Performance test checklist
Before you can do a load and performance test, you should do the following.
Formulate goals
- What do I want to find out by using the test?
- How fast should my system respond and is it dependent on different conditions?
- Are there SLAs (Service Level Agreements) or NFR / NFA (non-functional-requirements)?
- Which load types should I choose to test my system and what are the goals of the different test types?
Set expectations
- What results do I expect from this software test?
- Is it all about profit maximization, server resource savings or workload and customer satisfaction?
Set Timeline and Appointments
- When – in which step of the system development does it make sense to take the test?
- Should the test be carried out once or continuously – if applicable, included in a CI (Continuous Integration) procedure?
Determine load test tool, personnel, effort and techniques
- Which resources am I willing to invest?
- Which load or throughput is needed?
- Which interface would I like to use for the test?
- Which test data do I need or how should my basic data of the database look like and where do they come from?
- Which technologies and architectures are used?
- Flex, Flash, Push and Pull, Cloud, Dynamic HTML5, AJAX, Web 2.0, Industry 4.0, the Internet of Things, Wearables, Mobile Apps and Mobile Devices, … some of them are partly buzzwords , However, they all have enormous influence on the required know-how and requirements for the load test tool and the load test concept, or the necessary effort for the load and performance test.
- How much should the test environment be similar to the production environment? It’s usually a budget question. Basically, the test environment should be as close as possible to the production environment during performance testing.
All these points should be recorded in a load test concept.