With the significant rise in the number of users accessing websites across various devices, platforms, and resolutions, ensuring consistent user experiences can be a real challenge. To ensure better user experiences, web applications must be thoroughly tested prior to launch. To perform web application testing effectively, software testers should follow industry proven best practices.
Scope of Web Application Testing
Web application testing is a software testing technique that concentrates on testing web-based applications only. On a broader note, web application testing should ensure that the apps function properly, are easily scalable, responsive, supports multiple browsers, and run on different devices. In short, app testing should focus on the below properties:
- Functionality
- Performance
- Security
- User-friendliness
- Accessibility
- Compatibility
While testing a web application, the tester should concentrate on functional and non-functional requirements. Functional testing depends on customer requirements and non-functional testing depends on the client’s expectations. The main purpose for testing the web application is to uncover bugs that effect functionality, security, compatibility, usability, and performance. There are specific techniques every tester should use while performing web application testing.
Best Practices of Web Application Testing
Verify Application is Functional
To test the functionality of the website, the following aspects should be tested:
- Links: Check if there is any broken links in the web pages. Verify both internal links, external links and email links
- Fields & Forms: Test field validation, error messages for incorrect entries, optional and mandatory fields
- Workflows: Verify the workflow of the system
Ensure User Friendliness
To verify an application is easy to use, perform the following tests:
- The website should be easily accessible, the process should not be complicated.
- Perform spell checks, content should be easy to understand.
- Anchor text links and images should be placed correctly and properly sized.
- Performs usability testing that take several factors into account including UI design, speed, navigability, content readability, and accessibility. Usability Testing is a best practice before releasing an app to end-users.
Server-side Interface Testing
- There are two interfaces, application and database server interface. Make sure all interactions between servers and applications are properly executed and errors are handled properly.
- Verify the interface and data flow between the systems.
Performance Verification
- Verify the performance of web applications using different connectivity speeds and networks.
- Check the performance of the web application when multiple users are accessing it at the same time. To perform load testing during the initial development stages, gradually increase the user load so that testers can easily plot the exact point where the application crashes. This way testers can perform load testing in various intervals and analyze the result of each interval to evaluate the performance of the web application.
Browsers Compatibility
Different browsers have different settings, properties and configurations. Perform compatibility testing to ensure the web application is compatible and generates the same user experience across all browsers. Also, check the compatibility of the web application across various devices and resolutions. Usually, developers build responsive websites by using open technology. Instead, some testers use headless browser testing, which simulates almost all browsers.
Security Testing To Uncover Vulnerabilities
- Considering the scale at which cyber attacks are happening, security testing is crucial. Security testing is mainly centered around web security, where the tester should ensure that the application is safe from unauthorized users.
- Perform vulnerability testing to discover vulnerabilities of applications and data.
Conclusion
To perform successful web application testing, the QA team should focus on functionality, performance, security, and usability of the application and ensure superior user experiences that is consistent across devices and web browsers.
About Author
Chandana works as a Software Test Engineer at V-Soft consulting. Her Software Testing career spans for more than 3 years. As a test engineer she gained sound testing knowledge in testing Web & Mobile Apps (Android & iOS) , GUI, Functional, Integration, System, Ad-hoc, Usability, Database, Smoke Regression and Retesting. Also, she is very proficient knowledge in Agile methodology and AI domains.
