Continuous Testing in DevOps is a do-or-die strategy in the software development lifecycle. 

Why, if you ask? 

It’s because software bug fixing after the product launch could cost you a bomb?  

In fact, the cost could escalate to almost 100 times more if you are fixing errors after the product launch, given that those tiny and easily fixable bugs during the development phase could turn into monstrous problems that prove to be much harder and more expensive to deal with in the long run.     

This article explains the importance of continuous software testing in DevOps and five ways to conduct it successfully.       

Let’s begin with the most fundamental question.

What is Continuous Testing in DevOps? 

As it sounds, continuous testing means non-stop automated testing of the software at every phase of the software development life cycle (SDLC). This approach allows quicker product upgrades and delivery.   

The success of continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) of software is directly tied to automated constant testing and feedback integration in your SDLC cycle. An ongoing feedback integration process during the CI and CD pipeline will help you boost code quality, resolve issues quickly, and even expedite the DevOps process.  

On the other hand, manually testing the software development workflow would not only mean unproductive use of in-house resources but also longer integration cycles, delayed product updates, and deliveries. 

Let’s now discuss 5 Ways to Ensure the Success of Continuous Testing Pipeline. 

5 Top Ways to Conduct Successful Continuous Testing in DevOps 

Here we discuss 5 top ways to conduct continuous testing in DevOps successfully, and these are as follows:  

#1. Automate Early and Often

With code development and automated testing happening side by side, defects are detected faster leading to quicker resolutions. This means less stress during the project and seamless and smoother software release.

Benefits of Automate Early and Often

• Iterative Script Development : Alongside early automation and defect detection, iterative script development happens in parallel. This increases the chances of application success as bugs are caught and fixed continuously.    

• More Testing Options and Flexibility:Automation assists Performance and Load Testing, in addition to API Testing, Unit Testing, and Database Testing.  This reduces reliance on the user interface, meaning Testers can start testing before the UI is ready.

• Faster Defect Defection: Early automation ensures quicker defect detection and quicker software delivery. 
• Decreases Project Costs: Early defect detection reduces overall project costs in the long run, as defects detected early in the development cycle can be fixed easily with little money.

A 3–Step Approach to Automate Early and Often 

• Start with Unit Tests: Start with unit tests, as they are the smallest and most granular levels of testing. Developers create tests for all possible scenarios, specifically for individual components and functions. The tests are conducted in isolation to ensure the application component works as intended. 

• Step up with Integration and End-to-End Tests: Once unit tests are over, include integration tests and end-to-end (E2E) tests as part of your test automation process. Integration tests ensure that all modules work together effectively, while E2E tests simulate real user experiences to ensure the entire system functions as expected. All these tests can help you detect defects that are missed at the unit test level.

• Build Test Suites: As the codebase evolves, tests could become obsolete. Review and revise tests time and again to ensure they remain relevant and effective

#2. Take Advantage of Shift Left testing 

Unlike the ‘automate early and often’ testing approach, where testing is done continuously throughout the software development cycle, shift-left testing focuses on the earlier stages. The idea is to identify and resolve bugs as soon as they are caught, ensuring lower cost and effort in the long run.   

Benefits of Shift Left Testing 

• Reduced costs: The bugs are detected and fixed early on, so you don’t have to spend too much money initially. However, the bugs detected and fixed during the later stage of the development cycle could be more significant and ruin your budget.   

• Better code quality:Developers continuously clean codes after every testing phase, so you can finally bank on an impeccable and clean code repository.  

• Faster marketability: As testing is carried out early, your product can hit the market faster. 
• Competitive development teams: Developers and testers are constantly on their toes, developing, deploying, and innovating, and with every iteration, they tend to sharpen their proverbial axes.  

A 4–Step Approach to Implement Shift Left Testing

• Introduce coders to testing 

When coders create unit tests for smaller chunks of code before merging with the main codebase the final product turns out to be cleaner and less error-prone. These independent code units are quicker and easier to test because they are smaller and more navigable.

• Introduce testers to coding 

Agile development encourages role-playing between testers and developers. Simply put, software developers need to write test scripts incrementally to test their code at different levels, while testers with ‘good enough’ coding skills conduct effective code reviews and execute quick fixes whenever required.   

• Include Testers Early On and not as an Afterthought 

Shift Left Test bets on QA involvement right from the word go. In other words, your software brainstorming sessions shouldn't just be a developer thing. QAs should be equal partners in the development journey, as their up-close and personal involvement would give them an idea of potential bugs that are likely to show up and how they could be managed before they raise their ugly heads.        

Simply put, they'd be able to frame their tests better and catch bugs beforehand. That's just one part of the equation. Even devs gain, as they can ask QAs to chime in whenever they are struck.  

• Make Testing Everyone’s Business 

Testing shouldn't be just a tester's job and wait for them to complete it. As mentioned, even developers should develop test codes and repeatedly ask, "How can we make the code more testable?" That means creating new hooks or creating unique IDs for an element. 

Plus, developers with a testing mindset will be aware of buggy codes that could lead to functionality issues. When software is developed with an "Everyone's Business" mindset, shift left testing becomes effortless.

#3. Integrate Testing with CI/CD Pipeline

Continuous integration testing is about making code changes in a relentless, nonstop manner rather than making big changes in one go, as was practiced in the waterfall model.  

Continuous delivery occurs when every single code change begets a low-cost, low-risk software release. Test automation and continuous testing are the twin factors that ensure an effective CI/CD pipeline. In fact, we could put it the other way around: Smooth CICD testing relies heavily on continuous testing software.   

Benefits of Integrating Testing within CI/CD Pipeline

• Faster Deployment  

CICD integration testing enables code changes on an hourly basis, much less on an everyday basis. Given that every code change compulsorily passes through automated testing, you can release software to production consistently without affecting product quality. More importantly, the automation of CI/CD pipelines cuts down manual labor considerably.      

• Drastic reduction in Outages

As part of the CI/CD pipeline, the DevOps team will continue integrating codes in batches rather than in bulk. Why? I guess the answer is pretty straightforward: This approach makes it easier for developers to track and fix anomalies. It also helps flag issues that disrupt production and the entire application. 

• More Transparency Across Development

DevOps or no DevOps tracking code was never an issue earlier; however, fixing the code was due to the lack of transparency in the development process. Enter DevOps and the CI/CD pipeline, which has brought in more transparency in the SDLC, helping to easily spot, isolate, and fix bugs and accelerating productivity in turn.  

• Cuts Down Delivery Costs and Manual Testing

The CI/CD pipeline is entirely automated, which directly translates into reduced human intervention and low-cost delivery without compromising code quality. 

• Eliminates Siloed Working 

A CI/CD pipeline powers development teams to have a common repository of codes wherein developers can push their code modifications in batches for the entire team to see. Simply put, siloed working is not entertained. A common code repository ensures a collaborative work environment that helps identify bugs before codes make it to production. The CI/CD’s collaborative coding nature ensures only superior software makes it to the marketplace.   

• Faster Mean Time to Resolution 

A CI/CD pipeline helps discover and fix bugs quickly. This ability to resolve issues rapidly improves the Mean Time To Resolution (MTTR) metric. The better the MTTR, the more productive the DevOps team becomes, and software can be delivered and deployed to the market much faster.    

• Improve Performance Metrics

Before DevOps and CI/CD were launched, monitoring metrics and application performance was out of the question. Now, with the CI/CD pipeline in place, it has become much easier to monitor the application's performance. The metrics help improve the product further.     

• Quicker Rollback

When it comes to the CI/CD pipeline, quick rollback is one of the best features offered by CI/CD. It enables development teams to fail fast, fail often, and fail cheaply. In other words, developers are encouraged to push code into production ASAP and then figure out and flag vulnerabilities quickly, which are then addressed with the same urgency. A quick rollback mechanism helps roll out improved software at a faster pace.

2 Step Approach to Implement Automated Testing in CI/CD Pipeline

Continuous testing tools in DevOps, such as Jenkins, GitLab CI, and CircleCI, can help you create and test CI/CD pipelines.

• Automated Triggers

Set up your CI/CD pipelines to trigger tests automatically whenever code is newly introduced or modified. Such automatic testing allows developers to pinpoint and address issues quickly before they reach the final stages of development. 

• Parallel Testing 

Running parallel tests cuts down the overall testing time, prompting faster feedback and quicker releases.

#4. Use a Test-Driven Development (TDD) Approach

Let's start with an age-old riddle: did the chicken come first or the egg? There has to be a chicken first to lay an egg, but then the point from where does the chicken come from? There has to be an egg, right? So we go round and round, beating around the bush with no definite answer to the above question.

However, this is not the case with the TDD approach. In the TTD case,  we know for sure that the test comes before the code. I repeat, the code test comes before the code is designed.  Why? When a code test is designed first and then the code script, it helps developers clear the test. This reverse-engineering process ensures the newly scripted code successfully passes the unit test.     

The approach ensures that code is inevitably designed with testing in mind, which provides the final software meets the user's expectations and is easily maintainable in the long run.    

Benefits of Test-driven development

• Improved Code Quality 

With TDD, codes are written with testability in mind. Tests act as GPS that guide developers to the kind of code that needs to be scripted for an intended functionality. The idea is to craft clean, modular, and maintainable code.   

• Quick Feedback Loop

TDD adopts a fail-fast approach, so when the test fails, developers know exactly where they went wrong. However, new code changes don't interfere with existing functionalities, advocating software stability in the process.

• Refactoring any Regression 

With TDD, developers can quickly identify bugs and regression and improve upon them. This ensures code evolution and continuous improvement. 

• Precise knowledge of Code Standards

When developers design tests before they have written a single piece of code, it helps them know exactly what should go into their codes and helps script code within the boundaries of testability.  The approach helps developers pass their code test with confidence. 

• Collaborative development 

In TDD, test formats are stored for further consultation by both the technical and non-technical team members. Documenting the test formats prompts collaborative development, as everyone gets a first-hand idea of what the software should do.    

• Better Use of Time 

TDD is all about catching bugs young, which automatically translates into saved time that could be used for far more time in creating new features and less time debugging. 

Steps to Implement Test-driven Development

• Red-Green-Revision Cycle

 Use the Red-Green-Revision cycle in TDD. This means it starts with a red test, a failing test, followed by a green test, code written to pass the test, and then the code is refactored (revised) to create robust code that can eventually withstand attacks.   

• Enhance Code Quality

TDD encourages preemptive thinking among developers. Simply put, it pushes developers to don their thinking hats and design test cases that put them on edge, enabling them to manage coding errors immediately. The end result is higher code quality with count-on-your-fingertip defects. In addition, the tests are stored up, which serves as living documentation, for new team members to familiarise themselves with the codebase.

#5. Leverage Service Virtualization

Service Virtualization is copying or simulating the behavior of components for testing purposes. These components are perhaps unavailable or not easily accessible, so virtualization is the best way out. (Think how a pilot uses flight simulators to train instead of a real plane.) The components we are speaking of could include APIs, networks, devices, databases, and more. The component's unavailability could be because of under development, ongoing maintenance, complex setup, or third-party ownership. Virtualization makes testers independent of these components and aids in-depth performance and functional testing.  

Benefits of Service Virtualization 

• Reduction in Internal and External Dependencies

Testers generally have to face internal and external dependencies when carrying out tests: Internal dependencies in the form of undeveloped components or external dependencies in the form of third-party components with a limited amount of third-party calls. Service Virtualization tools help simulate the same components so you are no longer dependent on other or third-party components. Virtualization tools help you conjure a service to test within a fraction of the cost and time.

• Faster Roll out of the Product in the Market 

Software development takes a hell of a lot of time as there are so many parties involved: an app developer, an API developer, and a tester. Collaboration between these three departments is time-consuming. Through service virtualization, teams can work together and conduct load and risk tests simultaneously to ensure improved productivity and a faster rollout of the product in the market. 

• Increase Quality

A software application has to be tested thoroughly under different conditions. Virtualization allows to quickly conjure up a service/API and conduct tests such as load tests, functional tests, and performance tests early in the development cycle. By replicating a service prior to development of the service, developers can easily preconceive how the component will interact with other systems, and in the meantime, testers can test them.

Steps to Consider Before Implementing Service Virtualization 

• Figure Out Components You Want to Virtualize 

Before implementing service virtualization, come up with a test plan to figure out which component to be included in virtualization. Simply put, you need to have an idea about the component behaviour and its interaction within the application environment before you decide to come up with a service virtualization of it. Enable test plan to pindown those components that require virtualization. 

• Be Aware of the Service Virtualization 

Not all parts of the component behavior require virtualization; you only have to execute the essential ones.    

• Every Team Should Develop their Own Virtual Services  

Ideally, the team that developed the real service should also create the virtual service because they have the local expertise.

• Rope in the Customer to Build Service Virtualization 

Consumers are better aware of the component's behavior as they are the actual users. Thus, a close relationship with the service owner is crucial because it enables building better, more scalable services. 

#6. Invest in Scalable Test Automation Tools

Test automation improves the overall performance of software testing in terms of speed, efficiency, and more. However, when the app is scaling, the testing approach unquestionably has to scale too!

When companies have to deal with thousands of test cases every week, running repeated automated tests may seem a more accessible way out, but as projects scale up, such repeated tests could be prone to errors, and this is when scalable test automation tools such as Appium, Cypress, and Selenium come in handy for web and mobile application testing. These continuous testing solutions ensure that your automation framework can easily accommodate large test suites and complex cases. 

Benefits of Scalable Test Automation Tools 

• As your application expands, the test automation tools framework expands to accommodate large test suites and complex cases.     
• A few test automation tools have robust community support features and offer regular updates and features.

Steps to Choose Scalable Test Automation Tools 

• Choose test automation tools that seamlessly fit with your CI/CD pipelines. Such integrations ensure that tests occur automatically and continuously and that code feedback is rapidly integrated. 
• Opt for continuous testing tools that are easily maintainable and extendable. The frameworks should support updating and even expanding test suites as the application grows. No, that’s not enough I guess. The tools should also have features that offer strong community support and regular updates that help them stay abreast with current updates, latest features and improvements.

Wrapping Up 

Gone are the days when you had to wait until the software was fully developed before the testers even came into play. This meant that if the bugs were discovered in the latter stages, the developers had to go back to their drawing boards once again and fix the glitch. This means you will have to put in more effort and hours to correct the mess, which could have been corrected earlier if the continuing testing was in place right up front.