Getting Started with your Virtual QA Lab

You love the idea of a virtual QA Lab but wonder how to begin. At the beginning, as with any project, with the high level requirements and the business systems design review. Get your ideas in line with the needs of the business.

Define and Prepare

The solution must be designed to provide stable services to the Quality Assurance and Development Departments by implementing network servers and updated software purchased from approved vendors. This will have direct impact on reducing business risk, increasing availability of the applications in line with current projections for the QA and Development Departments and compliance with SoX audit trail requirements. Not worried about SoX? Someone in your organization will be concerned with audits, be is SoX or something else. Having an audit trail protects the business from anything that may occur in the future so plan for it now.

Anyone for Scope?

Gain a complete understanding of what exists today in your world. Do you have any single point of failures? Lack of failover systems? Operating systems that are not part of a security patching schedule and are therefore out of date posing a security risk. Have the needs and volume changed since the original equipment was put in place? What are those? How do you plan to address that?

The Virtual QA lab will aims to resolve all the outdated and growth issues now and in the future by upgrading hardware, implementing adequate security polices and adding support and training. Be sure your plan:

• Specifies clearly the needs and offerings.
• Is clear and focused to avoid misinterpretation.
• Measureble to be quantified and compared to other data.
• Attainable: achievable, reasonable, and credible under conditions expected.
• Realistic: fits into the organization's constraints and is cost effective.
• Timely.

Phase It!

This is not a simple undertaking for an organization that has not walked down this road before. Avoid the overwhelming feeling by phasing your plan. Make it simple and understandable to avoid the "this is too complex" thoughts your customers have in their minds before it hits their lips.

For example, in the initial phase, new hardware may be purchased and installed in an approved data center. New Application software may be installed and configured. Be sure to include assets and how they will be accommodated.

Be absolutely certain to include savings, this is a critical part of this plan. Include those costs associated with exposure due to outdated and aged out hardware, as well as growth both immediate and in the future.

Get Specific

If you have done your homework up to know, you are fully aware of the pains within the QA organization and the organization overall. Address those pains in specific, real terms. What if you are new or trying to do this as an outside vendor with no specifics? Ask questions! Most clients are more than happy to talk about their pain. They need your help, after all, that is why they are talking to you in the first place. Don't miss any opportunities to learn about the pain and pleasure of the current systems and environments and address them.

Need Help?

Give me a call, an email or contact me in whatever way you feel most comfortable. I am very happy to help and am certain I can be of help to you in your plan. I have implemented this solution ins both large and small organizations and can customize this cost saving solution to fit any environment and company size.

Agile Testing Types and Process

Types of Testing and the steps to be followed in sequence to assure your customers receive a quality product. For example, performance testing can only be accomplished successfully AFTER functional testing has been performed and the software passes that step. To do so otherwise would result in functional errors delaying the success of performance testing

Step 1: Unit testing
Performed by the Developer. Unit test case design begins after a technical review approves the high level design. The unit test cases shall be designed to test the validity of the program's correctness. In other words each decision statement in the program shall take on a true value.

Step 2: Test Planning
Performed by QA. Review requirement specifications, architectural designs and use cases to develop test plans, test steps and test scenarios. Identify any gaps or issues that need to be addressed.

Step 3: Requirements Traceability / Testability
Performed by QA. Traceability is the ability to show how requirements are derived from higher level (or "parent") requirements. Conversely, traceability helps to identify all downward requirements derived from parent requirements.

Step 4: Integration Testing
Performed by QA. Integration testing proves that all areas of the system interface with each other correctly and that there are no gaps in the data flow. The final integration test proves that the system works as an integrated unit when all the fixes are complete.

Step 5: Build Verification / Smoke Test
Performed by QA. When a build has met completion criteria and is ready to be tested, the QA team runs an initial battery of basic tests to verify the build. If the build is not testable at all, then the QA rejects the build. If portions of the build are testable those are tested and the results documented.

Step 6: Functional Testing
Performed by QA. Functional testing assures that each element of the application meets the functional requirements of the business as outlined in the requirements document/functional brief, system design specification, and other functional documents produced.

Step 7: Performance, Load and Stress Testing
Performed by QA. Non-functional testing proves that the documented performance standards or requirements are met. Examples of testable standards include response time and compatibility with specified browsers and operating systems.

Step 8: Defect Fix Validation
Performed by QA. If any known defects or issues existed during development, QA tests specifically in those areas to validate the fixes implemented by the developers who have also unit tested these fixes prior to sending them over to QA for validation.

Step 9: Regression Testing
Performed by QA. Regression testing is performed after the release of each phase to ensure that there is no impact on previously released software. Regression testing cannot be conducted on the initial build because the test cases are taken from defects found in previous build in initial there will be nothing to test against.

Step 10: Error Management
Performed by QA. During the QA testing workflow, all defects will be reported using the error management workflow. Regular meetings will take place between QA, development, product and project management to discuss defects, priority of defects, and fixes.

Step 11: QA Reporting and Readiness Review Performed by QA. QA states the results of testing, reports outstanding defects/known issues, and makes a recommendation for release into production.

Step 12: Release Management
Performed by QA. Releasing software refers to the process of providing some named (or otherwise uniquely identified) files to others for use. The others may be your department at work, your classmates, or The World. Managing the release means you know, understand and can explain what went into it.

Step 13: User Acceptance Testing
Performed by All concerned Product Managers, Project Managers and a Customer Focus Group (if applicable) to verify the new system, data and software changes meet customer expectations and meet usability requirements.

Step 14: Release into production
Performed by QA & Project Team If the project team determines that the build is acceptable for production, the configuration/version management team will migrate the build into staging for the implementation team to move into the production environment.

Step 15: Post Implementation
Testing Performed by QA. Testing performed after the software has been deployed to ensure proper implementation.