In Software Testing, the two
most popular or important methods for testing are static and dynamic. While both
are obviously named, its good to go over the distinctions, and more importantly,
the actual implementations of both.
Static
testing involves review of project documents, including source code, to weed
out any actual or potential security flaws and general mistakes. This takes the
form of Informal and Technical Reviews, Inspections, Walkthroughs, and more. This
process can involve an inspection tool or be performed manually, searching
for potential run-time problems, but not actually running the code. Dynamic testing
conversely involves actually executing code looking for functionality,
resource usage, and performance. We have been using dynamic testing, specifically
unit testing, in our class so far. Dynamic testing is used mainly to verify the
program runs in accordance with the specifications outlined for it, specifically
called System Testing.
Of
course, both have their own advantages and disadvantages. In static testing you
have the potential to find bugs that may have made later development more
troublesome early in the process, which can save lots of time and frustration in
the future. However, there may exist some flaw that only a running program can
reveal, but it only in the code that is executed. It would seem to me, that
these should not be exclusive and in fact, they have a logical order.
You
would begin with static testing, like proofreading a paper, searching for misspelled
words (poor variable/method names), run on sentences (needless complexity or
repetition), and reorganizing to best get your point across (logical order of
declarations/methods, documentation). Like writing a paper, it is best to do
this ahead of run-time (reading through), that way you don’t have to constantly
stop to bandage small errors. In the same way it seems essential to ‘proof-read’
your code before execution to make sure it is free from identifiable errors
before you move on to seeking out run-time errors. You wouldn’t want to have to
fix both at the same time like with proof-reading.
In sum,
these two could be grouped as pro-active or reactive, static and dynamic respectively,
and best explain their use. As mentioned, these also make sense to utilize in a
specific order, ensuring code is as correct as possible upon inspection, then
running it to see where flaws undetectable in a static environment have arisen.
These together ensure quality software that is optimized and secure.
Static Testing vs Dynamic Testing: What’s the Difference?
Static Testing vs. Dynamic Testing
From the blog CS@Worcester – Press Here for Worms by wurmpress and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.