Software Testing - Manual Testing

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Software testing can be performed with the help of the manual, and automated testing techniques. The manual testing is all about carrying out all the test steps with the help of human intervention.

What is Software Manual Testing?

The manual testing is the procedure to verify the software with the help of its various features, and functionalities. It is guided by a preconceived set of tests which validate the software, and provides a final outcome report. This type of testing takes time for completion since it is conducted completely through the manual efforts. Hence, there is always a scope of human error while performing this type of testing.

Every new software is first manually tested before adopting automation. It consumes more time to manually verifying a complete software. Once all the features, and functionalities of the software are stable, and working fine, some of the manual test cases can be converted into automation. The manual test cases are evaluated first to check whether they can be fully automated. This type of testing does not require usage of any automation tools to complete the entire process.

Characteristics of Software Manual Testing

The characteristics of software manual testing are listed below −

• The manual testing is performed completely with the help of human intervention.
• Exploratory testing is an important part of manual testing. In the exploratory testing, the testers verify the software without any predetermined set of tests. It detects unpredicted defects, and improves the customer satisfaction.
• The manual testing is flexible as it allows modification of test cases based on the changes in the requirements, and other testing conditions.
• The manual testing can be adopted from the very initial stages of the software development life cycle (SDLC).
• Some of the complicated test cases can be executed only manually without any automation.
• The manual testing is useful to validate the user interface of the software. It helps to verify the display, responsiveness, and normal design of the software.

Why is the Software Manual Testing Needed?

The software manual testing is needed for the reasons listed below −

• The manual testing confirms that the software is without any defects, works correctly as per the requirements, and is stable enough to be deployed in production.
• The manual testing allows the testers to get accustomed with the software, and to understand how the software responds with the customers. This helps to develop effective test cases.
• The manual testing identifies, and resolves defects in the software.

Steps of Software Manual Testing

The different steps of the software manual testing are listed below −

Step 1 − The first step involves the requirement analysis phase by going through the requirements and specifications documents, guides, etc.

Step 2 − The second step involves the creation of a test plan touching all the requirements.

Step 3 − The third step involves the creation of test cases covering every requirement.

Step 4 − The fourth step involves the execution of test cases at the correct test environment.

Step 5 − The fifth step involves the analysis of the test execution results, and report the discrepancies as defects.

Step 6 − The sixth step involves the defect fix, and retesting. It also includes re-executing the failed test cases.

Types of Software Manual Testing

The different types software manual testing are listed below −

• Black Box Testing − It is the testing technique in which the tester does not have any knowledge of the internal working of the software. It mainly deals with verifying whether features and functionalities work correctly as per the user requirements.
• White Box Testing − It is the testing procedure which includes verification of the internal structure, and the program source code of the software.
• Grey Box Testing − It is the testing technique which uses both the principles of the black box, and white box testing techniques.

Tools Used for Software Manual Testing

The different tools used for the software manual testing are listed below −

• Test Link
• Bugzilla
• Jira
• LoadRunner
• Apache JMeter
• Perfecto

Differences Between Software Manual and Automation Testing

Heres a comparison of software manual testing and automation testing −

Advantages of Software Manual Testing

The advantages of software manual testing are listed below −

• The manual testing helps to verify the dynamically changing elements on the screen.
• The manual testing is cheap, and does not rely on skilled resources.
• The manual testing can be carried out by testers having no programming knowledge.
• The manual testing can be adopted very quickly, and is appropriate to accommodate unpredictable changes in the software.

Disadvantages of Software Manual Testing

The disadvantages of software manual testing are listed below −

• The manual testing is not very reliable and gives scope for human errors.
• Separate sets of manual test cases need to be developed for different modules, allowing very less scope of reusability.
• The manual testing is totally dependent on execution of tests manually. However, some of the test steps cannot be performed with the manual efforts.
• The testers performing manual testing should have the experience working with the software. Besides, there is no surety that all the features of the software have been covered while executing the manual tests.
• The manual testing is mostly a time consuming activity.

Conclusion

This concludes our comprehensive take on the tutorial on Software Manual Testing. Weve started with describing what is software manual testing, what are the characteristics of the software manual testing, why is the software manual testing needed, what are the different steps of the software manual testing, what are the different types of software manual testing, what are the different tools used for software manual testing, what are the differences between the software manual and automation testing, what are the advantages of software manual testing, and what are the disadvantages of software manual testing. This equips you with in-depth knowledge of Software Manual Testing. It is wise to keep practicing what youve learned and exploring others relevant to Software Testing to deepen your understanding and expand your horizons.