What Is Retesting? All About Retesting in Software Development
While designing your organization's testing strategies, have you ever factored in retesting? It's natural for higher management to wonder about the need to discuss a retest specifically. In their view, the test cycle for a development project must ideally cover all facets.
However, in the wake of increasing digital-driven business models, the focus on quality assurance is more significant than ever. In this context, leaders must understand what retesting is and why it's critical.
What is Retesting in Software?
"Retesting is the process of running previously failed test cases on the new software build that was created after resolving the bugs or defects that caused the failure. Here's a more straightforward explanation."
When test engineers identify a bug or issue, they report it to the development team. The development team works on the defect, resolves it, and then sends it back to the test engineer for verification — precisely what retesting means. On paper, the retesting definition may sound easy, but deciding when to do a retesting isn't always a walk-in-the-park situation.
When Should Enterprises Perform a Software Retest?
Scenario 1: When a reported bug or defect is fixed
This is the simplest scenario that mandates a retest. When a developer is notified of a bug in their code release, they work on the same. After resolving the bug, the module passes to the test engineer for verification.
The same will be mentioned in the release notes for the new version. This scenario warrants the testing team to retest the module or component of the software with the previous failed test case and with the same data. If the problem doesn't occur, the new release clears the QA process.
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Scenario 2: When developers are unable to recreate the bug and reject the bug report
In this scenario, development teams may be unable to discover the bug raised by the testing team. They would reject the bug and report the status as "Not Reproducible". There could be a myriad of reasons that led to this scenario.
However, test engineers must retest the software to validate their previous bug reports for clarity. If the issue persists, they will inform the developers about the problem and provide them with inputs and insights to help reproduce the same in the development environment.
Scenario 3: When a customer raises the need for retesting
In technology development projects, acceptance testing by the client determines the final call on product quality. However, there are situations where the client feels that there could be one extra round of quality checks, or they may discover any suspicious defect not found earlier.
In either case, the client may issue a retest request, and test engineers must validate the same once more.
SUGGESTED READ - How is Regression testing different from Retesting?
Why is Retesting Important?
The integral principle of performing a retest isn't different from a standard software testing process. It is an additional layer of assurance for a software product, vetting its functional and technical performance before releasing it to end-users.
As the competition heats up in every possible digital avenue, businesses must ensure that their digital services and applications for service delivery are top-notch. This mandates zero compromises on the quality of the final product.
To that end, using a test automation platform will help bring better ROI. But software retesting provides an extra confidence booster by ensuring that every bug reported in the initial stages is verified for non-existence in the final product.
Compared to the initial testing practice, software retesting doesn't take a toll on test resources and time. It's done in the same environment with the same data that initially powered the failed test case.
Furthermore, retesting focuses on a specific issue or bug reported in a particular application module. Hence there is no need to set up a new test environment and spend unending efforts and time to verify quality with end-to-end testing.
What Are the Things to Remember While Doing a Software Retest?
By now, the importance of software retesting must be clear. However, valid concerns apply while performing a software retest. Let's explore a few important ones:
- Retesting mandates the creation of a new build of the software after fixing the issue first reported.
- The software sent for a retest from developers must have undergone some form of code change. Hence, it must be subject to regression testing before release.
- The scope and coverage of retests occur only after fixing issues. As a result, retests cannot be automated like regression testing.
- If a retest finds the issue to persist, it may extend the product’s development time as a more extensive and strategic analysis may be required to find the root cause.
However, despite the challenges, enterprises should follow retesting approaches diligently. Roll-out of high-quality digital services helps build better customer loyalty and profits in the long run.
Summing Up
With increased focus on digital transformation, enterprise application development initiatives are scouring for ways to minimize or eliminate quality issues.
Using end-to-end automation testing tools and platforms will help them reduce the effort and remove biased decision-making. But at the same time, concepts like retesting require their due share of importance.
Enterprises must find ways to manage end-to-end testing initiatives more diligently without disrupting the potential of retests. One of the best ways to achieve this is by encouraging a high degree of automation in test strategies.
This is where ACCELQ can help carve a difference. Get in touch with us to book a demo on how our end-to-end test automation platform can help your enterprise stay prepared and supportive of initiatives like retesting.
Nidhi Achhaa
Content Specialist at ACCELQ
Nidhi specializes in technology-based content and strives to create a unique, customized, and compelling piece with a flavor of SEO. A writer with a love for words and a storyteller at heart.
