testers |
| Is documented | Is not documented |
| May or may not be stable | Is stable |
| Is scripted | Is not scripted |
| Performed whenever a new build is released | Performed whenever a new build is out, or can be done daily to assess the environment’s health. |
Differences between Smoke Testing and Regression Testing
| Smoke Testing | Regression Testing |
|---|---|
| Known as Surface Level Testing, it ensures build and environment stability. | Known as Deep Level Testing, it ensures the overall functionality of the product. |
| Can be performed by either Developers or Testers. | Mostly performed by Testers. |
| Involves minimal cost. | Typically incurs higher costs. |
| Completed quickly with less manpower. | Takes more time to complete and requires more manpower. |
| Is scripted. | Is not scripted. |
| Done whenever a new build is released. | Done when a new build is released and throughout the entire development lifecycle. |
| Performed on all builds to determine if the build can be accepted or rejected. | Performed only on stable builds. |
Automated Smoke Tests
Automated smoke testing offers several advantages that enhance the software testing process:
- Increased Speed: Automated smoke tests execute quickly and provide immediate feedback on the system’s basic functionality, allowing developers to detect and resolve issues early in the development cycle.
- Improved Accuracy: Automated tests perform the same steps consistently each time, eliminating human error and ensuring reliable and precise results.
- Improved Repeatability: Automated smoke tests can be executed as often as needed, which is especially beneficial in agile development environments where frequent changes occur.
- Integration with CI/CD Pipelines: Automated smoke tests can be incorporated into Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD) pipelines, enabling them to run automatically with each code push, thus offering prompt feedback to the development team.
FAQ’s
What is Smoke Testing?
Smoke Testing is a preliminary check to ensure a new build from development is stable and functional. It verifies critical features and allows the QA team to proceed with more detailed testing.
Why is Smoke Testing important?
It confirms that the build is stable, identifies major issues early, ensures key functionalities work, and assesses overall stability before more in-depth testing.
When should Smoke Testing be performed?
Perform Smoke Testing whenever a new build is delivered. It involves identifying critical features, creating test cases, executing tests, analyzing results, and reporting findings.
What if Smoke Testing is not performed?
Skipping Smoke Testing can lead to costly issues discovered late in the development cycle, disrupting the release schedule and harming the product’s reputation.
What are the benefits of Automated Smoke Testing?
It speeds up testing, improves accuracy, allows frequent testing, and integrates with CI/CD pipelines for automatic feedback.
Conclusion
Smoke Testing is essential for ensuring new builds are stable and functional. It quickly identifies major issues, saving time and preventing costly delays. Whether manual, automated, or hybrid, Smoke Testing supports efficient and reliable software releases.
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