Complete Guide for Manual Testing Process!

In the dynamic world of software development, ensuring that applications work flawlessly is paramount. Just as mortar and pestle remain essential in cooking despite the invention of modern kitchen tools, manual testing remains crucial in the quality assurance process. While automated testing has gained significant traction for its speed and efficiency, manual testing involves the careful, deliberate examination of software by human testers, who bring intuition and insight that machines often lack.

This comprehensive guide will walk you through the essentials of manual testing, from understanding its core principles to mastering the step-by-step process. Whether you are a seasoned QA professional or a newcomer to the field, this guide will equip you with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively conduct manual testing and contribute to the development of robust, user-friendly software.

What is Manual Testing?

In manual testing, testers execute test cases manually without the use of automation tools. This basic testing technique involves human effort to identify errors, issues, or defects within a software program. Unlike automated testing, which relies on scripts and tools, manual testing depends on the tester’s skill and insight to verify and assess the application’s functionality according to the specified requirements.

Characteristics of Manual Testing

There are a few characteristics of manual testing that work in favour of software quality assurance.

• Manual testing allows for human observation, which is essential for finding user-experience issues that automated tests might miss.
• Testers can easily modify test cases based on their observations during testing.
• Manual testing is ideal for exploratory testing where there are no pre-defined test cases.
• Manual testing can start early in the development cycle, even before the program is fully developed, allowing the identification of problems early on.
• Manual testing is ideal for complex scenarios that are hard to automate.
• Manual testing is excellent for assessing an application’s UI, including design, responsiveness, appearance, and overall user experience.

Types of Manual Testing

While there are various types of manual testing with differing phases depending on the kind of software, these are the primary testing:

1. Black-Box Testing: The goal of this kind of testing is to examine the program without being aware of its internal code structure. Testers use a range of inputs to validate the outputs. Without reviewing the code that drives the computations, a tester can enter various numbers and operations into a calculator app to see if the results are displayed correctly.
2. White-Box Testing: Testing an application’s internal workings or structures is known as “white-box” testing. Tests are created using the internal logic after studying the code to make sure that every feature functions as intended, such as adding or removing products. For example, a tester can go over the code of an online shopping cart and write tests.
3. Exploratory Testing: Using this approach, testers can create tests based on their observations and interactions while simultaneously exploring the application. To test a new social media app, for example, a tester can experiment with various methods for sending messages, uploading photographs, and posting status updates while recording any problems they run across.
4. Gray Box Testing: This method integrates black-box and white-box testing, through which testers examine the functionality and internal code. For instance, a tester may be able to access specific sections of the code for a banking application and design test scenarios to verify the user interface and transaction security.

Manual Testing Step By Step Process

Like any other software development process, the manual testing process also has specific steps. The software tester has to go through these steps in a set sequence to conduct testing effectively. So, let’s take a look at how you can perform testing manually.

1. Understand the Requirements

Before starting the testing process, it is crucial to have a clear understanding of the software requirements. Thus, it is the first step of the process. It involves going through the requirement documents usually provided by the organization. After that, the tester has to understand the user stories and clarify any doubts with stakeholders or developers.

2. Test Plan Creation

The next step is to create a test plan. A test plan typically outlines the scope, approach, resources, and schedule of the testing activities. It includes the objectives of the tests, which are the results aimed by testers. The test plan also contains details of the features to be tested and the tasks of each individual on the team. Besides these, it has guidelines for risk analysis and mitigation plans for software testers.

3. Write the Test

Once the test plan is created, the testers move on to the most crucial step of the manual testing process, that is, writing the test. For systematic testing, a test case has to be detailed and include the following:

• Test case ID
• Test description
• Preconditions of the test
• Test steps
• Expected results
• Actual results

4. Conduct Tests

We have reached a major step where the testers spend most of their time manually assessing the software. Conducting the test basically means executing the test cases manually by following the steps mentioned in the test cases. As this is done, software testers also have to observe and record the results, ensuring that they match the expected outcomes.

5. Defect Logging

During the testing phase, any errors or inconsistencies should be reported in a defect tracking program. This tracking and keeping a record of bugs is called defect logging. The defect report should include the Defect ID and a detailed Defect description. After tracking, the testers outline the reproduction steps according to the priority and severity of the defect. To make the reproduction easier, the defect report can include specifics of the environment and screenshots of user queries, if relevant.

6. Fixing Bugs

The entire process of testing software comes down to this step: fixing the bugs and improving the user experience. Once defects are logged, the development team is responsible for addressing and fixing the issues. Communication between testers and developers is crucial to ensure the defects are correctly understood and resolved throughout this step.

7. Re-verification

After developers fix the defects, testers take the next step of re-verifying the issues. They execute the same test cases to ensure the fixes work as expected, and no new problems have been introduced. This helps in preventing similar issues in the future and good quality software. Verification is the final step in manually testing software. The cycle repeats as required by the organization and the development needs of any software or application.

Tips for Performing Better Manual Testing

Now that you are well aware of the Manual Testing Step-by-Step Process, we have some tips for you to conduct testing effectively.

1. Take the time to learn about the application and its intended users. Know the purpose of the software, its main features, and how end-users are expected to interact with it. This deep understanding will help you create more relevant and practical test cases.
2. Ensure your test cases cover all possible scenarios in which a user might interact with the software, and write test cases for those scenarios. For instance, for a login feature, write test cases for valid logins, invalid logins, password resets, and account lockouts after multiple failed attempts.
3. Be meticulous in your testing approach. Small details can often lead to significant issues, so take note of any irregularities or unexpected behaviours. For example, while testing a messaging app, check not only if messages are sent and received but also if notifications appear correctly and if timestamps are accurate.
4. Share your findings clearly and promptly, and ensure you understand the technical aspects of any issues you discover. Regular meetings or updates can help keep everyone on the same page.
5. Keep thorough records of your test cases, test execution, and results. Documentation helps track progress, allows for better test reproducibility, and provides a reference for future testing.
6. Attend workshops, webinars, and conferences to stay updated on the latest trends, techniques, and best practices in manual testing, and consider getting certified in testing methodologies.

Conclusion

Manual testing is a critical component of the software testing process. It helps ensure that the software is user-friendly and free of bugs that automated tests could miss. By following a systematic approach and maintaining clear communication with the development team, testers can effectively identify and address defects in the software. The guidelines and tips provided above can enhance your manual testing process and contribute to the delivery of high-quality software. Start learning manual testing through our Quality Assurance Training!