System testing

System testing is a type of testing that verifies a software product’s completeness and integration. A system test is used to assess the end-to-end system requirements. Typically, software is just one part of a bigger computer system. The program is eventually interfaced with various software/hardware systems. System testing is a collection of tests whose primary goal is to put a computer-based system through its paces.

For example, let’s assume that you are developing a booking system in an agile software development environment. The booking system will have the inventory management module, reservation module, admin module, and many other modules. All these modules combine together to create the final system. Once you develop the final system, you test it as a whole to determine whether intended functionality is working or not. That’s where system testing can help you.

There are two main approaches to do system testing. They include white box testing and black box testing.

You should understand what you are trying to achieve in system testing, before getting your hands on it. During system testing, you proceed with testing fully integrated programs, including external peripherals, to see how components interact with one another and with the entire system. This scenario is also known as End to End testing. Then you need to check for intended results by thoroughly evaluating each input in the program. The application’s user experience is being tested as a part of system testing as well.

Multiple types of system testing are available for you to follow. They include usability testing, regression testing, load testing, functional testing, migration testing, software testing, and hardware testing. It is important to have a proper plan and then proceed with testing the system. This will help you to verify the functionality of the system at the end of the day.

— Slimane Zouggari