What is cache memory?

Cache memory is a certain memory aid for computers that speeds them up very well. 

- In cache memory, the storage of the data is transparent so as to make the processing of the future requests faster. 

- A cache might store in it the values that have already computed or duplicate of some values stored somewhere else in the memory. 

- Whenever some data is requested, it is first looked up in the cache memory. - If the data is found here, it is returned to the processor and this is called a ‘cache hit’. 

- In this case the time taken for accessing the data is reduced. 

- This access is thus faster than that of the main memory. 

- Another case is of cache miss when the required data is not found in the cache.

- Then again the data has to be fetched or computed from its original source or the storage location which is slow as obvious. 

- The overall performance of the system increases in proportion with the number of requests that can be served from the cache memory.

- In order to maintain the cost efficiency as well as efficiency in data usage, the size of the cache is kept relatively small as compared to the main memory. 

- However, the caches have proven themselves from time to time because of their ability to recognize the patterns of access in the applications having some locality of reference. 

- Temporal locality is exhibited by the references if the data that was previously requested is requested once again.

- These references apart from temporal locality also exhibit spatial locality if the storage location of the requested data is close to the data that was previously requested.

How is cache implemented?

- The cache is implemented as a memory block by the hardware and as a place of temporary storage. 

- Here, only that data is stored which is likely to be accessed again and again. 

- Caches are not only used by hard drives and CPUs but also by the web servers and browsers. 

- Pools of entries together make up the cache. 

- Each entry has a datum associated with and a copy of it is stored in the backing store. 

- Each entry is also tagged for the specification of the datum’s identity in the backing store.

- When a datum is required to be accessed by a cache client (it might be an operating system, CPU or web browser.) that it thinks might be available in the backing store, the cache is first checked. 

- If the desired entry is found, it is returned for the use. This is cache hit.

- Similarly, a web browser might look in its local cache available at the disk to see if it has the contents of a web page. 

- In this case the URL serves as the searching tag and the contents are the datum. 

- The rate of successful cache accesses is known as the hit rate of the cache.

- In case of a cache miss, the datum not cached is copied in to the cache so as to prevent future cache misses. 

- For making space for this datum, some already existing datum in the cache is removed. 

- Which datum is to be removed is determined by using the replacement algorithms. 

Explain Fabasoft app.test - Web Functional/ Regression Test Tool

About Fabasoft app.Test

- Fabasoft distribution GmbH has developed a web testing tool called the fabasoft app. Test.

- It can be used to create tests based up on the patterns that are effective in reducing the complexity of the java and HTML applications.

- These tests do not contain any CSS and XPath expressions but they do contain statements that are meaningful and can be easily understood. 

- The features of this tool can be extended by connecting with it the eclipse plug–in that is a point–and-click editor. 

- This plug–in can be used for designing effective patterns for web sites. 

- Fabasoft app. Test supports web browsers such as Mozilla firefox, internet explorer, and safari and so on. 

- In all these browsers, tests can be recorded using the above point–and–click recorder.

- The recorded test scripts than can be replayed immediately after recording in the other browsers and there is no need for modifying those scripts.

- The tool is even capable of generating various reports in formats such as PDF or html, documentation of the errors consisting of various dumps and screen shots. 

- It supports various platforms such as:

1.   Win

2.   Linux

3.   Mac OS – X

Features of Fabasoft app.Test

 

Some of the characteristic features of this web testing tool are:

1.   Recorder

2.   Multi – browser support

3.   Script and dialog error handler

4.   Documentation of the errors along with screen shots

5.   Various dumps

6.   Several reports in formats such as pdf and html.

- If you have opted for using fabasoft app. Test, you can just sit back and relax and let the tool take on the testing process. 

- The tests that are created with fabasoft app. Test are easy to understand and there is no requirement of the programming skills.

- It can be considered to be the next generation web testing. 

- You can teach fabasoft app. Test about your application in just a few clicks. 

- The fabasoft app. Test can test the application further for omissions and errors. 

- The tool is quite easy to install and use.

- Large scale web sites are developed through standards such as content management systems (CMS) including red dot, liferay, joomla and so on. 

- Since these web sites represent the reputation of the companies, it is important that they should remain highly accessible all the time and free of errors. 

- The web developers often end up looking for GUI testing tools for testing their sites. 

- Fabasoft app. Test can be used for the automated testing of the web applications no matter what technology has been used for building these applications such as ASP, PHP, flash, JavaScript and so on. 

- The fabasoft app. Test can be taught about the structure of the application to be tested. 

- Once done with this, you can start with the recording of the test and obtaining reports. 

- It ensures that your application is can run on all the platforms and web browsers. 

- Stay automatically informed about the status of your application testing. 

- You get to know about a problem as soon as it is encountered and solve it well in time.

1.   Fabasoft app. Test studio

2.   Point and click recorder

3.   Multi browser support

4.   Control specification designer

5.   Internationalization of the tests

6.   Test player

7.   Console player

8.   Remote agent

9.   Commander

10. BIRT report support

11. Html reporting

What are different Web Functional/Regression Test Tools?

As functional and regression testing is important for many software systems, the same way it is important for the web applications to undergo the functional and regression testing. At present we have a number of tools available for web functional/ regression testing.  

In this article we shall discuss many such tools available:

1. ManageEngine QEngine: This tool is for functional testing and load testing of the web applications. This tool enables you to carry out GUI testing in minutes and below are some of its features:

Ø Portability: With this feature you can record scripts in windows and play them in linux without any need of recreation.

Ø  Scripting capabilities: These are simplified script creation, keyword driven testing, data – driven testing, object repository, Unicode support.

Ø  Playback options: It includes playback synchronization, chain scripts, multiple playback options etc.

Ø  Validation and verification: The tool comes with a rich library of built – in functions for constructing function calls for requirements such as dynamic property handling, database handling, and screen handling and so on.

Ø   AJAX testing

Ø  Reporting capabilities: The tool provides you with clear and powerful reports indicating the status of the execution of the test.

2. SeleniumHQ: This tool has a number of smaller projects that combined to create a testing environment to suit your needs:

Ø  Selenium IDE: This one’s an add – on for firefox and can be used for replaying the tests in the same.

Ø  Selenium remote control: Web browsers can be controlled with this client/ server system located on either a local host or a remote one.

Ø  Selenium grid: This is the same as the previous one but can handle multiple servers at a time.

Ø  Selenium core: Testing system based on JavaScript.

Ø Further specific selenium projects have been developed for ruby, eclipse and rails.

3. Rapise: It was developed by Inflectra inc. This tool has an extensible architecture and cross browser testing capabilities. It supports various versions of Mozilla Firefox, chrome, MS internet explorer and so on. The tool comes with built – in support for AJAX, YUI, GWT, AIR, Silverlight, flash/ flex etc. one can use this tool for carrying out keyword as well as data driven testing through excel spreadsheets. The tool identifies the objects based up on CSS and Xpath. For bitmaps, the tool comes with a built – in OCR (optical character recognition). It uses JavaScript for scripting purposes and therefore also has a JavaScript editor.
4. funcUnit: This is an open source web application testing framework. The API is based up on JQuery. Almost all the modern browsers are supported on Linux and MAC. Selenium can also be used for executing the tests. It can simulate various user input events clicking, typing, and dragging the mouse and so one. 

5. qUnit: Any JavaScript code that is generic can be tested by this tool. It is somewhat similar to the JUnit but operates up on JavaScript features. 

6. EnvJS: This is a simulated browser environment and an open source tool whose code has been written in javascript. 

7. QF – test: It has been developed by quality first software  as tool for cross  - platform testing and cross browser automation of the web applications. It can be used to test web applications based up on html, ajax, GWT, exTJS, richfaces, Qooxdoo, java and so on. The tool has got some small scale capabilities for test management, intuitive user interface, extensive documentation, capture/ playback mechanism, component recognition and so on. It can be used for handling both custom and complex GUI objects. It has got customizable reporting and integrated test debugger system. 

8. Cloud testing service: This enables the cloud capabilities to be utilized while web testing. It has been developed by the cloud testing limited. Here, web functionality can be recorded via selenium IDE and a web browser. The scripts can be uploaded to the cloud testing website.

What smaller projects are contained in Watir projects?

About Watir

- Web application testing in Ruby often known as ‘watir’ belongs to the family of the open source family of tools for automation of the web browsers. 

- This tool is available under BSD license and consists of ruby libraries that can be used for automating the web browsers. 

- The tool possesses the ability for driving the web browsers such as Mozilla firefox, internet explorer, opera, safari and chrome. 

- Further, watir has been even made available in the form of RubyGems gem. 

- The credit for the primary development of this tool goes to Brett Pettichord and his colleague Paul Rogers.

Functionality of Watir

- The functionality of watir has been divided in to three main smaller projects. 

- Actually, watir consists of a number of smaller projects but we shall discuss the 3 major ones namely:

1. Watir – classic
2. Watir – webdriver
3. Watirspec

About Water–classic

- This project of watir is based on the fact that the OLE (i.e., object linking and embedding) capabilities come in – built with the ruby package.

- With such capabilities it becomes easy for watir–classic to drive the browsers pro-grammatically.

- One thing to be noted about the water – classic is that its way of operation is quite different from the way the other HTTP based test tools operate. 

- The other HTTP based testing tools operate via the simulation of the browsers. 

- The web browsers are directly driven by the water – classic using the OLE protocol. 

- The implementation of this protocol is done over the COM (component object model) architecture.

- Inter-process communication is possible due to COM such as in IE and ruby. 

- Further, dynamic object creation as well as manipulation is also possible with such architecture. 

- This is termed as OLE automation by Microsoft. 

- The manipulating program has been termed as the automation controller. 

- Technically this can be explained as follows: The internet explorer serves as the server and caters to the automation objects and exposes their methods. The ruby program then serves as the client that carries out the manipulation of the automation objects. Water – classic can be put in to the gemfile or can be installed manually.

About Water–webdriver

 

- This project has been developed as a modern version of selenium based water API. 

- The selenium 2.0 has been taken to be the reference implementation of the specification of the webdriver.

- Selenium 2.0 is the selenium webdriver. 

- Water API has been implemented as a wrapper around the selenium webdriver by Jari Bakken.

- The selenium 2.0 is what from which the water – webdriver has been derived and has been built up on the html specifications. 

- This implies that the water webdriver always maintain compatibility with the world wide web consortium specifications that already exist. 

- Webdriver is quite an elegant way for using webdriver with ruby. 

- Ruby 1.9.3 is perfectly supported by the watir – webdriver but nonetheless it works well with its old versions also. 

- When you start with watir ruby will take your commands and the spath selectors are absent here. 

- Even though the xpath selectors are supported by watir, its API is so awesome that the need for using the xpaths is totally eliminated. 

- Using watir web driver increases your efficiency as well as productivity. 

- In addition to this, the quality of the scripts execution increases by a thousand times.

About Watirspec

- This is the third major project of watir and can be considered to be its API’s executable specification such as ruby has rubyspec. 

- The performance of watir is better with watirspec and also improves the compliance with the watir – webdriver. 

Explain Watir (Web application testing in Ruby)?

Watir stands for Web application testing in Ruby and was developed as an open source that would provide Ruby libraries by Paul Rogers and Bret Pettichord. The software is licensed under BSD and contains all ruby libraries that would be required for the automation of the web browsers. The software is known to drive a number of web browsers namely:

1. Internet explorer
2. Mozilla firefox
3. Chrome
4. Opera
5. Safari

The software has been made available especially for ruby as the ruby gems. Watir is comprised of several smaller projects which define its functionality:

1. Watir–classic: Ruby has got built – in OLE capabilities that can be used by water classic for driving the IE pro grammatically. The way of operation of water classic is different than that of the other HTTP based based testing tools.
2. Watirspec: This one is watir’s executable specification.
3. Water–webdriver: The reference implementation of the web driver specification is the selenium 2.0. the roots of the water web driver can be traced to the HTML specification.

- This automated test tool uses ruby as the scripting language for driving the above mentioned web browsers. 

- You can call it a tool kit for developing effective automated tests and run them against the browsers. 

- Watir can be used for driving the web applications which can be looked up as HTML pages while browsing. 

- However, Watir is not known to work with the following:

1. Active X plug – in components
2. Java applets
3. Macromedia flash and other plug – in applications.

- Before you use watir for your application you need to determine whether it will work for it or not. 

- To do so just right click on the object and check for the view source menu.

- If the HTML source for the object is available it can be well automated using watir otherwise not. 

- There are certain prerequisites for using watir which are that you need to have knowledge about the following:

1. HTML
2. Programming basics including simple control structures.
3. Ruby: this is required if you put water to a really good use.

- Watir works well for all the windows platforms including windows 2000, server 2003, XP and vista and it can be run on versions 6 and 7 of internet explorer. 

- Using Ruby 1.8.5 – 24 or 1.8.6 – 26 is recommended. 

- For installing ruby and water you need to log on as the administrator. 

- There are two ways for installing watir:

1. From behind a proxy and
2. From behind a firewall

- The tests written using watir are quite easy to read as well as maintain and exhibit simplicity and flexibility.

- The way watir drives the web browsers is the same as done by people. 

- It performs clicking operations such as clicking on links and buttons, forms filling operations and so on. 

- Results are also checked by watir. 

- Ruby, like other programming languages provides your application with the ability to do the following:

1. To connect to data bases
2. To read from spreadsheets and data files
3. To export the XML files
4. To restructure your code so that it can be converted in to a reusable library.

- Watir is free open source tool and therefore no money expenditure in using it. 

- Ruby is a full featured modern programming language which lets watir support all the web applications no matter by what technology it has been developed. 

- Watir provides support to a number of browsers on different platforms. 

- Though the tool is quite powerful it is extremely simple and easy to use. 

- For using watir, it is recommended that you install the IE developer tool bar. 

What is Selenium software testing framework?

Selenium software testing framework is portable frame work that has been developed exclusively for the development of the web applications. It actually works as a record and play back tool for the guiding of the tests without having to learn about a TSL or test scripting language. 

The selenium software testing frame work comes with its own test domain – specific language known by the name of selenese which can be used for developing tests in a no. of prominent programming languages such as the following:

1. C#
2. Java
3. Groovy
4. PHP
5. Perl
6. Python
7. Ruby etc.

The tests thus developed can be executed against a number of modern web browsers. The selenium frame work can be deployed on the following three platforms:

1. Windows
2. Linux
3. Macintosh

- Selenium is one of the best open–source software that are available to us today. 

- It was released as an OSS under the license – apache 2.0 and so you won’t be charged for downloading and using it.

- The software got its name for a joke cracked by Jason in an email in which he mocked his competitor by saying that he can cure mercury poisoning with the help of supplements from selenium. 

- The other people who received this email began using this name and eventually the software was named so. 

- The selenium grid represents the latest side project which is known to provide a hub enable execution of the multiple selenium tests on a local and remote system and that too concurrently. 

- This is being done as an effort to minimize the time taken for execution. 

- The selenium provides you with a number of robust tools which one use for the rapid development of the automated tests for testing the web based applications. 

- Plus, it also comes with a number of rich features and functions which have been exclusively for designing the web applications. 

- The operations which are carried out by the selenium framework are highly flexible in nature and allow for the location of the UI elements with supported by a number of options. 

- Also, the selenium frame work accounts for comparing the actual and the expected test results. 

- Selenium’s key feature lies in the support it provides for the execution of one test on a number of browser platforms. 

- The selenium frame work is composed of three major tools each of which plays an important and unique role in the development of the tests for web applications:

1. Selenium IDE
2. Selenium remote control
3. Selenium grid

- There are number of ways in which functionality can be added to the selenium’s frame work to further customize the tests in order to suit one’s specific needs.

- This characteristic that makes the selenium frame work outstanding among the rest. 

- The RC support from the selenium assists the test writes in multiple programming by helping them develop any logic they require for automated testing by using their preferred language. 

- On the other hand, the user can add his own defined extensions via the selenium IDE for creation of additional customized commands. 

- The selenium RC code generated by the selenium IDE can be reconfigured easily which lets the testers generate code that would fit their testing frame work. 

- Also, since the selenium is open to all, all are free to submit their contributions for its enhancement and modification. 

Explore Test Director Window, Test Director Modules and elements?

The test director is a web based application and it provides well support to communication of a very high level. Further, it regulates collaboration between the testing teams which are widely distributed. Overall, it helps in driving a global application testing in a more effective and efficient manner. 

Being the global test management tool, it is also counted in the list of the industries’ best test management solution.

Features of Test Director

Test director comes with a whole lot of features to make software testing a better experience:

1. Web based site administrator
2. Domain management
3. Collaboration module
4. Advanced reports add – in
5. Automatic trace-ability notification
6. Hierarchical test sets
7. Work flow for all modules of the test director
8. User industry standard repositories
9. Link test plan to requirements
10. Integrates with MS office
11. Manages automated and manual tests
12. Accelerates testing cycles
13. Supports test runs across boundaries
14. Integrates with third party and internal tools
15. Structured information sharing
16. Easy defect reporting
17. Customization reports
    

Here we shall about the following:
1. Test director window, 
2. Elements and 
3. Test director modules.

Test director helps in the following tasks:

1. Organizing and managing all the phases of testing.
2. Specifying the test requirements
3. Planning tests
4. Executing tests
5. Tracking the defects and so on.

- The test director launched from one’s web browser by requesting the url of the test director. 

- When you enter this URL and press enter the test director window pops up.

- If you are running the test director, it will take some time to get downloaded in your system. 

- Whenever the test director is launched a version check is automatically carried out and the latest version is downloaded. 

- Once done with this, you will get a test director log-in window. 

- Now you select a domain among the list of domains provided by the test director or you can select default. 

- In the project list go for testdirector _ demo. 

- You need to log-in as a QA tester. 

Test Director Modules

- In the test director window click on the requirements tab. 

- This requirements tab represents the requirements module which enables you to define the test specifications which includes the following things:

1. Defining purpose of testing
2. Defining requirement topics
3. Analyzation of the requirements

- Similarly, the test plan tab represents the test plan module which powers you to create a test plan based on the requirements specified above. This module facilitates the following tasks:

1. Defining goals and strategies
2. Dividing the plan into categories
3. Development of  the tests
4. Analyzation of the plan.

- With the test lab module the tests can be run on the software system or application and the result can be analyzed. The defects module you can carry out the following tasks:

1. Add the defects
2. Determination of the repair properties
3. Repair of the open defects
4. Analyzation of the data

Elements of Test Director

Now coming to the elements of the test director, there are some elements that are common to all the test director modules and these are:

1. Test director tool bar
2. Menu bar
3. Module tool bar
4. Tools button
5. Help button
6. Log out button

All of these elements can be found in the top level of the test director window. Module tool bar consists of the buttons for the commands that are frequently employed in the current module. 

How to start with Test Director?

Application testing is not an easy task, rather it is a very complex process but made easy with the test director. With the test director it has been possible to organize as well as manage all of the phases of the test director testing process. You can also specify the requirements of the testing process, plan the tests, execute them and keep an eye on the defects and so on.

Test director actually forms an organized frame work for the testing of the software systems or application before they are put under deployment. A central data repository is needed for the organization and management of the application testing process since the test plans have a way of evolving with any changes in the existing requirements or the new requirements. 

The following are the processes where you get a plenty of guidance from the test director:

1. Requirements specification
2. Test planning
3. Test execution
4. Defect tracking etc.

Basically the application testing process via test director consists of the following four phases:

1. Specifying requirements
2. Planning tests
3. Running tests
4. Tracking defects

First phase involves:

1. Define the testing scope
2. Create requirements
3. Detail requirements
4. Analyze requirements specification

Second phase involves:

1. Defining testing strategy
2. Define test subjects
3. Define tests
4. Creating the requirements coverage
5. Designing the test steps
6. Automating the tests
7. Analyzation of the test plan

3^rd phase involves:

1. Creating test sets
2. Scheduling the test runs
3. Running the tests
4. Analyzation of the test results

4^th phase involves:

1. Adding the defects
2. Reviewing the defects
3. Repairing the open defects
4. Testing new builds
5. Analyzing the defect data

How to start with Test Director?

- To start with the test director you need to go to your web browser and enter the URL of the test director in the test director options window. 

- When you press enter you will get a test director window.  

- If in case you are having some problem with opening the test director you can check whether or not the test director has been installed of the web server of your company.

- If it’s the very first time that you are running the test director, you will have to wait for a while so that the test director downloads and installs itself on your system. 

- If it had been a long since you last ran the test director the test director will update your version with the latest version. 

- Next, you will get a test director log-in window from where you have to log-in as a quality assurance tester. 

- While logging in you will asked to enter the domain and project name. 

- When you will be logged in you will get a test director window comprising of the following test director modules:

1. Requirements module
2. Test plan module
3. Test lab module
4. Defects module

All of the above mentioned test director modules possess some common elements namely:

1. Test director tool bar
2. Menu bar
3. Module tool bar
4. Tools button
5. Help button
6. Log out button

- One can start off straightaway giving the specifications for testing requirements in the requirements module in detail so as to provide a foundation for the rest of the application testing process. 

- All these requirements will be stated in the form of a requirements tree i.e., in a graphical form. 

- Once specified, the requirements need to be linked to the tests. 

- If the defects are found they are also be linked to the requirements which are responsible for those defects.