All You Need to Know About DevOps Testing Strategy

The majority of the small and medium-sized enterprises are adapting DevOps services to streamline the development and deployment process. It helps in prompt software delivery. It helps in streamlining the operations and iterations and enables improved planning, communication, and software deployment. While implementing DevOps in the development process, automated testing plays a significant role in speeding the process.

Introduction to DevOps

DevOps stands for development and operations and it is very much similar to what we call the agile development process. Those top mobile app development companies that are using agile methodology can easily adopt DevOps. This service takes care of the software right from the stage it is being built, tested, and launched in the ready-to-use environment. DevOps allows focusing on modernizing the process to check the progress. The ultimate goal is to accelerate the development process and deliver clients what they need quickly without any bugs.      

How does Mobile App Testing Work?

Testing is not a new concept in the software development world. Every app developed must be checked by the testers and then launched in the Google play store and apple app store. Apps without testing are just on the road to failure. It is not feasible to launch an app with bugs and crashes. Users will abandon the app and never return if it is full of bugs.

Hence, an app must be tested before launching it in the market to check the errors and resolve them. Mobile app testing in a normal environment is different as compared to testing in a DevOps environment. In the traditional waterfall model of testing, these are the steps that are usually followed.

• Knowing app requirements
• Analyzing project requirements
• Mobile app design
• Design implementation
• Mobile app testing
• App deployment
• Mobile app maintenance

In traditional testing, development and testing are done by two separate teams. This way testing begins only after the development is entirely completed. Also, bug fixing will start after development and testing which is time-consuming. Here, the quality and standard of the app are not maintained in the allocated time frame.  

Why is Quality Assurance Important for DevOps?

Development and operational services is a collaborative approach and integrating quality assurance in the cycle plays a significant role in the process. DevOps is all about continuous testing and quality management. Here, testing is done alongside development which saves both time and effort of testing and bug fixing. According to the traditional testing approach, testing has no role in the initial steps of the development and comes at the very end. This approach changes with DevOps in quality assurance. With this service, the code is pushed into the production by the testing team very easily and it is deployed by the DevOps. Because of this, quality assurance is not just limited to finding out bugs but also making sure the app is launched smoothly. Quality assurance has changed immensely with DevOps.

• Testing checks the performance and quality of the application securely and speedily before the actual launch of the app. Automation makes the whole process ramp up.
• An organization is needed to create the correct DevOps testing strategy to launch a successful mobile app.
• Delivering ready builds to the clients at any phase of the development cycle won’t be possible if the app is not tested and perfect at every stage.   

Implementing DevOps

If you are looking to integrate a DevOps pipeline, several things need to run continuously. The prime element of a DevOps Testing strategy is continuous testing. It is also known as shift-left testing which is basically a simple approach to software and system testing which testing is an early part of the software cycle. The ultimate goal is shortening time, strengthening quality, and reducing defects paving their way into production code. Here are some of the things to be done continuously. 

• Continuous development
• Continuous integration
• Continuous delivery
• Continuous monitoring 

How to Build DevOps Workflow?

Creating a single workflow might not be enough. Different projects have different requirements, objectives, and different teams. Hence, it is necessary to create different workflows to follow and get optimum benefit and better output. Here are the two best possible scenarios to enable DevOps into the workflow.

• Case 1: The first case is used for creating a workflow for developing greenfield software. The development team will be initiating and would be simple to integrate and automate testing operations with an app as the team size grows.
• Case 2: The second case is used for creating a workflow for developing brownfield software. There will be an existing team and its codebase and DevOps are needed for the app maintenance. This will require some added efforts to build the workflow again for greenfield software development. These efforts are to complete tasks through the kanban board.

Figuring out all the tasks with the kanban board helps to know the issues to speed up the workflow. Detailing all the allocated tasks on the board will help the team to get together ending up in creating the functional test strategies. This will end up improving the collaboration between TestOps and DevOps.

Benefits of DevOps Testing

The basic agenda of DevOps services is continuous testing. Here are some of the benefits of using DevOps in your testing strategy.

1) Functional and Non-Functional Testing

With DevOps, both functional and non-functional testing aspects are covered. It eliminates the need of conducting both types of testing separately on the application. Types of functional testing include unit testing, integration testing, API testing, cross-browser testing, and regression testing. All these things are covered under DevOps. Non-functional testing types cover usability testing, security testing, scalability testing, and reliability testing. Again all of these types are also covered under the DevOps strategy.

2) Risk factor Analysis

DevOps consultants ensure testing the project build in every version of the project. It eliminates the risks of buggy apps and timely delivery. It keeps on checking errors or bugs at every stage and also keeps solving it ensuring a perfect app in the actual working environment.

3) Improved User Experience

Users share their experience of using the app and suggest things to improve. Feedback can help to understand the existing problems and solve them. This will help the app get better and release updates making the app exactly what users want it to be. This way test cases can be created according to the functional viewpoint implemented to check the users’ experience. DevOps testing will make the software stable and sturdy.

4) Platform Coverage

We all know DevOps uses test automation which makes sure that multiple platforms are covered by using correct test automation tools. This way the project is delivered at an adequate speed.

5) Honest Feedback and Quicker Delivery

To make the changes for improving the application, you will need quick feedback and a team to apply the changes at a quick pace. In the traditional development and testing methods, the developers will look to the app weeks after finishing the app because of the late feedback. DevOps will alter these things. It will make the feedback come sooner and will apply changes during the ongoing development. This makes DevOps get faster feedback and even faster delivery.

6) Stable Software

Plenty of software development companies have accepted DevOps into their process for effective results. One of the best qualities of this service is that every member of the team has a specific role to play and has similar responsibilities. The DevOps professionals have the same goal to create and deploy stable and secure software.

Also Read: How Much Does NFT Marketplace Development Platforms Cost? Step-by-step Pattern

Best Practices to Adopt While testing in DevOps

Picking automation testing for your solutions can be challenging. It is important to evaluate the software properly before leaping into the decision to implement it. Let me jot down a few key aspects to consider while framing a successful test strategy.

1) End-to-end Tests

Testing the functional areas is one of the key aspects and there is a requirement to write end-to-end tests. It helps in covering the real-time scenarios of every module. It does not rely on the unit tests. The tests involve specific sets of test cases to cover vast areas. This will enhance the confidence and trust in the project delivery 

2) Simple With Kanban Boards

Kanban boards are a part of agile development methodology which lay its focus on the smooth delivery of the project. By focusing on the key features like updates on project status, regular updates, and issues to communicate and collaborate with the team better. The board will give an exact viewpoint of issues in the pipeline and improves the roadmap.

3) Testing Tools

Testing tools will make the work of the mobile app testers a tiny bit easier. Well, the testers do need enough experience and expertise to analyze the tools and know-how to use them. Budget is also a concern here when it comes to testing tools in automation. Here are some of the DevOps testing tools:

• Continuous delivery tools
• Monitoring tools
• Version control tools
• Performance testing tools
• Security testing tools

Best Tools for DevOps Testing

There are a plethora of DevOps testing tools in the market. These tools will save time by automating the entire process of development integration and delivery. Here are some of the most popular DevOps testing tools.

1) Docker

Docker is an open-source DevOps technology suite that works on the theory of containerization allowing the developers to code, test, and deploy apps despite the project environment.

2) Jenkins

Jenkins is also an open-source tool that allows for creating, delivering, and testing software. This testing tool allows mobile app developers to search for bugs and fix them in the codebase. 

3) JMeter

JMeter is a highly adaptable tool load testing tool used for testing and assessing the performance of the website. It is an open-source tool.

4) GitHub

It is another highly used tool used for effortless collaboration. One of the key features of GitHub is version restoration in case there are any errors found in the latest version.

5) Selenium

Selenium is one of the browser automation tools used for web UI testing and is highly used in DevOps pipelines.    

Wrapping Up

Usage of mobile apps is increasing and being different with each passing day. Plenty of businesses are adopting DevOps as a service giving their business something better compared to their competitors. Based on everything we have discussed above, DevOps can amplify the development process, ensure smooth project delivery, implement effective quality assurance, and ensures successful project delivery. So, stop thinking and start adapting the nuances in your business for optimum customer satisfaction with quality output. Hire the best DevOps consulting services and start making your process better.