What is a Test Case and How to Write a Good One?

A test case refers to a set of conditions under which the tester will identify whether the system is working correctly and satisfying all the requirements.

A test case consists of components that define input, action, and output to detect if a particular feature of an application is working perfectly or not.

Writing test cases is one of the essential activities carried out by the tester in the process of SDLC.  However, in order to write test cases efficiently, detailed knowledge of the application is required to deliver good test cases.

So the initial step to writing effective test case is to identify and evaluate the requirements.  

A Test Case Should Be Organized and Well-Written So That It Could Be Easily Understood By The Tester:

While writing test cases, it is essential to elaborate on the test case and include all the relevant and required details into it. If you are writing a test case with more details and descriptions, it will eventually save time and your future efforts.

A well-written test case also affects the testing of an application. A poorly written test case will lead to poorly tested application.  So it is important to write a test case effectively that will help in testing an application efficiently.

How to Write Effective Test Cases?

When going to write test case, you should follow some guidelines to ensure that you write a good test case. Here are some steps to follow:

1. Find the objective and scope of testing web and mobile application

The initial step in writing an effective test case is that you should first find out the testable requirements. You must identify the goal of testing mobile application and what are its user requirements.

2. Describe how to execute testing activities

Before you start writing a test case, you should begin defining effective test case scenarios. But to describe test scenarios, you should be well aware of the functional requirements of an application. You must have knowledge regarding all the operations that will be used. So, on the basis of these guidelines, you can write effective test case scenarios and test cases.

3. Classifying non-functional requirements is also essential

Identifying non-functional requirements is equally important as identifying functional requirements. All these non-functional requirements include an operating system, security features, and hardware requirements. For instance, consider a situation in which a website form accepts user credentials, in such a scenario, a proper timeout should be defined in order to ensure that the application does not time out while entering the user information.

And, in case if the user is idle for some time, the system should be logged off automatically, so as not to violate the security of the application.

4. Test Case Framework should be properly defined

A test case framework can be designed based on the system requirements. Usually, the test cases should include the UI interface, functionality, fault tolerance, compatibility, and performance level of various modules.

5. Keep a close watch on all the test cases

When various software testers are involved in testing a single project or when the software testing team is working from remote locations, it is very common that two software testers define a similar test case. So it is essential to monitor all the test cases in order to write unique ones. And eliminating duplicate test cases is also required to save future efforts and time.

6. Update the test cases according to the changing requirements:

If any changes are introduced in the application, it is mandatory to update the test cases accordingly. So before writing any new test cases, it’s a good practice to update your existing test cases as per the changing requirements.

Conclusion:

It takes a little practice and efforts to write effective test cases. A well-written test case ensures a smooth testing process and also saves your time and efforts in the future. Test cases should be written in such a way that they are simple, easy and understandable.