The choice of a testing tool is a fundamental factor that differentiates performance testing approaches. Manual testing, testing with an open-source tool or testing with a codeless automated performance testing tool such as Executive Automats differ significantly. In addition, performance testing approaches can be categorized by their scope and duration. This article will introduce the most commonly used ones to you.
Load Testing
Load tests are used whenever you want to assess the performance of your software under certain predefined conditions. This can be a regular load during the daily use of your software or a simulation of an extended load, typical for special events organized by your company. Regardless of a business scenario, load testing is always associated with the expected load.
This testing approach helps measure the average response time of your system and determine the maximum number of users that can work with the software under the existing parameters. It also identifies issues related to network, memory and CPU utilization. These findings can be used to determine whether the hardware used in your company is sufficient to meet the system’s performance requirements.
Stress, Spike and Soak Tests
Often, a system has to handle an unexpectedly high number of users. Even though it may not happen regularly, it is critical to predict the system’s performance under abnormal conditions. There are several testing approaches you can take, and all of them require a powerful automated testing solution with no limitations for a large number of users, for instance, the Executive Automats automated performance testing tool.
Stress testing estimates the performance of the system under an increasing load. This approach focuses on responsiveness under extreme conditions, identifies the first units to fail as well as recovery time.
Spike testing is somewhat similar to stress testing, but increases the load in a more dramatic way. This approach is especially effective for simulating the worst-case scenarios.
In soak or endurance testing, the load is raised to a specific value and the extended parameters are maintained for a prolonged period of time. The goal is to identify resource utilization issues and understand the dynamics of performance degradation.
Flood Testing and Configuration Testing
Flood testing evaluates the performance of the system from the standpoint of the database responsiveness. The approach recreates situations in which databases are overloaded by an excessive amount of data.
This test measures the response time of databases and identifies any bottlenecks in communication when multiple servers are involved. It can also determine the threshold for data processing.
The information you gather with this testing method is essential for the optimization of your database infrastructure and data processing.
Configuration testing examines the impact of all possible software and hardware combinations on system performance. This approach is focused on finding the optimal configuration.
Scalability Testing
One more common approach to performance testing concerns the scalability of a system. Similar to stress testing, it involves determining the threshold of your system’s performance. However, this strategy not only measures the upper limits of your hardware, software or databases, but also explores the factors causing failures.
This knowledge is the foundation for creating a plan to make your system more flexible and scalable.
Executive Automats Automated Performance Testing Tool
Performance is one of the most challenging areas when it comes to testing. In order to simulate an excessive load, numerous user paths need to be replicated. This task is rather time-consuming and expensive without automation. The Executive Automats automated performance testing tool with its no-code interface and powerful real-world scenario replication capabilities, enables organizations to use different performance testing approaches.
