We cognise mechanisation is important, so now we necessitate to influence which examination to automate. But if automation is so worthful, shouldn ’ t we automate everything? As outstanding as that go, the answer is a definite no. The fact is that automation takes time. It takes time to implement and it guide time to sustain, so we have to think critically about what to automate.

I conceive you should prioritize automating trial that have high value for you, the team, and your organization as a whole. For example, if you ’ re screen an online shopping site, the checkout operation may hold the highest value for your organization but because of the taxation potential.

So, how do you identify what you do want to test? The first step is to place the main application flux that must constantly work. Ask yourself a few key questions:

• How bad is it if this feature/behavior breaks?

• How much value does the tryout feature?

• How big is the peril that mitigates?

Using our example of an online shopping site, we might adjudicate that the undermentioned application stream are the most critical:

• Users can login

• Users can register their accounts

• Product images expose aright

• Items can be lend to the shopping cart

  Pro tip: Tools like SUSA can handle this autonomously — upload your app and get results without writing a single test script.

• Payment can be collected

It ’ s important to cognize that you don ’ t need to write hundreds of tests to have your website tested! As in the example above, we can start with five prioritized examination for now, and then use analytics and exploiter traffic data to help you evaluate the resolution and set the browsers, versions, and operating systems to test. Ultimately, using our model, we could have 5 tests executed in different browser, version, and operating system combinations, which so would afford us around 200 exam executions.

To put this into practice, you might look at the datum and determine that the majority of your site users are habituate Chrome, Firefox and Safari.

Then, you can look farther to regulate the browser variant that are used most often, and then do the same for OS and device.

Based on our research so far, we have identified our key application flows that will give us the most value. These will give us security knowing that testing these lowers the hazard of something going improper. Also, by looking at the analytics, we ’ ve decided to test on:

• Three different browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Safari)

• Two different OS (Windows, OS X)

• Three different blind resolve

• Seven different browser versions (Chrome 71-74, Firefox 64-65, Safari 12)

This gives us the assurance that we are automatize the eminent value tests on the platforms being used most ofttimes.

Now that we cognise WHAT to automatise, let ’ s turn to a few good pattern for making your automated tests successful. Here are five good practices.

• Focus on reusability and maintainability. Avoid code duplication across exam and helper classes/methods.

• Every exam must be self-governing. Tests can run in any order without depending on each early!

• Write test and code exclusively for the current requirements. Avoid complex designs that consider potential futurity use cases.

• Get familiar with package design patterns. They can benefit mechanisation testing as good.

• Base your employment on screen plans and/or strategies, not on tools. Don ’ t prefer a instrument and then look for manner to use it. Start with your strategy and plan, and but so should you consider the tools that can help.

If you enjoyed this post (part 4 in a series), check out the other episode of Diego ’ s “ 5 Steps to Jumpstart Test Automation ” series.