How Cloud-based Testing Improves the Software Quality?

Cloud testing or Cloud-based testing is nothing but a type of software testing that uses cloud computing tools or resources to test the software application. In layman’s terms, it’s about testing the software quality on the cloud. The software is tested for functional as well as non-functional requirements. The tests (both manual and automated) are run on a cloud environment with the requisite infrastructure.

The cloud-based testing services providers offer environments that can be configured as per the application’s requirements. They provide cloud-based testing labs, services for managing these labs, on-demand testing tools, and more. The use of cloud computing tools (in comparison to the on-premise QA tools) to test applications can help enterprises minimize testing costs and improve collaboration between the QA team members.

The entire testing process is shifted or conducted online which saves the QA team from the hassle of device, browser, and geographical limitations in addition to the setup and maintenance process. Furthermore, Cloud-based testing makes the testing process comparatively easier, faster, and more manageable than traditional testing (on-premise).

What’s the reason behind the shift towards Cloud-based testing?

During website/app development, once the testable features have been built, the app goes through a testing process where it is tested for performance, security, reliability, and scalability. Multiple browsers and devices are taken into account as an app’s functionality can vary across devices, and only after all considerations, the app can be said to be functioning flawlessly.

Now, one option is to set up an in-house device lab, but that would be a strenuous task and equally expensive. It would need to be updated with new devices released every year, and not to forget the investment that you need to make to maintain the security level and uptime.

That’s when cloud testing comes into the picture. Opting for cloud testing tools and platforms eliminates the challenges and overheads associated with an in-house lab. This, therefore, becomes a relatively better option as the tests can be run remotely without having to worry about the device/OS or the browser challenges. The time and effort that would go into updates and maintenance of the in-house lab can be invested somewhere else.

Need for Cloud Testing

Cloud testing simplifies the many complications that are involved in an in-house device lab.

1. Cloud-based testing platforms facilitate tests for multiple users and teams on multiple devices simultaneously. This means that the QA team(s) would not be required to share the test environment with other teams.

2. Cloud testing not only brings efficiency but also comprises features that accelerate and improve collaboration between teams or members of the same team.

3. Test automation requires the QA engineers to access device and relevant test automation frameworks in addition to the CI/CD tools, test logs, debugging tools, etc. And setting up this for an in-house device lab can be financially as well as physically draining. With cloud automated testing platforms, these things are equipped inbuilt, which takes a lot of burden off the shoulders of the development and the QA team.

4. If in the future, the app needs to be scaled, a faster and more extensive testing approach would be required. This is to ensure that the app can handle the traffic spikes without compromising on the customer experience whatsoever. A cloud-based automated testing solution proves to be much helpful in such cases than to rush to update in-house device labs. So the former gets an edge over the latter as far as the scalability is concerned.

Benefits of Cloud Testing

Cloud-based testing offers the following advantages-

1. Cost-efficient

Cloud testing proves to be more cost-efficient than traditional testing as the former requires you to pay only for the services that you may use or require. Moreover, setting up an in-house device lab involves high costs. This includes but is not limited to renewing the licenses, maintenance costs, and framework upgrades. Having a third-party platform to deal with all this would incur a lesser overall cost.

2. Availability

One can access resources from any device irrespective of the time and location, provided that the device has an Internet connection. This, with the help of in-built collaboration tools, makes it easier for the team or the team members to collaborate in real time.

3. Readymade Testing Environment

An in-house lab environment may not have the infrastructure required to replicate real-world devices and software usage. Cloud testing tools take care of this aspect and provide a readymade testing environment that mimics the production environment. All that the testers need to do is simply sign up, select the devices they want to run tests on, and start flagging bugs.

4. Accelerates Testing

Cloud testing is faster than traditional testing and accelerates test execution and results significantly, thanks to automated and parallel testing. Faster results also lead to a faster time to market.

Different kinds of testing that can be performed in a cloud environment

A broad range of functional and non-functional tests are conducted in a cloud environment. Here are a few examples of the software tests often performed.

1. Functional testing

This encompasses smoke testing, white box testing, black-box testing, sanity testing, unit testing, user acceptance testing, and integration testing.

2. Performance testing

The application’s performance is tested under specific workloads to identify the limitations and other thresholds.

3. Load testing

This is to check the application’s ability to work under peak workloads while remaining stable and effective at the same time.

4. Latency testing

The latency is checked between the actions and responses within the application.

5. Security testing

The application is tested for vulnerabilities in the application’s data and code.

6. Browser and Compatibility testing

The application is tested across different web browsers and operating systems.

7. Interoperability testing

It is checked whether the application can work seamlessly when moving from one cloud infrastructure to another.

8. Disaster recovery testing

If there is any breakdown, system failure, or network outage, it should be ensured that it doesn’t lead to any data loss.

Final Word

Cloud-based testing is a great way for the QA team to reach their goals faster, and with greater accuracy and minimum investment, alongside maintaining the testing standards and requirements. And we have already mentioned how and why it is better when compared to an on-premises testing environment. While cloud testing offers several advantages, there are certain drawbacks associated with it as well, such as one may encounter challenges while replicating the user environment, data security and privacy challenges, multi-cloud models challenges, and more. However, the cons do not outweigh the pros.

Before testing in the cloud, make sure to determine which cloud testing tools and services are the best fit for your team or organization.