Ensure a Smooth Upgrade: Make Regression Testing of Your ERP a Priority

Regression testing is an important part of any software Quality Assurance process,?and is particularly important when it comes to Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. It ensures that changes to the system do not adversely affect existing functionality and have been implemented correctly.?

An ERP system is typically composed of multiple integrated modules that share data with one another and are used to manage various aspects of the business, including inventory management, purchasing, payroll, customer relationship management, and more. Making any changes to any part of the system may require changes to be made to other parts to accommodate the new functionality or to make sure data is still shared in an appropriate way.

Regression testing is used to ensure that existing functionality is not affected by new changes and to ensure that any new changes are integrated properly with other modules. It also provides a way to confirm that any new features or bug fixes have been implemented correctly and work as expected.

Regression testing should be performed on both the user interface and the database. The user interface tests are essential for ensuring that users are able to carry out the operations that they expect to be able to do with the software, and to make sure that any changes that were made do not affect the way the program is presented on the screen. Testing the database involves making sure that all of the data that is stored in the system is properly handled when changes are made, and that any new data is added successfully.

Each time changes are made to the ERP system, regression tests should be performed to make sure everything works correctly and the system is stable. This often involves both manual and automated testing, depending on the size and complexity of the system. Manual tests tend to be more appropriate for when there is an unexpectedly large degree of change in the system, while automated testing can take care of more routine changes. Ultimately, regression testing is essential for enterprises that make use of ERP systems, as it provides them with the assurance that the changes that they make to their system do not cause any unexpected issues.

Regression testing is an important part of software testing, designed to verify that changes or modifications to a program have not caused errors in other components of the software. It’s a labour intensive process that can be time consuming and error prone, but in many cases, it is essential to ensuring quality software. With the rise of automated testing, it is now possible to do regression tests quickly and efficiently.

How do you automate regression testing?

Firstly, it is important to determine the scope and objectives of the regression testing. What type of tests should be conducted? What areas need to be tested most rigorously? What kind of metrics should be employed to measure the effectiveness of the tests? Once these questions have been answered, automated regression testing can begin.

The first step is to create a script that covers the functionality of the software. This typically involves coding in a scripting language such as Python, JavaScript or Ruby. The scripts can be written from scratch, or taken from a regression testing library. Once the scripts have been written, they can be deployed to the test environment. It is also possible to run automated tests directly on the software application if it supports such functionality.?

To run the tests, the test automation framework must be configured to execute the scripts at the desired frequency. This is typically done through an automated scheduling system, which can ensure that tests are run at the desired intervals. Additionally, the framework must be set up to generate comprehensive regression reports detailing the output of the tests.

Finally, the results of the regression tests must be analysed. The most important information to look for includes failed tests, unexpected results, and trends in the test execution time. Being able to identify these problems quickly allows developers to focus on fixing them to improve the overall quality of the software.

Automated regression testing is an invaluable tool for software development teams, providing them with insight into the long-term stability and integrity of their software. While having to write the scripts and configure the framework can be tedious, automated regression tests are a necessity for identifying any potential defects or performance issues that may occur in the long run.

How do you decide what areas of functionality need to be regression tested for new functionality for release changes to your finance system?

1.??????Start by reviewing the functional requirements of the finance module. Identify the changes that have been made relative to the existing system and prioritize the changes based on their importance and the amount of risk they pose to the business process.

2.??????Create a test plan outlining the scope of the test, the objectives, and the type of tests that need to be performed.

3.??????Develop test cases to ensure all requirements are tested and all potential outcomes are examined.

4.??????Execute the tests, document the results and analyse any discrepancies.

5.??????Make sure to conduct regression testing at the integration, system, and acceptance levels.

6.??????Utilize automated testing where possible to ensure clarity, traceability, and accuracy.

7.??????Review the results of the regression tests to confirm the system is working properly.

If you have a library of test scripts you conducted UAT (user acceptance testing) with prior to going live, it is possible to repurpose those scripts for regression testing going forwards. You would need to have someone update those test scripts going forwards where any change requests or upgrades made amendments to functionality to make sure the test scripts do not get out of date over time.

If you are thinking about starting on a finance transformation journey, please get in touch for a chat and follow me for more content on transformation discussions.

Copy right???Clair Green