In Which Phase of the System Life Cycle Is Software Testing Performed?

by TestFort News Editor on 05/3/2021

The importance of software testing is not a subject of many debates — timely QA is viewed as the most effective way to ensure the quality of a software product. But where does software testing stand in the system development life cycle? Let’s figure it out right now!

What is the system life cycle?

System life cycle, system development life cycle, or simply SDLC is a popular project management methodology. It breaks down the complex software development process into smaller, more manageable increments or phases.

The SDLC approach is widely used in the software development industry, but its popularity goes beyond that. The system development life cycle concept is also applicable to information systems and systems engineering in general. This approach helps optimize the cost of development and the timeframe it takes to develop a functional system without compromising its quality.

Stages of the system development life cycle

The system development life cycle consists of several phases that are all essential for the successful completion of the cycle. The number and the objectives of each phase do not change depending on the system that is being developed. These are the 7 stages of the SDLC:

Planning. This stage is otherwise known as the feasibility study and is used to determine whether the project can be successfully completed and what resources are needed for it to happen.
Analysis. During the analysis phase, the development team identifies the functional requirements of the system after an in-depth analysis of the needs of the users, as well as further details the steps required to achieve the desired result.
Design. At this stage, the whole team needs to have a complete understanding of the purpose and specifications of the system. This may require the team to create flow charts, diagrams, and screen layouts to visualize the desired outcome of the project.
Development. This is one of the key stages of the process. Because all the participants of the project collaborated in the previous stages, the development stage is expected to proceed smoothly and with little to no issues.
Testing. This is the phase that comes directly after the development stage and should be performed by a professional QA team. The team will test and retest the product until every functional and non-functional issue is resolved and the product is ready for implementation.
Implementation. At this stage, the product is released to the public or implemented for use within the company. The team behind the system needs to monitor the performance of the system and collect user feedback to further improve the system.
Maintenance. Even though the system is released as a product, the work on improving it does not stop there. During the maintenance stage, the team works on resolving the issues that are unearthed, as well as assesses the effectiveness of all the SDLC stages that came before the current one.

When to perform testing in the SDLC?

Traditionally, the testing stage in the system development life cycle comes after the development stage but before the product is released to the market. That way, it helps avoid critical bugs and major UI issues that can tarnish the reception of the system by the audience.

However, in recent years, there has been a new approach to testing steadily gaining popularity. It’s called the Shift Left testing process and it’s widely used in the Agile project management methodology. This approach is based on the concept of shifting the testing stage to the early stages of the system development life cycle. That way, bugs and other issues can be detected earlier and will therefore cost less money and take less time to fix than bugs that were discovered after most of the development phase is completed.

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The success of a software project depends, among other things, on whether it’s the right fit for the industry it’s in. And that is true not just for the development stage, but also for QA. Different industry have different software requirements, and our team knows all about them.

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