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Mobile Application Testing Types
- A practitioner’s
point of view
Introduction
Mobile application testing program should be tailor made
for the specific requirements of the applications. The objective
of this article is to outline various types of testing required
for mobile applications.
Mobile business applications can be classified into Standalone
applications and Enterprise applications. Standalone
applications reside in the device and do not interface with
external systems. On the other hand, Enterprise applications
are built to perform resource intensive transactions that
are typical of corporate computing environments. All mobile
applications would require standard functionality testing,
compatibility testing and GUI testing. Enterprise mobile
applications may pose some unique challenges due to their
complexity in functionality and architecture. So enterprise
applications would require special types of testing such
as performance testing, synchronization testing and security
testing.
The types of testing that are required for mobile applications
are detailed below.
Standard Functionality Testing
Standard functionality testing constitutes unit testing,
integration testing, system testing and regression testing.
Unit Testing
Unit testing focuses on conducting tests on individual
units of application.
Integration Testing
All sub modules of the system should be integrated and
tested.
System Testing
During the system testing, integrated system should be
tested. When an enterprise business application is tested,
the application should be tested by interfacing with all
possible combinations of mobile devices and platform.
Regression Testing
Regression testing should be conducted when the mobile
applications undergo enhancements. Regression testing
for mobile applications should be done using the actual
devices to ensure that new defects are not introduced
into the application.
Tests specific to Mobile applications
Mobile applications need to provide almost the same user
experience across all platforms and devices. Following types
of testing should be included in testing program to address
the unique challenges in mobile environment.
Compatibility Testing
Due to the variety of hardware and software that an application
is required to support, testing should examine the application
for:
- Suitability to the underlying software platform
- Compatibility with devices that use different protocols
for communication
GUI Testing
The main objective of the GUI testing is to uncover the
issues in the display due to:
- Differences in display sizes
- Differences in display resolution
- Differences between various versions of browser
supported
Note: GUI tests and compatibility
tests should be conducted during initial stages of testing.
Special tests for Enterprise Class Applications
Enterprise applications are pervasive and more complex than
standalone applications. In order to address the challenges
that enterprise applications pose, following types of testing
are suitable for enterprise applications.
Performance Testing
The enterprise applications built for mobile platform
should be tested to ensure that they deliver optimum results
for:
- Desired number of concurrent user connections
- Varying bandwidths of wireless network
Security Testing
With the increased ability to download applications and
install them on mobile devices, the risk of viruses and
enterprise data security violation increases. Security
testing of mobile applications could detect breaches such
as:
- Applications performing certain operations without
necessary permissions, leading to malfunctioning of
the device
- Unauthorized access of communication ports such
as infrared port to transmit unintended data
- Transmitting data over secure sockets layer without
digital signatures or digital certificates
Synchronization Testing
Enterprise mobile business applications require data synchronization
between mobile devices and servers. Synchronization testing
should be conducted to ensure that:
- The data is consistent while synchronizing between
server and the mobile device
- The application setting or application data is not
corrupted if network connectivity breaks or if power
fails during synchronization
- The application does not hang when the device is
removed from the cradle
Conclusion
Mobile application testing should ensure that the functionality
is well covered across multiple platforms and devices. Organizations
considering mobile application testing should ensure that
the testing program uses both automation and manual testing.
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