In the realm of software testing, equivalence class testing stands out as an efficient black-box testing technique. Unlike its counterparts—boundary value analysis, worst-case testing, and robust case testing—equivalence class testing excels in both time efficiency and precision. This methodology logically divides input and output into distinct classes, enabling comprehensive risk identification.
To illustrate its effectiveness, consider the next-date problem. Given a day in the format of day-month-year, the task is to determine the next date while performing boundary value analysis and equivalence class testing. The conditions for this problem are:
- Day (D): 1 < Day < 31
- Month (M): 1 < Month < 12
- Year (Y): 1800 < Year < 2048
Boundary Value Analysis
Boundary value analysis generates 13 test cases by applying the formula:
No. of test cases(n = no. of variables)=4n+1\text{No. of test cases} (n \text{ = no. of variables}) = 4n + 1
For instance, the test cases might include:
- Date: 1-6-2000, Expected Output: 2-6-2000
- Date: 31-6-2000, Expected Output: Invalid Date
- Date: 15-6-2048, Expected Output: 16-6-2048
While this technique effectively captures boundary conditions, it often overlooks special cases like leap years and the varying days in February.
Equivalence Class Testing
Equivalence class testing addresses this gap by creating distinct input classes:
- Day (D): 1-28, 29, 30, 31
- Month (M): 30-day months, 31-day months, February
- Year (Y): Leap year, Normal year
With these classes, the technique identifies robust test cases for each partition. For example:
- Date: 29-2-2004 (Leap Year), Expected Output: 1-3-2004
- Date: 29-2-2003 (Non-Leap Year), Expected Output: Invalid Date
- Date: 30-4-2004, Expected Output: 1-5-2004
This approach ensures comprehensive test coverage, capturing edge cases missed by boundary value analysis.
Conclusion
Equivalence class testing offers a systematic approach to software testing, ensuring efficient and thorough risk assessment. By logically partitioning inputs and outputs, it creates robust test cases that address a wide array of scenarios. Whether dealing with complex date calculations or other software functions, equivalence class testing is a valuable tool in any tester’s arsenal.
In essence, this method not only saves time but also enhances the precision of test cases, making it an indispensable step in the software development lifecycle.
All of this can be found from this link:
Equivalence Class Testing- Next date problem – GeeksforGeeks
From the blog CS@Worcester – aRomeoDev by aromeo4f978d012d4 and used with permission of the author. All other rights reserved by the author.