2007-04-02 05:15:42 · 3 answers · asked by Anonymous in Computers & Internet ➔ Software
Retesting is the process of testing software to see if it fixes the problem it was modified to cure. this involves reproducing the original problem scenario and verifying that the expected results now appear.
Regression testing involves a battery of tests with expected results to verify that, while fixing one problem, other previously working features were not damaged or broken during the process.
Example:
A calculator works fine except for doing 2+2... That one error might be resulting in 5 (mistake)... Everything else works fine... Regression testing would verify that in addition to 2+2 now resulting in 4, other calcs still give the correct result!
Imagine if the calculator programmer looked at the initial failure as perhaps "being only off by one" and "cured" it by subtracting 1 from the answer! Then 2+2 would yield 4 (correct) but 2+3 might then yield 4 also (wrong)!
So, again, regression testing insures that in the process of fixing one problem, you do not create another!
2007-04-02 05:28:21 · answer #1 · answered by N2FC 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Regression testing is done to ensure patched or modified software did not "regress" in functionality. Specifically, that everything that used to work, still works.
Re-testing can happen for a number of reasons; want to double check results, you are trying to recreate an intermittent bug, there may have been performance enhancements or other characteristics to retest for.
In this sense, regression testing is a subset of re-testing. It's retesting specifically to make sure all the stuff that used to work still works.
For systems of any worthy complexity, regression testing is automated via scripts and some kind of regression test harness. IBM's (now in sourceforge.net) STAF framework and the for-sale tool-kits Fanfare (the fanfare group) and Sigmation-TF (www.sigma-rt.com) are examples of test automation harnesses. Each supports one or more scripting languages (or in Fanfare's case, an RPG like grid interface). Automation programmers write scripts that automate the execution of test cases which verify functionality. When the product is patched, or changed in some way, a "suite" of regression tests is run to ensure there was no collateral damage as a result of the change.
2007-04-02 11:41:50 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymoose 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You might get answers using the proper spelling - Regression testing.
2007-04-02 05:23:58 · answer #3 · answered by Gene 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋