Fundamentals of User Acceptance Testing

Acceptance Testing is a critical step in the life of a systems development project. As the bridge between development activities and production status, the Acceptance Test is the verification that the project will deliver the user functionality as specified in the project requirements. It is typically the final checkpoint for quality, and forms the basis for end user approval of the project work. As such, it is essential that the Acceptance Test is successful.

The course begins by presenting a context for Acceptance Testing – what is it, and why do we do it? And most importantly, how do we, and the end user, know that it was done satisfactorily and thoroughly. We examine the detailed processes of developing an overall plan, assessing requirements to derive testing strategies, writing the formal Acceptance Test Plan, and conducting a structured walkthrough to ensure its integrity and completeness.

This practical, hands-on course will provide an excellent overview of Acceptance Testing and focuses specifically on the needs of acceptance test planners, end users, and testers.

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  1. Welcome and Overview
• Instructor and Student Introduction
• Course Overview and Agenda
  
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  2. Principles of Acceptance Testing
• Key Principles and Definitions
• The V-Model of Testing
• Goals of Acceptance Testing
• The Role of the Tester
• Expectations
• The Project Manager
• The Developers
• The End Users
• The Executive Sponsor
• Challenges
• Insufficient Time
• Inadequate Preparation
• Ongoing Development
• Lack of Knowledge
• Contractual Considerations
• Poor Client Participation or Preparation
• Hostile Environments
• Strategies for Success
• Sufficient Preparation
• Identified Goals
• Written Completion Criteria
• Risk-based Testing
• Elimination of Redundant Testing
  
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  3. Planning the Acceptance Test
  
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  The Software Testing Life Cycle
  
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  Business Requirements Phase
• Identify High-Level Test Requirements
• Develop Test Strategy
• Establish Baseline Testing Criteria
• Learn Business Requirements
• Define Business Success Criteria
• Create Preliminary Estimates and Dependencies
• Obtain Test Plan Approvals
• Business Solution Design Phase
• Define the Overall Testing Framework
• Learn the Business Solution Design
• Understand the Logical System Configuration
• Create High-Level Test Scenarios
• Define Acceptance Criteria
• Define Preliminary Test Data Requirements
• Map Scenarios to Requirements
• Create a Written Acceptance Test Plan
• Revise Estimates
• Obtain Test Plan Approvals
• Technical Design Phase
• Refine Test Scenarios
• Understand Testing Dependencies and Limitations
• Design Test Cases
• Write Test Scripts
• Map Test Scripts to Test Cases to Scenarios to Requirements
• Construct or Collect Test Data
• Understand the Physical System Configuration
• Revise Estimates
• Identify Resources and Team Members
• Obtain Test Plan Approvals
• Construction and Systems Test Phase
• Monitor System Tests
• Set up Classification and Tracking System for Defects
• Perform/Receive Training, as needed
• Revise Acceptance Test Plan as necessary
• User Acceptance Test Phase
• Verify Production Readiness
• Execute the Test Plan
• Assess Test Results
• Revise Test Plans and Rerun
• Report Defects and Track Resolutions
• Recommending User Acceptance
• Post-Implementation
• Post-Implementation Support
• Writing a Quality Assessment Report
  
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  4. Case Study Overview – Lost Horizons Software Corporation
  
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  Lost Horizon Case Study Overview
• Overview of Lost Horizons
• The TripFinder Product
  
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  5. Workshop: Planning Acceptance Testing Tasks
• Identifying Acceptance Project Tasks
• Reviewing Dependencies
• Identifying Deliverables
• Setting Milestones
• Creating Estimates
• Working with the Project Manager and the Development Team
• Instructor Review and Class Discussion
  
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  6. Specialized Acceptance Testing Techniques
• Traceability
• Component Attribute Traceability
• Outcome Traceability
• Regression Testing
• Baseline Testing
• Function and Component Testing
• Structure Testing
• Stream or Workflow Testing
• Pilot or Model Office Testing
• Parallel Testing
• Conversion Testing
• Installation Testing
• Documentation and Training Mapping
  
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  7. Workshop: Assessing Requirements
• Reading Requirements Documents
• Isolating Acceptance Testing Requirements
• Determining Scope and Scalability of Tests
• Creating a Testing Matrix
• Instructor Review and Class Discussion
  
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  8. Acceptance Test Plan Deliverables
  
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  Test Plan Deliverable
  
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  Testing Strategy overview
• Business Requirements
• Business Solution Design
• Verification Goals
• Testing Scope
• Completion Criteria
• Technical Design
• Testing Approach
• Test method
• Programs/Components to be Tested
• Test Case Specifications
• Test Data Specifications
• Expected Results
• Completion Criteria
• Acceptance Test
• Testing Metrics
• Quality Criteria
• Completion Criteria
• Acceptance Agreement
• Appendices
• Defect Report
• Process/Form
• Classifications
• Test Item Detail
• Systems/Functions/Components/Modules/Code
• Reference Materials/Specifications
• Scope
• Test Deliverables
• Schedule of Testing Activities
• Approach
• Test Cycles
• Dependency Diagram/Gantt Chart
• Roles and Responsibilities
• Estimates and Schedule
• Test Environment
  
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  Test Definitions
• Test Objective
• Approach
• Entry Criteria
• Exit Criteria
• Scope
• Quality Considerations
• Tester Roles and Responsibilities
• User Roles and Responsibilities
• Test Environment
• Data Sources
• Roles and Responsibilities
• User Acceptance Agreements
• Completion Agreements
• Defect Categorizations
• Determining Production Readiness
  
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  9. Workshop: Writing an Acceptance Test Plan
• Instructions
• Create a Draft Acceptance Test Plan
• Instructor Review and Class Discussion
  
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  10. Structured Walkthroughs (Technical Inspections)
• Structured Walkthroughs
• Roles and Responsibilities
• User Participation
• Tester Participation
• Designer and Developer Participation
• Goals of Walkthroughs
• Structured Walkthrough Rules
• Types of Structured Walkthroughs
• Business Requirements Walkthrough
• Business Solution Design Walkthrough
• Technical Design Walkthrough
• Program or Code Walkthrough
• Test Case Walkthrough
• Walkthrough Reports
• Implementing Walkthroughs
  
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  11. Workshop: Structured Walkthrough
• Review of Acceptance Test Plans
• Walkthrough Simulation
• Walkthrough Reports and Approvals
• Instructor Review and Class Discussion
  
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  12. Course Wrap-Up
• Course Summary
• Review of Outstanding Questions/Action Items
• Student Course Survey
  
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  13. Appendix A: Review of Automated Testing Tools
• Automated Testing Tools
• Benefits of Automated Tools
• Types of Automated Tools
• Coverage Analyzers
• Interactive Testing Facilities
• Capture/Playback Tools
• Test Data Generators
  
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  14. Appendix B: Testing Definitions
• Test Definitions
• Unit Test
• Integration Test
• System Test
• Client Acceptance Test
• Performance Test
• Fail-Over Test
• Security Test
• Production Readiness Test