Glossary of Terms in Software Testing and the TestMonitor Platform

Software testing is a critical part of software development that ensures the quality, reliability, and functionality delivered meets technical and customer requirements.

That’s why it’s essential every member of a Quality Assurance team is on the same page when discussing key testing terms and TestMonitor-specific features.

Here’s a glossary of the most common and important terms all QA professionals should know. We encourage you to expand and refine this list to meet your unique testing needs.

General Testing Terms

Acceptance Testing

The final stage of testing where the software is validated against predefined requirements to confirm that it meets the acceptance criteria for release.

Bug

An error or flaw in the software that causes it to produce incorrect results or behave unexpectedly.

Defect

A term referring to any flaw or imperfection in the software that requires fixing.

Expected Result

The desired outcome or behavior of the software when executed under specific conditions.

Issues

Problems or concerns identified during testing that need further review or resolution.

Pre-conditions

Criteria or requirements that must be met before running a test case.

Requirement-based Testing

Testing focused on verifying that the software meets specified functional and non-functional requirements.

Requirements

Statements that describe what the software should do.

Risk-based Testing

A testing approach used to identify and mitigate potential risks to a piece of software during development and deployment.

Risks

Potential threats or vulnerabilities that could negatively impact the software as developed, as it is used, or its users.

Test Cases

Pre-defined procedures or steps used by testers to verify specific aspects of the software's functionality or behavior work as expected.

Test Environment

The setup where tests are executed, including the hardware, software, and configurations. Different test environments can be used to test different elements of software.

Test Execution

The process of performing the test cases against the software to evaluate its behavior.

Test Results

Outcomes or observations obtained from executing test cases.

Test Runs

Instances of tests executed on the software.

Tester

A person responsible for planning, executing, and reporting test activities.

TestMonitor Terms

Assignee

The person responsible for a particular task or issue in TestMonitor.

Bug Tracking

TestMonitor's feature for recording, tracking, and resolving software bugs or defects.

Coverage Report

A report in TestMonitor showing the extent of test case coverage across the software’s different key elements, such as security, functionality, or performance.

Integrations

TestMonitor's ability to connect with other tools and systems used in software development, defect tracking, project management, or other testing scenarios.

Issue Tracker

TestMonitor's feature for managing and tracking software issues or defects found during testing.

Milestone

Significant points in the project timeline used to track progress and completion status against a defined schedule.

Milestone Summary

A summary of project progress and status at specific milestones within TestMonitor.

Outcome

In TestMonitor, the result of a completed test execution (e.g., passed, failed, blocked).

Project Dashboard

TestMonitor's visual representation of project data and metrics to aid in communicating status or sharing results.

Project Summary

An overview of key metrics and information related to the entire software project in TestMonitor.

Project

The overall software development effort that is being managed in TestMonitor.

Re-run

The ability to re-execute a previous test run in TestMonitor.

Requirement Management

TestMonitor's functionality for managing and organizing project requirements.

Risk Traceability

The ability to track and manage risks associated with the software development process in TestMonitor.

Test Case Instructions

Detailed steps provided in TestMonitor written for testers, used for executing specific test cases.

Test Workload

A metric in TestMonitor representing the amount of work assigned to testers within a specified timeframe.

Traceability Matrix Report

A type of report in TestMonitor that shows the relationship between test cases and requirements or risks.

Template

Predefined structures or formats available in TestMonitor for creating consistent test cases, test runs, requirements or milestones.