With an increasing range of businesses moving their applications and data to the cloud, it is now necessary to have in place a testing strategy that allows them to fully leverage the benefits of the cloud technologies. But, different from testing on-prem applications, cloud application testing comes with a different set of complexities.
What is Cloud Application Testing?
First, we need to establish what we are talking about when we say Cloud Application Testing. As defined here, Cloud testing is a Software Testing type that checks any of the three models of Cloud Computing services: SaaS (Software as a service), PaaS (Platform as a service), and IaaS (Infrastructure as a service).
Cloud Application Testing Challenges
QA and Testing leaders must remember that although testing cloud applications have a few similarities in its approach to traditional testing, testing a cloud environment is quite more challenging. Here are a few reasons why:
- Delivery Rate. Cloud products are delivered at a much faster rate, thus requiring constant Quality Assurance activities.
- Data Security. One of the main concerns about the Cloud is having your data hosted on the Cloud and the constant risk of data theft. Security should be a constant goal for testing.
- Performance Related Issues: The performance of Cloud applications depends on network bandwidth. As Cloud applications continue to demand a lot of bandwidth, this can negatively impact the execution and delivery of complex applications.
- Integration Related Concerns: Some applications in production need to integrate/connect with other Cloud applications, which could be on-premise. These integrations need to be constantly tested, considering the recurring Cloud applications updates.
- Continuous Delivery: With smaller features released more frequently, Quality Assurance needs to adapt/adopt/collaborate with Continuous Integration techniques.
- Development Technology Stack: The onset of frequent updates to the development technology stack and the need for constant reskilling of resources makes it mandatory for Quality Assurance to adapt and revisit testing strategies and methods
- Simulating live upgrade testing: Cloud testing needs to make sure that live upgrades ensure don’t impact any of the existing SaaS users that are connected.
Need Some Help Executing Cloud Application Testing?
ITC’s Digital Testing services help customers achieve ROIs & business value faster than traditional testing techniques. Our focus to Testing Automation drives the shift-left value chain across and beyond the software development life cycle and delivers quality at the speed of agile. For more information on our Testing Services, click here.
