How To Start Automation Testing From Scratch?

The term ‘automation’ does not merely mean the completion of tasks at a super-fast pace. This procedure involves a proper setup, a planned budget, efficient planning, and constant maintenance. The initial setup of automating parts of a business gives reduced production when compared to manual work. But, one can understand the actual strength of automation once you complete the entire setup efficiently. Automation testing achieved through a range of procedures, including mobile automation, is one of the most preferred techniques.

An overview of automation testing

Despite the initial hurdles, several tech-first companies strive hard to automate their business. This is mainly because the automation testing project ensures rapid test results along with an increased volume of tests. Such practices reduce human error and also give the opportunity of running the test at any point in time without any specific office hours. This facility is highly attractive for streamlining any CTO process.

But, what is the need for automation testing?

The principal reason for automating the business despite such facilities involves money, as the tools required are quite expensive, and it becomes burdensome for smaller start-ups without a considerable budget. Most smaller companies do not possess the necessary resources for buying and maintaining new and updated software and cannot also employ efficient managerial staff for managing it.

The second most crucial factor in this respect is the time factor. The automation procedure is not as simple as downloading software and starting to use it. The process is furthermore complicated, even if it is mobile automation. Once the software is downloaded, the sample test cases need to be run to check the efficiency. The team members are also required to record the test cases for setting up.

Moreover, the automation tools also need constant maintenance and rerecording of test cases as soon as any update occurs. The entire procedure is quite lengthy and requires skilled efficiency. Without expert team members, automation can cause more trouble than solving problems.

Another critical factor is suitability. A survey by IBM shows the differences in the cost of automated testing when compared to manual testing.

The automated test case ensures better longevity without any need for any specific change. The test cases created from any generalized manual process are more comfortable with automating. The more complicated the task, the further difficult the automation procedure becomes. Moreover, automation is more expensive than the manual execution of the job.

So, from the above analysis, it is clear that the implementation of automation is dependent on suitability. It is a complicated procedure and involves risk at the initial stage. Therefore, while setting up the automation process, the circumstances need to be analyzed well before execution.

What needs to be taken care of while launching any product?

While launching any new product or if the product is in its “validation” stage, the proper delivery of a perfect MVP is crucial along with a suitable market fit. Spending time, labor, and money at this stage for automation is not praiseworthy. Once the product gets a firm footing in the market, then one may think about resorting to automation tactics, considering all the aspects in the long run.

The size of the QA team is also a matter of concern for implementing automation. The skilled and resourceful QA team ensures better management of automation procedures. These aspects make smaller companies think twice before implementing such a massive technology.

Salient Features and Essential Details of Automation Testing that need to Consider

As automation is a complicated and expensive process; therefore, careful, long-term planning is necessary to ensure which parts of the business require automation. This planning is essential for the prevention of unnecessary drainage of resources. If a testing procedure involves a massive amount of manual data input, then automation is an essential implementation there. Then the process becomes more time-efficient.

Too many cross-references in an automation process step are prone to human error. Minimizing such tendencies, automation is a safer option. It reduces the presence of bugs that may be undetectable by the human eye. Automation can be efficiently time-saving in repetitive tests. It saves an enormous amount of tedious manual labor in such a way. Moreover, it is better to automate the tests that are more permanent.

Automation Testing Process

Using an automated tool to carry out test cases is known as automation testing. Automation testing is a methodical procedure where a tool executes test suites in successive development cycles with little to no human involvement. This methodical procedure begins with persuading management to incorporate automation into the software development life cycle and finishes with test script maintenance. Choosing the best testing tool, choosing the automation tool, assembling and training the development team for the project, establishing the automation framework, coming up with an execution strategy, and generating test scripts are all parts of the whole process.

Check the Automation Steps for Testing Processes

1. Use of Efficient Automation Tool 

The recruitment of necessary expertise for automation tools, including automation architects and engineers, is a step in the automation testing process. Building automation frameworks is the responsibility of automation architects, who are skilled in various automation tools and knowledgeable about all the benefits and drawbacks of each one. Automation architects work with Management to choose the best automation tool by evaluating applications and technologies. They also assist in building the automation framework, scripting rules, and the proper test cases for automation.

Automation engineers are responsible for automating manual test cases into scripts the automation tool can run. New hires must have strong programming skills, particularly in object-oriented programming.

2. Creating the Framework for Automation Testing

The test scripts should be written according to the automation framework’s criteria, and long-term maintenance requirements should be kept to a minimum. Any modifications to the application that are required, including the bare minimum script updates. Data-driven, modular, hybrid, keyword-driven, and linear automation frameworks are all available.

3. Creating a Plan of Execution

Environments are included in the execution plan for the scripts. Selecting an environment involves picking an OS, hardware, and browser. The automation team should build executable scripts in each of the three different browsers if the test case demands checking in three separate browsers. The script writers are also included in the execution plan; typically, the automation team carries it out, but this is a flexible process.

4. Run The Execution Test scripts

It is now appropriate to begin building scripts since the framework has been developed, the execution strategy is known, and resources have received training on the new tool.

The right naming conventions and an ordered writing style should be used when writing scripts. The source code must be kept under source control to prevent code loss. History and version control should be preserved. The development of tests is similar to that of software. When writing the scripts, all the best programming principles should be considered.

5. Reporting

An important reporting function is giving Management a progress report on the application’s progress. An auto-emailing tool would help the development team submit its findings to Management. Tables and charts can be used to construct test results that are easier for Management to understand after each execution cycle.

6. The Maintenance of scripts

Maintenance won’t be a problem if best practices are followed and the structure is sound.

When an application receives a modification request, maintenance typically happens. For everything to run smoothly, modifying the scripts at once is necessary.

When do you need to hire a QA analyst?

An efficient QA strategy involves careful planning of adjusting the criteria into both manual and automated techniques. This makes it necessary to hire a QA analyst. A more extensive toolkit for testing ensures better detection of bugs. Every step of testing cannot be automated, and also not every step requires automation. Therefore, an effective planning strategy provides better results.

A quality Assurance Analyst (QA) is an important role in any software development team. It involves ensuring that all aspects of the product meet customer requirements and standards.

Exploratory tests cannot be automated. These tests are run to explore potential bugs in a system. Such analyses require manual monitoring and innovative techniques to determine the portions needed to be tested, which makes it essential to hire quality assurance developer besides the need to hire a QA analyst. Easy navigation of the app is necessary in this case rather than a pre-determined strategy of the testers.

UX and UI tests cannot be automated as well. They test user experiences. It can be best conducted manually to ensure the real-life experience of the users. A tester will detect any user experience while navigating the particular application. Similarly, interface testing also requires manual expertise rather than technological interference. This test involves designing, typography, etc.

The primary requirement of automated testing requires a code suite for ensuring a continuous integration setup. This ensures and provides support to automate test runs before they merge with the main element upstream. This sort of efficient infrastructure is essential to gain effective results for automation. The automated regression strategy is not the only path to success in today’s world. The efficient and careful blend of automation and manual labour provides the key to success.

Final Words

The entire automation testing process flow is not simple or effortless. While it involves a lot of technicalities, efficient and skilful professionals are equally important in completing the task and starting the automation testing Process from scratch. Along with that, one must keep the above details and procedures in mind, while also carefully organizing and planning the entire process necessarily. There is also a need to hire quality assurance developer who can perfectly organize the entire automation testing.

With successful planning, proper techniques, and appropriate execution, starting automation testing tools from scratch and mobile automation can turn out to be pretty seamless, and a pretty time-efficient process that can yield long-term results for an entity.