| | Quality assurance | Quality control | Testing | |----------|----------|----------|----------| |

**What**

**Who**

**Why**

| defect prevention | defect detection and quality verification | defect detection | ## **Types of Software Testing** Besides the main division of software testing into manual and automation testing, which is related to how the testing is done, another basic difference is made between functional and non-functional testing. **Functional testing** refers to testing "what" software can do, its features, and all the different functionalities that it has according to functional requirements. On contrary, **non-functional testing** is focused on "how" the software does it, on the non-functional requirements specified. The most common types of non-functional testing are: * performance testing (load, stress, endurance, and spike testing), * security testing, * usability testing, * compatibility testing. If you're curious to find out more than just this brief difference, our article on [functional and non-functional testing](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/the-difference-between-functional-and-non-functional-testing) is the right place to continue. There are three main testing methods: 1. **Black box testing** - the tester doesn't see the code, doesn't know what's inside the software, and is focused only on the inputs he provides, the outputs he gets, and whether they are as expected or not. 2. **White box testing** - involves testing the code itself, and its internal structure and is usually performed by the developers who wrote the code. 3. **Grey box testing** - as a combination of the previous two methods refers to testing both functional and structural parts of the software. Depending on the level at which testing is done, it can be divided into: * **Component/Unit testing** - refers to testing the smallest testable part of the system, a piece of the code that can perform a certain function. Unit tests are usually run in parallel to save time. * **Integration testing** - aimed at testing if separate units are integrated properly and work well. * **System testing** - software system is tested as a whole in order to check its compliance with the functional and technical requirements. * **User acceptance testing** - this is the final testing stage when the software is tested against the end-user requirements and decided if it's ready for shipment or not. [Regression testing](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/regression-testing-test-io) is a separate type of testing that involves testing complete software after some changes were implemented to check whether there were some negative consequences of the changes on already existing functions or system stability and performance. It is often automated in order to avoid manually performing all the same tests every time the software is updated. If you realize the importance of it just like we do, go check our blog post on [regression testing](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/regression-testing-test-io) and find out how to do it properly. ## **Best Practices of Quality Assurance Testing** Apart from the main testing principles, every tester should be aware of, there are some good practices that might help you further improve your testing skills. Here are some of them: 1. Be aware of and analyze all types and methods of testing available so you can choose the ones that suit your current needs. 2. Clearly define what and how you're testing and test one thing at a time. 3. Use regression testing to make sure newly implemented features haven't negatively influenced already existing ones. 4. Bear in mind all the different devices, operating systems, and user profiles that your software might be used by. 5. Report bugs in a clear, concise, and precise way, easy to understand and reproduce. 6. Combine manual and automated testing whenever possible. If you're not quite sure how to do it, here you can find some great [automation tips](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/common-automation-tips). 7. Document your testing activities and formulate comprehensive test cases and scenarios. Sound too demanding? Don't worry - just follow the tips and examples we provided on [test case creation](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/test-case-creation-for-further-automation) and you'll be ready to go. 8. Consider Behaviour Driven Development (BDD) if you haven't already. The approach might help you speed up and improve the testing process. Not familiar with BDD? Learn about it [here](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/how-to-implement-bdd-efficiently). 9. Try implementing [shift left testing](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/shift-left-testing). It can help detect bugs early in the SDLC and thus reduce the costs of fixing them. ## **Software Testing Tools for QA** As the importance of testing and its quality is becoming more obvious, and wishing to improve and speed up the process at the same time, new software testing tools emerge very often. Selenium test automation framework is among the most popular ones. We've put a concise list of the pros and cons of [Selenium](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/selenium-test-automation-framework) for those of you who might be interested. EPAM has a number of automation tools that can bring numerous benefits to your testing team. You can get a glimpse at the most popular ones in a separate article we created or check each of them separately: * [EPAM Tools for Automated Testing](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/epam-tools-for-automated-testing) * [Healenium](https://solutionshub.epam.com/solution/healenium), a self-healing test automation tool for web * [ReportPortal](https://solutionshub.epam.com/solution/report-portal), test automation CI/CD report tool. If you've ever wondered [why your automated tests fail](https://solutionshub.epam.com/blog/post/reportportal-why-tests-fail), just hit the link and get some hints on how to find out. * [Vividus](https://solutionshub.epam.com/solution/vividus), a scriptless test automation tool * [test IO](https://solutionshub.epam.com/solution/test-io), crowdsourced testing platform In case you haven't found a tool you need in the list above, you might want to check a more comprehensive [list of testing tools](https://solutionshub.epam.com/catalog/development-tools). One of them will definitely help you improve the testing process, its speed, and quality, as well as the overall quality of your products.

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