Page 69 - SOFTWARE TESTING & QUALITY ASSURANCE

Software Testing and Quality Assurance

Testers input Name of Country in a text box that has been designed to accept
only Name of City. This is done to check the system’s response for incorrect
data with reference to breaking the system.

5.1 Configuration Testing

As defined earlier, configuration testing involves testing the various configuration possibilities for a
computer used at home or in an organization.

Configuration testing is the first testing task assigned to a software tester. As a tester you need to ensure
that the software works fine without any problem, for all possible hardware combinations.
Testing the system would be a very simple task, when the hardware combinations of computers are
identical. In addition, there would be no confusion with the option buttons available to click, and
components would interface perfectly every time you use the system.

Did you know? The cost of performing configuration testing is very low, but the benefits are large due
to the repeated tests. Therefore, configuration testing is always considered as a cost
effective method.
5.1.1 Overview of Configuration Testing

As defined earlier, configuration testing involves testing the various configuration possibilities for a
computer used at home or in an organization.
When you are in need of a computer, you would visit a computer showroom or an online store to check
the system requirements. You would then decide on a processor, a 32-bit monitor, and so on. Therefore,
a simpler definition of configuration testing would be checking the software’s functioning ability with
various hardware configurations.

Did you know? Configuration testers test printers, Network Interface Cards (NICs), and so on.
Configuration testing is also known as portable testing or hardware compatibility
testing.
Let us now study the various possible hardware configuration elements that you may have to test.
1. Manufacturers: Computer manufacturers either design their own computers or obtain certain
components from a third party manufacturer to build a computer. Some people also assemble
their computers using off-the-shelf components available in the market.
2. Components: Computers are made up of various components such as system boards, component
cards, network cards, disk drives, CD-ROM and DVD drives, video cards, sound cards,
input/output cards, and much more specialized hardware for advanced use.
3. Peripherals: Peripherals are the external hardware devices such as printers, scanners, mouse
devices, keyboards, monitors, fax modems, cameras, and joysticks that are plugged into the
computer.
4. Interfaces: Interfaces are the components and peripherals that are plugged into a computer
through various internal and external connectors.

Industry Standard Architecture (ISA), Peripheral Component Interconnect
(PCI), Universal Serial Bus (USB), Registered Jack- 11 (RJ-11), Registered Jack-
445 (RJ-45), and Fire wire are examples of interfaces.

5. Options and Memory: Components and peripherals with various available hardware options and
memory sizes can be bought today. You also have the privilege of upgrading printers to support
extra memory and speed up the printing process.

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