By implementing automation scripts to execute tests on the program using tools, QA Test Automation raises the caliber of software products. QA automation is more important than ever since Agile and DevOps methodologies are becoming the standard in software development. The scripts can be run repeatedly, improving test coverage, removing mistakes, and saving testing teams’ time and effort.

It should come as no surprise that the global market for  solutions for quality assurance is projected to grow to a staggering $52.7 billion by 2027.

How does QA test automation work?

Repetitive testing scripts are used in QA automation, which then reports test findings to the testing team via pre-planned actions. Before releasing the software code, the testing team creates QA test scripts, which automate some of the testing. The programming language must still be understood in order to develop test scripts. Unit, regression, and API (Application Programming Interface) testing are just a few of the many testing requirements that are addressed by automated tests. For example, unit testing should automatically be deemed a perfect fit for automation, which can be completed at any time of day, if it requires more resources, effort, or time. Software development approaches that involve continuous testing, continuous integration (CI), and continuous delivery (CD) are enhanced by QA test automation. This makes it easy to deliver code changes into production.

 

How do you go about QA automation? Testing scripts that can be run repeatedly are used in QA automation. QA automation tools run the tests and use pre-programmed actions to deliver the test findings to the testing team.

 

Do testing engineers become replaced by QA automation? No, before the software code is deployed, the testing team still needs to write the QA test scripts. Even if the testing process is automated, writing test scripts still requires knowledge of computer languages. 

 

Steps in QA automation testing

1. Select the appropriate testing environment

Step 1 is assessing solutions that best suit the business needs; software code analysis automated testing is recommended if the focus is more on finding a specific fault. Robust frameworks such as Selenium IDE, WebDriver, UFT, Ranorex, Cucumber, and Appium are used by many test automation tools; nonetheless, selecting the best automation platform requires careful consideration as it will impact the process’s outcome.

 

2. Specify the extent of automated testing

Now, this will rely on elements like the characteristics of the company, the volume of information needed for a scenario, cross-application functionality, reusable business components, test case difficulty, etc., and whether or not the same test cases may be used for cross-browser testing.

 

3. Create, organize, and formulate a strategy for testing

The goal of test automation can be achieved with the correct approach, which includes developing test standards and processes, test data requirements, hardware and software, etc. Selecting an appropriate test automation framework will be the next step.

 

4. Putting testing into action

In this step, test scripts are functionally checked to make sure they run successfully and are cross-platform compatible. A bug report is also required for any errors.

 

5. Final Upkeep

Testing newly added software functionalities automatically aids in determining if they are feasible; adding new scripts also needs reviews and proper maintenance with release cycles. This is all taken care of by the automation procedure.

 

When is testing using QA automation?

• Repeated testing across several builds
• challenges requiring different data sets
• The requirement to verify often utilized features that could otherwise be dangerous
• operated on several hardware, software, and configuration platforms
• laborious when doing manual testing.
• Testing kinds include unit, functional, regression, integration, smoke, data-driven, and keyword.

 

What are the benefits of QA automation?

1. Cuts testing expenses and time

Regular software releases necessitate thorough software testing to verify each feature of the product and eliminate defects. Customers may experience delays in receiving updates since manual testing bogs down the system as a whole. The same test scripts can be run repeatedly on various hardware and software configurations using QA automation for automated testing. Likewise, time can be saved by running automatic programs “all day and night.”

 

2. A higher caliber of product

On numerous platforms and devices, QA teams are capable of concurrently executing thousands of automated test cases. It is capable of thorough application exploration as well as internal file structure, data tables, and memory data inspection. As a result, the finished software product may perform better and have higher quality. 

 

3. More effective use of resources

Members of the QA team can utilize their expertise in advanced product testing by using automation in QA testing. Without requiring human intervention, automation testing facilitates the execution of functional and regression test cases. Additionally, QA test automation lessens the need for a sizable QA staff because skilled QA workers may be used to develop better test cases, which raises the caliber of the final product.

 

4. Suitable for DevOps and CI/CD

Increasing the complexity of software code or the number of test cases makes managing manual testing more difficult. Development organizations can swiftly transition to Continuous Improvement and Delivery (CI/CD mode) with the aid of automated testing. Continuous testing is facilitated by automation and is necessary for DevOps.

 

5. Eventually less costly

After automation test scripts are set up, there is a significant reduction in the amount of supervision required to monitor test performance and resolve script errors, aside from the initial investment and setup expenditures. Test automation reduces the amount of money and resources needed to correct bugs after releases by ensuring quality results.

 

6. Extensive Coverage of Tests

Automation test with selenium allows for the simultaneous execution of numerous complicated test cases on multiple computers; manual testing is not feasible for this kind of testing. Automated quality assurance testing scrutinizes an application from the inside out, examining its internal program states, data tables, memory contents, and files to confirm the application’s functionality at every stage.

 

4 Challenges of QA Test Automation

1. Longing for interpersonal interaction

Test automation solutions aren’t “smart” enough to completely replace human testers, despite all the “talk” about complete automation. While automated testing can facilitate the tester’s work, a competent tester cannot be replaced by it.

 

Furthermore, personnel with sophisticated programming abilities and tool knowledge are needed for automated quality assurance testing. Additionally, when designing Selenium automation testing test scripts, software developers cannot take the role of a qualified software tester.

 

2. Managing substantial setup fees initially

Despite all of its advantages, product firms require assistance with the design and configuration of an automated test framework. Frameworks for test automation are expensive to set up initially and require a lot of maintenance.

 

Businesses also need qualified testers who know how to use programming languages and testing tools.

 

3. Selecting the appropriate platform for test automation

Selecting the best automated testing tool might be challenging due to the abundance of options on the market. It is not possible to modify Automation testing with selenium tool to make it compatible with every software architecture or application.

 

4. The necessity of effective teamwork

Software testers need to work together and communicate with developers, business analysts, and project managers in order to get the best results. Development and testing activities might be postponed by ineffective teamwork.