Software Engineering

CSE - 3103

Testing Web Applications

Istyaque Ahammed
Lecturer
Department of Computer Science and Engineering
North Western University, Khulna
 Testing WebApp
 Content is evaluated at both syntactic and semantic level.
 Syntactic level — spelling, punctuation and grammar
 Semantic level — correctness (of information presented), consistency
(across the entire content object and related objects) and lack of
ambiguity
 Function is tested for correctness, instability, and general
conformance to appropriate implementation standards
 Structure is assessed to ensure that it
 properly delivers content and function
 is extensible
 can be supported as new content or functionality is added.
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 Testing WebApp (Cont…)
 Usability is tested to ensure that each category of user
 is supported by the interface
 can learn and apply all required navigation syntax and semantics
 Navigability is tested to ensure that
 all navigation syntax and semantics are exercised to uncover any
navigation errors (e.g., dead links, improper links, erroneous links).
 Performance is tested under a variety of operating
conditions, configurations, and loading to ensure that
 the system is responsive to user interaction
 the system handles extreme loading without unacceptable operational
degradation
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 Testing WebApp (Cont…)
 Compatibility is tested by executing the WebApp in a
variety of different host configurations on both the client and
server sides.
 The intent is to find errors that are specific to a unique host
configuration.
 Interoperability is tested to ensure that the WebApp
properly interfaces with other applications and/or databases.
 Security is tested by assessing potential vulnerabilities and
attempting to exploit each.
 Any successful penetration attempt is deemed a security failure.
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 Content Testing
 Content testing has three important objectives:
 to uncover syntactic errors
• (e.g., typos, grammar mistakes) in text-based documents, graphical
representations, and other media
 to uncover semantic errors
• (i.e., errors in the accuracy or completeness of information) in any
content object presented as navigation occurs, and
 to find errors in the organization or structure
• of content that is presented to the end-user.

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 User Interface Testing
 Links
 navigation mechanisms that link the user to some other content object or
function.
 Forms
 a structured document containing blank fields that are filled in by the user.
The data contained in the fields are used as input to one or more WebApp
functions.
 Client-side scripting
 a list of programmed commands in a scripting language (e.g., Javascript) that
handle information input via forms or other user interactions
 Dynamic HTML
 leads to content objects that are manipulated on the client side using scripting
or cascading style sheets (CSS). 6
 User Interface Testing
 Streaming content
 rather than waiting for a request from the client-side, content objects are
downloaded automatically from the server side. This approach is sometimes
called “push” technology because the server pushes data to the client.
 Cookies
 a block of data sent by the server and stored by a browser as a consequence
of a specific user interaction.The content of the data is WebApp-specific (e.g.,
user identification data or a list of items that have been selected for purchase
by the user).
 Application specific interface mechanisms
 include one or more “macro” interface mechanisms such as a shopping cart,
credit card processing, or ahipping cost calculator.
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 Usability Testing
 Executed by end-users

 Testing sequence …
 Define a set of usability testing categories and identify goals for each.
 Design tests that will enable each goal to be evaluated.
 Select participants who will conduct the tests.
 Instrument participants’ interaction with the WebApp while testing is
conducted.
 Develop a mechanism for assessing the usability of the WebApp

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 Compatibility Testing
 Compatibility testing is to define a set of “commonly
encountered” client side computing configurations and their
variants

 Create a tree structure identifying

 each computing platform
 typical display devices
 the operating systems supported on the platform
 the browsers available
 likely Internet connection speeds
 similar information.
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 Navigation Testing
 The following navigation mechanisms should be tested:
 Navigation links
• these mechanisms include internal links within the WebApp, external links to other
WebApps, and anchors within a specific Web page.
 Redirects
• these links come into play when a user requests a non-existent URL or selects a link
whose destination has been removed or whose name has changed.
 Bookmarks
• although bookmarks are a browser function, the WebApp should be tested to ensure
that a meaningful page title can be extracted as the bookmark is created.
 Site maps
• Each site map entry should be tested to ensure that the link takes the user to the
proper content or functionality.
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 Configuration Testing
 Server-side
 Is the WebApp fully compatible with the server OS?
 Are system files, directories, and related system data created correctly when the
WebApp is operational?
 Do system security measures (e.g., firewalls or encryption) allow the WebApp to
execute and service users without interference or performance degradation?
 Has the WebApp been tested with the distributed server configuration (if one exists)
that has been chosen?
 Client-side
 Hardware—CPU, memory, storage and printing devices
 Operating systems—Linux, Macintosh OS, Microsoft Windows, a mobile-based OS
 Browser software—Internet Explorer, Mozilla/Netscape, Opera, Safari, and others
 User interface components—Active X, Java applets and others
 Plug-ins—QuickTime, RealPlayer, and many others
 Connectivity—cable, DSL, regular modem, T1 11
 Security Testing
 On the server-side, vulnerabilities
 include denial-of-service attacks and malicious scripts that can be passed
along to the client-side or used to disable server operations
 On the client-side, vulnerabilities
 can often be traced to pre-existing bugs in browsers, e-mail programs, or
communication software.

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 Performance Testing
 Does the server response time degrade to a point where it is
noticeable and unacceptable?
 At what point (in terms of users, transactions or data loading)
does performance become unacceptable?
 What is the average response time for users under a
variety of loading conditions?
 Is WebApp reliability or accuracy affected as the load
on the system grows?
 What happens when loads that are greater than maximum
server capacity are applied?
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 Stress Testing
 Does the system degrade ‘gently’ or does the server shut
down as capacity is exceeded?
 Does server software generate “server not available”
messages?
 More generally, are users aware that they cannot reach the server?

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Thank You

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