Bugs are inevitable in software development, but they can also be costly and frustrating if not handled properly. How can you find and fix them efficiently and effectively? In this article, you will learn some of the best ways to identify and isolate bugs in software development, based on the principles of system development.
The first step to avoid or reduce bugs is to understand the requirements of the software project clearly and precisely. Requirements are the specifications of what the software should do and how it should behave. They are the basis for designing, testing, and validating the software. If the requirements are vague, incomplete, or inconsistent, they can lead to misunderstandings, errors, and conflicts in the software development process. Therefore, you should communicate with the stakeholders, users, and clients to elicit, analyze, and document the requirements carefully and accurately.
Never be afraid to ask questions! Grooming exercises are something that can help reduce defect leakage in subsequent stages of software lifecycle. Usually Dev & QA are not reviewing acceptance criteria before sprint starts or feature is scheduled. This causes gaps during development and Test Design. It needs to be an continuous activity and feature review shouldn’t wait for scheduling
Proactive bug-catching strategies can save time & energy of teams. 1. Align on expectations: Create shared understanding what the software should do. This shared vision forms a benchmark for identifying any deviations in early stage. 2. Code with quality in mind: Employ consistent coding practices and leverage debugging tools from the start. 3. Test at multiple levels: Implement comprehensive testing, spanning unit tests for individual components, integration tests for interactions between parts, and E2E tests for the entire system. 4. Embrace the iterative nature: Bug identification and isolation is a continuous journey. So be prepared to revisit code, tests, and requirements as teams uncover issues and deepen their understanding.
The second step to prevent or minimize bugs is to follow coding standards and best practices. Coding standards are the rules and conventions that govern how the code is written, formatted, and structured. They help to ensure the readability, maintainability, and consistency of the code. They also help to avoid common coding errors, such as syntax errors, logic errors, and memory leaks. Some of the coding standards that you should follow are naming conventions, indentation, comments, modularity, and error handling.
En complément du respect des normes de codage, l'intégration d'outils d'analyse statique peut grandement contribuer à la prévention des erreurs et à l'amélioration de la qualité du code. Ces outils automatisés examinent le code source sans l'exécuter, identifiant ainsi des anomalies potentielles, des erreurs de style, des violations de normes de codage et d'autres problèmes avant même l'étape de compilation. L'utilisation d'outils tels que des analyseurs de code statique peut vous aider à détecter rapidement des problèmes de codage, à maintenir la cohérence et à améliorer la qualité globale du logiciel.
The third step to detect and correct bugs is to use debugging tools and techniques. Debugging tools are the software applications or features that help to examine, modify, and control the execution of the code. They can help to identify the location, cause, and effect of the bugs. Some of the debugging tools that you should use are breakpoints, watches, step-by-step execution, call stack, and console. Debugging techniques are the methods and strategies that help to solve the bugs. Some of the debugging techniques that you should use are print statements, binary search, rubber ducking, and code review.
Debugging tools work well if a bug is reproducible, but what if a bug is NOT reproducible? You'll need to get creative! First, try to reproduce the bug... If that isn't possible, look through any available logs on both the client and server, to see if you can identify any anomalies that occurred around the time that the bug was reported. If that doesn't give you any clues, it becomes a bit of trial and error. See if you can narrow down the area of code where the issue is most likely to occur, and look for things in the code like: uncaught errors or exceptions, ifs without an else, uninitialized variables, potential threading issues, etc. Static code analysis tools like Lint can help with scanning.
En complément de l'utilisation d'outils de débogage, adopter une approche proactive du débogage peut améliorer considérablement la qualité du code. Plut?t que de se limiter à la correction des erreurs lorsqu'elles se présentent, pratiquez le débogage proactif en utilisant des techniques telles que les assertions et les tests unitaires. Les assertions sont des déclarations qui spécifient des conditions attendues dans le code, et si ces conditions ne sont pas remplies, une alerte est déclenchée.
The fourth step to verify and validate bugs is to write test cases and perform testing. Test cases are the scenarios or inputs that are used to check if the software meets the requirements and functions correctly. They can help to find and fix the bugs before they affect the users or clients. Testing is the process of executing the test cases and evaluating the results. Testing can be done at different levels, such as unit testing, integration testing, system testing, and acceptance testing. Testing can also be done by different roles, such as developers, testers, or users.
This is the most crucial aspect of software lifecycle which validates and provides feedback. Test Cases and Coverage are pivotal to quality of the software’s rollout
The fifth step to manage and resolve bugs is to document and report them. Documenting bugs is the process of recording the details and characteristics of the bugs, such as the description, severity, priority, status, and steps to reproduce. Documenting bugs can help to track and monitor the progress and outcome of the bug fixing process. Reporting bugs is the process of communicating and sharing the information about the bugs with the relevant parties, such as developers, testers, managers, or clients. Reporting bugs can help to coordinate and collaborate on the bug fixing process.
En adoptant un système de gestion des bogues, vous facilitez la collaboration, réduisez les risques d'oubli et assurez une résolution plus rapide et plus systématique des problèmes identifiés.
The sixth and final step to improve and enhance bugs is to learn from them. Learning from bugs is the process of analyzing and reflecting on the causes, consequences, and solutions of the bugs. Learning from bugs can help to prevent or reduce the recurrence of similar bugs in the future. It can also help to improve the quality and performance of the software. Some of the ways to learn from bugs are to conduct root cause analysis, implement corrective and preventive actions, and document and share the lessons learned.
Follow DevSecOps as a daily routine in your development life cycle to deploy information and cyber security vulnerabilities free system/ software into production. Source-code scanning and pen test should be part of your CI/CD pipeline and identified vulnerabilities closure before production migration should be mandatory. Infosec team should be the part of SDLC approval matrix for good governance and last but not the least developer training on secure coding should be done regularly.