by Scott Brooks

Test automation is one of those practices that many people have heard of, but few really understand when and why it makes sense to adopt. What is test automation? What tools are available to enable the process? Read on to find out – and to learn about the benefits of this time-saving approach.

What Is Test Automation?

Test automation is a process using software tools and/or scripts to automate (manual) test execution to ensure that software behaves as expected under a multitude of scenarios and conditions. It involves writing test scripts or using test tools to automate tests and test case execution, comparing actual versus expected results, and reporting discrepancies, findings, and results.

Examples of test automation use cases include:

• User Interface: Testing software user interfaces
• Integration: Testing the integrations and interactions between different software components and/or modules
• Functional: Testing software functional requirements
• Unit: Testing individual software components separately
• Regression: Testing to ensure that new software code or behavior changes are not affecting existing functionality
• Application Programming Interface (API): Testing APIs directly and as part of integrations to determine if they fulfill expected functionality, security, and performance parameters
• Load/Performance: Testing software performance under various load conditions

Test Automation Tools

There are a range of available tools that are appropriate for use in federal technology environments, including this sample:

• ServiceNow Automated Test Framework (ATF): Designed specifically for ServiceNow applications and modules, ATF allows users to create, manage, and execute automated tests within the platform to ensure quality and reliability.
• Selenium: This is an open-source tool for web applications that supports web browser automation and subsequent programming languages such as Java, Python, C#, and more.
• Jenkins: Used for continuous integration and delivery pipelines, this tool can be integrated with various frameworks and tools to help automate the testing process.
• Postman: This test tool allows users to design, mock, and test APIs quickly and easily. Its features allow functional, load, and security testing.
• Appium: An open-source tool designed specifically for mobile applications, Appium allows users to automate native, hybrid, and mobile web applications on iOS and Android platforms.

Benefits of Test Automation

Test automation does require an initial investment in an automation framework and tools, time to write test scripts, and effort to maintain them as software changes/evolves.

However, the long-term benefits are significant and include:

• Faster Speed: Faster test executions
• Enhanced Coverage: Improved test coverage, repeatability/reusability
• Greater Productivity: Increased tester/testing team productivity
• Reduced Costs: With the efficiencies gained from completing more tests, faster, with at least the same reliability and validity