InterviewQuestions for QA Tester (Software Tester)

InterviewQuestions for QA Tester (Software Tester)

 

These questions and answers aretotally based on the interview I attended during my 6 years of workingexperience as a QA Tester. In some sections, I have started including theinterview questions that were asked by companies to some of the candidates whovisited this website and wanted to share.

If you are attending an interview,you have to know these questions and answers by heart must be very fluent inanswering these questions. Practice in front of the mirror, loud and clear(talk to yourself). Most of the time, when we read the questions, we feel goodand feel comfortable, but the reality is, at the time of the interview, eventhough we feel we have the knowledge, can’t express it well. It may sound alittle rough, but this is my experience. When we come out the door, we regret.

 

HERE ARE THE QUESTIONS:

 

1.Can you tell me about yourself?

Answer: In my QA career, I have beenworking on various system platforms and operating systems like Windows 95, Windows2000, Windows XP and UNIX. I have tested applications developed in Java, C++,Visual Basic and so on. I have tested Web-based applications as well as clientserver applications.

As a QA person, I have written TestPlans, Test Cases, attended walkthrough meetings with the Business Analysts,Project Managers, Business Managers and QA Leads. I have attended requirementreview meetings and provided feedback to the Business Analysts. I have workedin different databases like Oracle and DB2, wrote SQL queries to retrieve datafrom the database. As far as different types of testing are concerned, I haveperformed Smoke Testing, Functional Testing, Backend Testing, Black BoxTesting, Integration Testing, Regression Testing and UAT (User AcceptanceTesting) Testing. I have participated in Load Testing and Stress Testing.

I have written defects as they arefound using ClearQuest and TestDirector. Once the defects were fixed, retestedthem and if the passed, closed them. If the defects were not fixed, then reopenedthem. I have also attended the defect assessment meetings as necessary.

In the meantime, a continuousinteraction with developers was necessary.

This is pretty much what I have beendoing as a QA person.

 

2.What did you do in your last project?

Answer: In my last project, theapplication was a web-based application developed in Java platform. As a QAPerson, I wrote Test Plans from the requirement documents and Use Cases. Iperformed Smoke Testing, Functional Testing, Backend Testing, Black Box Testing,Integration Testing, Regression Testing and UAT (User Acceptance Testing). Ihave participated in Load Testing and Stress Testing. I attended severalwalkthrough meetings for requirement reviews and provided feedback to theBusiness Analysts. Mostly, I was in the backend testing, which required writingSQL queries directly to the database.

Besides these, I wrote defects usingClearQuest. Once the defects were fixed, retested them and if the passed,closed them. If the defects were not fixed, then reopened them.

 

3.Have you written Test Plan? What is a Test Plan? What does it include?

Answer: Yes.

Whatis a Test Plan?

Answer: A Test Plan is a documentthat describes the scope, approach, resources, and schedule of intended testingactivities. It identifies test items, the features to be tested, the testingtasks and who will do each task (roles and responsibilities) and any risks andits solutions. See how the Test Plan looks like.

Whatdoes it include?

Answer: A Test Plan includesHeading, Revision History, Table of Contents, Introduction, Scope, Approach,Overview, different types of testing that will be carried out, what softwareand hardware will be required, issues, risks, assumptions and sign off section.

 

4.Have you written Test Cases?

Answer: Yes.

Whatis a Test Case? What does it include?

Answer: A Test Case is a documentthat describes step-by-step process how to test the application. A Test Caseincludes Test Case ID, Steps Description, Expected Output, Actual Output,Pass/Fail, and Remarks. (Remember, this is NOT a part of Test Plan. It is aseparate document written using Excel. In some companies, they use RationalTestManager or TestDirector. But for companies, who do not have these tools,use Excel sheet. In t he example below, it is in the Excel sheet)

Didyou use any tools to write Test Cases?

Answer: Yes. I have usedTestDirector (now called QualityCenter) and Rational TestManager to write TestCases. However, in most of the companies, I used Excel sheet. See a sample TestCase.

Howmany Test Cases did you write in your last project?

Answer: I wrote about 1100 TestCases in my last project. (The reasonable number of Test Cases varies from 500to thousands. The number 1100 test cases can be completed in 6-month projectduration).

Whatdocument did you refer to write the Test Cases?

Answer: Requirement document. (NOTE:It can also be Use Cases, or Design Document. It depends company to company. Insome company, they use Use Cases. In some companies, they use RequirementDocuments and in companies, they use Design Document. However, in practicalscenario, most of the companies have requirement document at least).

 

5.Did you have a situation where you did not have any documents (no requirementdocument, no Use Cases, or no Design Document) and you had to write the TestCases? How did you write the Test Cases in this situation?

Answer: Yes. I have been to thatkind of scenarios several times. There were companies where they had nodocuments at all. In that case, I had to discuss the application scenario andfunctionalities with the Business Analysts or developer. On the basis of thatdiscussion, I prepared a document in consultation with Business Analysts andDevelopers and then started writing Plans and Test Cases.

 

6.What you worked with Use Cases before?

Answer: Yes. I have written TestCases using Use Cases.

Canyou tell me what a Use Case is?

Answer: A use case is a documentthat describes the user action and system response for a particularfunctionality. See how a Use Case looks like.

 

7.What is SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle)?

Answer: SDLC (Software DevelopmentLife Cycle) is the process of developing software through business needs,analysis, design, implementation and maintenance. Software has to go throughvarious phases before it is born which are as follows:

(i) Generating a Concept – A concept comes from the users of thesoftware. For example, a Pizza Hut may need software to sell pizza. An Indianstore may need software to sell its newly arrived movies or grocery. The ownerof the company feels that he needs software that would help him in tracking hisexpenses and income as well as enhance the selling process. This is how theconcept is generated. The owner will specifically tell the software companywhat kind of software he would need. In other words, he will specify hisrequirements.

(ii) Requirements analysis – After the owner (user) knows hisrequirements, then it is given to a software team (company) who will analyzethe requirement and prepare requirement document that will explain everyfunctionality that are needed by the owner. The requirement document will bethe main document for developers, testers and database administrators. In otherwords, this is the main document that will be referred by everyone. After therequirement documents, other detailed documents many be needed. For example,the architectural design which is a blueprint for the design with the necessaryspecifications for the hardware, software, people and data resources.

(iii) Development: After the detailed requirement documents (somecompanies have design documents instead of requirement documents), thedevelopers start writing their code (program) for their modules. On the otherhand, the testers in the QA (Quality Assurance) Department start writing Test Plans(one module=1 test plan), test cases and get ready for testing.

(iv) Testing: Once the code (programs) are ready, they are compiledtogether and to make a build. This build is now tested by the software testers(QA Testers)

(v) Production: After testing, the application (software) goes intoproduction (meaning, it will be handed over to the owner).

(vi) End: And one day, the owner will have say bye to the softwareeither because the business grows and this software does not meet the demand orfor some reason, the he does not need the software. That’s the end of it.

 

8.What is Business Requirement Document (BRD)?

Answer: It is a document thatdescribes the details of the application functionalities which is required bythe user. This document is written by the Business Analysts.

 

9.What is Business Design Document?

Answer: It is the document thatdescribes the application functionalities of the user in detail. This documenthas the further details of the Business Requirement Document. This is a very crucialstep in Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). Sometimes the BusinessRequirement Document and Business Design Document can be lumped together tomake only one Business Requirement Document.

 

10.What is a Module?

Answer: A ‘Module’ is a software componentthat has a specific task. It can be a ‘link’, which can go inside to itscomponent detail. (This is NOT a very common question for the interview. Thisis just for your knowledge, if you don’t know what a module is.)

 

11.What is walk-through meeting?

Answer: Once the Business Analystscomplete the requirement document, they call a meeting to explain how thefunctionalities work, what the process is in the designed application and otherdetails. The Business Analysts explain the high level functionalities of theapplication (software) that is going to the built. The participant members inthe meeting may provide feed back and various point of views are expressed.This is walk-through meeting.

 

12.What is a Use Case and what does it include?

Answer: A Use Case is a documentthat describes the user action and system response for a particularfunctionality. It includes cover page, Revision History, Table of Contents,Flow of Events (normal flow and alternative flow), Exceptions, SpecialRequirements, Pre-conditions and Post-conditions. See how a Use Case lookslike.

 

13.What is Build?

Answer: When each of the differentmodules of software is prepared, the Configuration Management Team (CMT) putsthem in a single folder and it is called the ‘Build’. . (This is NOT a verycommon question for the interview. This is just for your knowledge, if youdon’t know what a build is.) See how the build is prepared.

 

14.What does the Build Deployment mean?

Answer: When the Build so preparedby the CMT (Configuration Management Team), it is deployed (put) to differentTest Environments; it is called the Build Deployment.

 

15.What is Test Strategy?

Answer: A Test Strategy is adocument that describes the test efforts, test configuration, testing tools tobe employed, test environments, exit criteria and entry criteria for testing,what different types of testing will be carried out (for example, smoke test,regression, load test, functional test and so on) types of testing to becarried out and system requirement. The Test Manager or Lead writes it.(Remember, the Tester does NOT write Test Strategy. A Tester writes Test Plansand Test Cases) See how a Test Strategy looks like.

 

16.Are Test Plan and Test Strategy same type of documents?

Answer: No, they are different documents.A Test Plan is a document that collects and organizes test cases by functionalareas and/or types of testing in a form that can be presented to the otherteams and/or customer (see the definition on this page for Test Plan) where asthe Test Strategy (see the definition in the above question) is the documentedapproach to testing. The tester prepares test Plan whereas the Manager or leadprepares the Test Strategy. Both are important pieces of Quality Assuranceprocesses since they help communicate the test approach scope and ensure testcoverage while improving the efficiency of the testing effort.

 

17.What does Test Strategy include?

Answer: It includes introduction,Test Objectives, Test Process, Test Methodology, Test Scope, Release Criteriafor Testing (exit criteria), Test Lab configuration, resource and schedule fortest activities, acceptance criteria, test environment, test tools, testpriorities, test planning, executing a test pass and types of test to beperformed.

 

18.What are different types of software testing and define them?

Answer: Different types of testingare:

1) Unit testing

2) Shakeout testing

3) Smoke testing (Ad-hoc testing)

4) Functional testing

5) Integration testing

6) Regression testing

7) System testing

8) Load testing

9) Stress testing

10) Performance testing

11) User acceptance testing

12) Black box testing

13) White box testing

14) Alpha testing

15) Beta testing

(Note: Except the Shakeout testingand Unit testing (which are respectively done by the CMT (Configuration ManagementTeam) and Coder/Developer), all other testing are done by the QA tester.)

Whatis Unit testing? Itis a test to check the code whether it is properly working or not as per therequirement.

Whatis Shakeout testing? Thistest is basically carried out to check the networking facility, databaseconnectivity and the integration of modules. The Configuration Management team,who prepare builds for test environments, normally does this test. They alsotest whether the major components of the software are not broken. This test isdone BEFORE the build is deployed in the test environment. After the shake outtesting, the next step is smoke testing (which is done by the testers after thebuild is deployed in the test environment)

Whatis smoke testing?This test is done when the build is just prepared (fresh build) and deployed inthe test environments. This is basically an ad hoc test to check roughly tomake sure the major functionalities are not broken. It is the preliminary atest carried out by the QA tester. After the smoke test, the testers performfunctional testing.

Whatis Functional testing? It is a test to check whether each and every functionof that application is working as per the requirement (remember this work “asper requirement document”-you must say this in the interview). It is a majortest where 80% of the tests are done. In this test, the Test Cases are executed(or run).

Whatis Integration testing? It is a test to check whether all the modules arecombined together or not and working successfully as specified in therequirement document. (Just for your information: Each developer works ondifferent modules. When they finish their code, the configuration managementteam puts them together and prepares a build. We, as testers, need to make surethat these modules, which are now combined, work as per requirement document)

Whatis Regression testing? When a new functionality is added to the software, weneed to make sure that the added new functionality does not break the otherparts of the application. Or when defects (bugs) are fixed, we need to makesure that the bug fix has not broken the other parts of the application. Totest this, we perform a repetitive test, which is called regression test.

Whatis System testing?When testers complete testing (The testers test the application in the testenvironments, meaning they test with the test data only, NOT with the realdata), the application (software) has to be tested in the real environment.What it means is, since the testers test it in the test environment with thetest data, we have to make sure that the application works well in the realenvironment with the real data. In test environment, some of the things cannotbe simulated or tested. Al though the test environment is very similar to theproduction (real) environment, we need to make sure that we get a smoothdelivery in the real system as well (As servers are different and database isdifferent, things may not work as expected when the application is moved fromtest environment to production environment)

Whatis Load testing? Itis a test to check the user’s response time for number of users using any onescenario (single business process) of the same application at the same time.

Whatis Performance testing? It is a test to check the user’s response time fornumber of users using multiple scenarios (multiple business process) of thesame application at the same time.

(Did you notice the differencebetween Load Testing and Performance testing? What is it? See the highlightedbold letters)

Whatis Stress testing? Inthis type of testing the application is tested against heavy load such ascomplex numerical values, large number of inputs, large number of queries etc.which checks for the stress/load the applications can withstand.

What isUser acceptance testing (UAT)? In this type of testing, the software ishanded over to the user in order to find out if the software meets the userexpectations and works as it is expected to. In this testing, the tester may dothe testing or the clients may have their own testers (For example, banks mayhave their own teller employees who can test the application).

Whatis Black box testing? It is test where a tester performs testing withoutlooking into the code. (OR it is a testing method where the application undertest is viewed as a black box and the internal behavior of the program iscompletely ignored. Testing occurs based upon the external specifications. Alsoknown as behavioral testing, since only the external behavior of the program isevaluated and analyzed.)

Whatis White box testing?It is a test where a tester looks into the code and performs the testing.

Whatis Alpha testing? Inthis type of testing, the users are invited at the development center wherethey use the application and the developers note every particular input oraction carried out by the user. Any type of abnormal behavior of the system isnoted and rectified by the developers.

Whatis Beta testing?In this type of testing, the software is distributed as a beta version to theusers and users test the application at their sites. As the users explore thesoftware, in case if any exception/defect occurs that is reported to thedevelopers.

 

19.What is the difference between Load Testing and Performance Testing?

Answer: Basically Load, Stress andPerformance Testing are the same. However, Load testing is the test to checkthe users’ response time of number of users of any one scenario of theapplication whereas Performance Testing is the test to check the userresponse time for multiple scenario of the same application.

 

20.What was the process of QA testing in your company where you worked for thelast time? (Or As far as the QA process is involved, what was the testingprocess in your company?)

Answer: The QA testing process thatwas followed in my last company where I worked was as follows:

First of all the BusinessRequirement Document was prepared as per the client’s requirement (with themuck-up). Then on the basis of the requirement document, QA Team wrote TestPlans, Test Cases and Test Strategies. The developers started coding theirmodules (started programming). Once the developers finished coding, theConfiguration Management Team compiled the code together and prepared a build.This Build is now deployed to different testing environments where differenttypes of testing were performed. Once the defects were found, the testers wouldlog the defect using the tools available (like TestDirecotor, ClearQuest and soon. For the companies who cannot afford these expensive tools, they can useExcel sheet as well). Once the defects are logged, then those defects would bediscussed in the defect status meeting and would take further actions (meaning,closing, reopening, retesting of defects etc).

 

21.What is Change Control?

Answer: It is a document thatdescribes the additional functionalities that are added after the BusinessRequirement Document is signed off. It can be updated in the old businessrequirement document or it can be a separate document. (For example, in theBusiness Requirement Document, on the login page, there are User Name andPassword fields. The owner of the software wants to add, “If you do not haveUser Name and Password, please click here.” This is a change. But this changecame after the document is signed off by the Project Managers. Now this is achange control and comes as a separate document. (It is also called ChangeRequest, Modification Request).

 

22.Have you written Change Control?

Answer: Yes. There was a situationwhere in one page of an application in my previous project, when the userclicked “Contact” link, it would pop up a different window (new separatewindow). But it was NOT the way it was described in the requirement document.In the requirement document, when the user clicks “Contact” link, then itshould navigate to another page (Not a separate new window. Then was it aproblem? Functionality wise, it was NOT a problem, however, on all the otherpages, when the user clicked “Contact” link, the system would navigate to nextpage (not a separate window). So, it was NOT CONSISTENT with the otherfunctionalities on the other pages. Therefore, it was a consistency issue. Ireported this as a bug. But the Project Manager asked me to write it as aChange Control (because it requires more budget to fix this issue) so that hecan address this issue at a later time. So I wrote this as a Change Control.(However, it is NOT a job of a tester to write change control. It’s thebusiness analyst’s job)

 

23.What is Backend Testing?

Answer: It is a test to checkwhether the data displayed in the GUI front-end matches with the particulardata in the backend.

 

24.Have you done any Backend Testing and/or if you did, how did you do it in yourlast project?

Answer: Yes. I have done backendtesting. When I was working in my last project, this was my scenario of backendtesting:

I was working on Reports. It was thescenario of testing one application used in the bank, where a customer comes toa bank’s front desk, the bank teller is requested to open a Checking Account.The associate then asks for the personal information about the customer, which,are the primary data, such as: First Name, Last Name, Date of Birth, Addressand Social Security Number. The associate then puts these primary data of thatparticular customer into the computer, which then afterwards batch-processed(normally happens in the middle of the nigh). Now, after the batch process, theinformation of that customer goes into the central database in the XML format.The data now from the database goes to ETL (Extract-Transform-Load). (ETL is atool made by two companies ‘AbInitio’ and ‘Informatica’) ETL now processes thejob to create a file (output file) to produce the report. The file is nowdisplayed in the GUI Front End report with the help of Business Object (orCrystal Reports. These are tools that display data in GUI format). In the GUIFront End report, let us say, if for January, the deposit of that person wasdisplayed as $ 900.00. Then my job was to validate whether this $900 is corrector not. I validated this data by writing SQL queries directly to the database.The data pulled from my SQL query should match to the data in the GUI frontend. In other words, my SQL query should also display $900. If it matches, itis well and good. If it doesn’t, then it’s a bug. This is how I have done myBack End Testing.

Howcan you be sure that the query you wrote is correct? Or how do you know thatthe data you pulled from the database is correct?

Answer: I write SQL query based onthe requirement document. In the requirement document, various conditions aregiven for the query. Based on those conditions, I write SQL query. Therefore,anything different from the requirement document is definitely a defect.

 

25.From you resume, I see that you have been working in one place for a very shortperiod of time. This raises me questions why. Can you explain why?

Answer: As a consultant, I am hiredfor a certain period of time (for project duration only), normally for 6 monthsto 1 year. Once the project is over, I needed to move to another project.That’s why you see me in the resume jumping frequently here and there.

 

26.What is done on the first day of the work?

Answer: On the first day, theManager will come to receive at the lobby. He/she will welcome you; tell whereyou will be sitting. The next thing will be will show you login name andpassword and they want to make sure that the login name and password works sothat you can use your computer. Then the Manager will tell you where thedocuments are located in the network drive (or shared drive, or ClearCase, orSharepoint—different companies use different software for this purpose). Onceyou find the documents, then you will ask them what you will be working on whatare the related documents that you should read. You start reading thedocuments, which lasts normally one week or more.

 

27.What do you do on the job every day? What is the first thing you go when you goto work on a day? (What is your routine job?)

Answer: Go to work, have a cup ofcoffee (coffee is free in any work place), then check emails. I will check inmy calendar whether there is any meeting for the day. If there is anythingurgent work that needs to take care of, then I will start with that job.Otherwise, I will start what is left from yesterday on a priority basis.

(This question was asked to one ofmy friends while he was attending interview in one of the companies. When theyasked him this question, his answer was, he said, “I start testing”. This washis wrong answer. The answer varies in which phase of testing the applicationis. If the application is in very beginning state-meaning that the coding hasjust begun, then the tester’s job will be to analyze and read the requirementdocuments, write test plans and write test cases. Probably attend walkthroughmeeting and so on. However, the daily routine job would be, as mentioned above,check emails, read documents, attend meeting and so on. It’s not that as soonas you enter the office, you start testing)

Whatdo you do if you have any questions to ask? Who do you ask?

At the beginning, we all panic, whatkind of questions to ask? What if they ask questions that I don’t know? Is itOK to ask questions? What do I do if I don’t know how to do the job I amassigned to? and so on.

As mentioned earlier, on the firstday, your Manager will give you the system (computer) (They normally callsystem, not computer), will tell you what the User ID and Password is, whereare the QA documents on the shared drive (or Network drive) are and so on. Theywill definitely ask you to read a lot of documents at the beginning (And youmust read, read and read those documents AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. At the beginning,allocate about 2 hours extra at home for reading these documents. This habitwill put you on the top of your job). These documents are normally designspecification document (DSD). Different companies call it with different names,for example, Requirement Specification Document (RSD) and so on. After readingthe documents, you will be asked to write Test Plans or Test Cases (Don’tpanic. The Test Plans and Test Cases templates will be give by your manager ortest lead and they will tell you what to do and how to do because differentcompanies have different formats they follow. If they don’t have one, then youcan always prepare a sample from this website (see on the right column) andgive it to them. You will be hero)

Whodo you ask?

Now let’s say you did not understandsomething while reading documents. Who are you going to ask? Answer-BusinessAnalysts who wrote this document. If you have any other questions that youdon’t know, you will be asking that to you friend first, if he/she is not ableto answer, then ask this question to the Lead (or Manager). Do not ask too manyquestions (some people get irritated). Therefore, it is important to read, readand read. That’s the only way to succeed.

If you have any questions inTestDirector, or QTP or any other automation tools, then there is a HELP menuas well as tutorial. Please go through these, read them before you ask anyquestions to anyone else.

Whatkind of questions should I ask in the meeting?

Nothing. My advice is, keep yourmouth shut. Just listen. This is the best way to handle the job until you areconfident enough to speak and you know what you are talking about. If they askyou some questions, then reply gently, wisely.

Howto deal with your team members?

Most probably, you will not be theonly tester in the team. There will be more than you. Sometimes, dealing withyou team members is frustrating, specially when you are new. They try to ignoreyou. They want to show themselves smart. Don’t worry. Don’t blame them. Thispart of the human nature. Try to cope with it. Invite them when you go forcoffee (in the coffee room in your office, don’t go outside), try to share yourfeelings and so on. It is all how you handle your friends. It is part of yourdaily activities, handle it gently. This is part of the situation I have gonethrough, my friends have gone through. I am just sharing this with you.

 

28.Have you used automation tools?

(Normally, when some one asks thisquestion, we tend to think about automation functional testing tools, likeWinRunner, LoadRunner, QTP (Quick Test Pro), Rational Robot, Experian and soon. But the reality is, even a Manual Tester also uses automation tools likebug tracking tools like TestDirector, ClearQuest, PVC Tracker and so on.Therefore, your answer should be Yes)

Answer: Yes. I have usedTestDirector and ClearQuest as defect tracking tools. (Your answer is based on whetheryou have used automation tools specially for functional and load testing. Ifyou have NOT used, but read about these tools, then you may be better offsaying, “I know about the tools. I was involved in some of the testing usingthese tools, but would need some brush up in order to work independently.” I amsaying this because these tools are difficult to tackle in the interview andhave to know in depth. In order to pass the interview on functional automationtools, it may not be easy unless you really know the stuff. But, since there isnot much to learn in ClearQuest and TestDirector, you only have to know whatdifferent types of fields are there in the defect logging window when writing adefect.)

 

29.When you log a defect using TestDirector (or ClearQuest) what fields do yousee?

Answer: When we log a defect, we seeDefect ID (it shows later in TestDirector), Summary (where we write shortdescription of the defect), Description (long description of the defect),Detected by (Person who found the defect, (it’s you), Severity (meaning-is thedefect critical? High? Medium? Or Low?), Date, Detected in Version, Priority,Project, Status, Assigned to and so on.

See the fields in TestDirector (goto page 24-27)

See the fields in ClearQuest (go topage 9)

 

30.Are you better working in a team or working alone?

Answer: I am a team player. I getalong with team members very well. As far as the working is concerned, I can beequally productive in team or working alone.

(Caution: Never say, I like workingalone. This could lead you to not getting a job as they are always looking forpeople who can get along with other people.)

 

31.Do you have any situations in the past where you have some arguments with yourteam members?

Answer: No. I never had that type ofsituation wherever I have worked.

(Even if you had one, it’s a goodidea to say “No”. This could be a red flag, which might stop you from gettingthe job)

 

32.What do you like about a Manager? And what don’t you like?

Answer: The best thing I like abouta Manager is that the Manager should be able to coordinate with the other teamsso that we can get the updated documents, for example, updated requirementsdocuments right away. A Manager who can efficiently in distributes the work tothe team, without being biased and easily accessible and protective to his teamfor the right cause. As far as “what I don’t like” is concerned, I don’t like amanager who keeps coming to desk 10 times a day to check my work even if it isjust a regular work. Once the responsibility is given, the team member shouldbe trusted and let his work done.

 

33.Where do you see yourself in another 5 years?

Answer: I see myself a QA Lead inanother 5 years.

(You can also say “QA Manager”, butsince the QA Manager is taking your interview most of the time, they some timesfeel challenged. Therefore, it might be a good idea to limit you to QA Lead)

 

34.Why are you in QA?

Answer: I am in QA because I likethis job.

 

35.Why do you like this job?

Answer: I like this job, because itis process oriented. Meaning that I get an opportunity to work from analyzingthe requirement documents to writing test plans, test cases, testing theapplication, logging defects, retesting, preparing reports and finally testingin production as well. Therefore, I am involved from the very beginning to theend of the software development life cycle (SDLC) process. I like this.

Another reason is I like to finddefects. I enjoy logging defects. The more defects I find, the happier I am.

 

36.How do you determine what to test in an application?

Answer: First of all we have thetest cases (or test scripts) that are written based on the requirementdocument. This pretty much covers what functionalities to test. Therefore,looking at the test cases tells us what to test in the application.

 

37.If you have no documentation about the product, how do you test an application?Describethe process.

Answer: Well, this is a situationwhere I have come across several times. Some of the companies in my previousprojects did not have any documents. In this case, I went to the BusinessAnalyst and some times to developers to find out how exactly thefunctionalities work, how to navigate from one page to another page and so on.After getting a clear vision, I write test cases based on the conversation(which is a step by step procedure to test an application) and get ready fortesting.

Whatdo you do once you find a defect?

Once you find a defect, this is whatwe need to do:

1. Recreate the Defect: Once you find a defect, we must try torecreate (meaning that we should be able to reproduce it) at least 3 times sothat we are sure that it is a defect. Some times, once we find it log itwithout recreating, may put us in a false situation (because sometimes theapplication does not behave in the same way). Therefore, it is important torecreate the same defect several times.

2. Attach the Screen Shot (supporting document): Once we confirm thatit is a defect, and then it is a good idea to attach supporting documents whenwe log (write) a defect. For example, screen shot, requirement document etc.For instance, let us say that instead of “Continue” button on a page, there isa typo “Continuee”. Now, we will make a screen shot of this page (To makescreen shot, press “Print Screen” button on the keyboard, and open a Worddocument, and Click Edit on the Word document and “Past” it. You will see thescreen now) Now, a tester needs to write defects in easy and clear language tomake all the developers to understand easily.

3. Log the Defect: Now, the next step is, we need to log it. Dependingon the company what kind of tools they are using (for example, some companiesuse TestDirector to log defects, some companies use Rational ClearQuest, someuse PVC Tracker and so on). If the company is small and cannot afford theseexpensive tools, then they may simply use Excel sheet to log defects. We logthe defect.

 

38.What are the basic elements you put in a defect?

Answer: Basic elements we put in adefect are: SEVERITY, PRIORITY, CREATED BY, VERSION NO, HEADER, DESCRIPTION OFTHE DEFECT where we write how to recreate a defect, in what module the defectis found, Status, and so on.

 

39.What is the biggest bug you have ever found?

Answer: Well, there are many bigdefects I have found in various projects. For example, in the last project, ona page, there was a button called “More Information”. Once the user clickedthat button, the system would open a new window (pop up).

We could close the new window in 3ways:

-By clicking X at the top rightcorner of the page

-By clicking “Close” button on thepage

-By pressing combination keys(Alt+F4) on the key board

Although the combination key(Alt+F4) was not mentioned in the test case, I just wanted to try how theapplication reacts when Alt+F4 is pressed. Then I pressed Alt+F4. The resultwas a disaster-the application crashed (broke). The application disappearedfrom the computer monitor. Since it was the last day of testing for us, itbrought chaos in our Managers, Leads and the whole teams. Finally, the developersdisabled Alt+F4 as a temporary solution and the application went intoproduction.

 

40.How do you make sure that it is quality software?

Answer: There is a certain processhow the quality of software is guaranteed (ensured). If is defined by the ‘exitcriteria’. (What it means is, a QA Manager writes a document called TestStrategy. This Test Strategy defines the ‘exit criteria’.) Exit Criteria givesthe measurement, for example, in order to confirm the quality, how manycritical defects, high defects, medium defect and low defect are acceptable?These are all defined in the exit criteria. (Normally in practice, for aquality software, there should no critical defects (0 critical), no high defect(0 high), no medium defect (0 medium) and may be 1 low defect)

 

41.As a QA Tester, can you tell me the situation when you felt the most proud ofit?

Answer: When I find the defect thatnormally others don’t find, then I feel very proud. For example, there weresituations where I found bugs that crashed the whole system at the end oftesting phase. I tried the scenarios where the scenarios were NOT mentioned inthe test cases. For example, we can close the windows by clicking X on thepage, with “Close” button and so on. But there is another way that you can closethe window, by pressing Alt+F4 on the keyboard. Not many testers test thisscenario. I have done this in my last two projects. Both the time, theapplication crashed which became a big issue. I felt proud.

 

42.What made you to choose testing career?

Answer: I am a very detailedoriented person and I like process-oriented job. The way QA process works isjust the kind of work I like. For example, analyzing requirement documents,attending walk-through meetings, writing test plans, writing test cases, executingthe test cases (or running the test cases) testing the application, loggingdefects, retesting them and so on. I think I really like the process and that’swhy I chose this career.

 

43.When should testing start in a project? Why?

Answer: We should start testing assoon as the following things are ready:

-Test Data are ready

-Build (all the developers havecoded their code and merged them

together)

-Test Environment (servers, networketc) is set up and ready

-When the manager asks us to goahead and start testing.

 

44.Let us say you have a web application to test. How do you go about testing it?What is the process?

Answer: First of all, I will look atthe requirement documents (or design document in some companies). Therequirement document will tell us what the functionalities in the application(software) are. Once I analyze the requirement documents (one module=onerequirement document). After that, I will write test plans for each module (onemodule =one test plan). Then after the test plan is complete, I will write testcases (One module can have hundreds, even thousands test cases). Once the testcases are ready and the application is ready (or once the build is ready), thenI will start testing. Before I start testing, however, I will make sure thetest environments, test data and defect logging tools are in place. This is howI will go about testing an application.

 

45.What is a “bug?”

Answer: A bug is a bug is an error,flaw, mistake, failure, or fault in a computer code (program) that prevents itfrom behaving as intended (e.g., producing an incorrect result). (You can alsoadd this: When the expected results (accordingly to the requirement documents)don’t match with the actual results (while testing), then it is considered abug)

 

46.How would you ensure that you have covered 100% testing?

Answer: The testing coverage isdefined by exit criteria (There is exit criteria and entry criteria in the TestStrategy). For example, if the exit criteria says “The software will beacceptable to the client only if there are no critical defects, no highdefects, no medium defects and only two low defects”, then all the critical,high, medium should be zero. Only 2 low defects are acceptable. Thus, 100%coverage is measured by the exit criteria. Also, 100% test cases must beexecuted in order to cover 100% of testing.

 

47.What problems did you face in the past? How did you solve it?

(You will be OK if you just give oneof the problems below, not all of them)

Answer: I had many problems whiletesting applications in the past.

As far as I remember one of them(then describe one of them from below), this was the scenario:

(i) It was a web-based application. I was working on a module called“Transaction Summary”. There was “Submit” button on that page. After enteringdata in the all the fields, for example, First Name, Last Name, Social SecurityNumber, Date of Birth and so on, I clicked the Submit button. Once I clickedSubmit button, an error page displayed, “Page cannot be found…”. Since it was acritical defect, I immediately informed the Test Lead. There was a chaos in theroom. All the developers, Database Administrators and Testers gathered in mycube (room). No body could tell exactly what was wrong with it. Finally, onesmart guy checked into the database and found out that one of the files in thedatabase was closed. The status of all the files should be in the open status.Once the status of the closed file was put in the “open” status, theapplication worked fine.

(ii) One of the problems was in the Login window (page). When the userenters and Login Name and Password, then Password should be encrypted. One ofthe Test Cases was that I needed to open database and see whether the passwordis encrypted or not. I found out it was not encrypted. I reported it as a bug(defect) and it was fixed in the next release (build).

(iii) Defects I have found in a project was a defect to close a window (popup). For example, in the last project, on a page, there was a button called“More Information”. Once the user clicked that button, the system would open anew window (pop up).We could close the new window in 3 ways:

-By clicking X at the top rightcorner of the page

-By clicking “Close” button on thepage

-By pressing combination keys(Alt+F4) on the key board

Although the combination key(Alt+F4) was not mentioned in the test case, I just wanted to try how theapplication reacts when Alt+F4 is pressed. Then I pressed Alt+F4. The resultwas a disaster-the application crashed (broke). The application disappearedfrom the computer monitor. Since it was the last day of testing for us, itbrought chaos in our Managers, Leads and the whole teams. Finally, thedevelopers disabled Alt+F4 as a temporary solution and the application wentinto production.

(iv) Another problem was that a user would search for branch locationinformation of a bank. The user logs in by using User Name and Password.After the log in, on the “Search Location” page, the user enters and zip codeof the location he wants to find, then clicks Find button. After that thesystem (application) gives a number of branch locations. The user now clicks“Request Information” for one of the branches. As soon as the user clicks“Request Information” button, the application breaks (displays “Page cannot befound” error). I logged this defect as a critical defect. When the developersand database administrator looked into it, then they found out that in one ofthe tables, the data was not recorded. In all the tables (UserProfile table,ClientID table and SessionID table), the data should be populated with theinformation entered by the user. For some reason, in one of the tables, it wasblank (null). Once they wrote a small code to populate data (enter data) to thetable, the application started working.

(v) In my previous project, when the customer wants to upload a document,for example, a copy of a monthly statement (in Word format), on the website,the system should automatically change the Word document into .pdf format. Oncethe document was uploaded, I saw that the fields in the .pdf document wereinterchanged (misplaced). For example, the First Name displayed in the LastName section. Date of Birth displayed in the Social Security Number field andso on. We found out that the problem was a mapping problem (remember thisword). Once the mapping was correct, I tested in the new build. It was fixed.

(vi) The most common problem that I have faced in my previous projects arethe Java script errors, data connectivity, error, HTTP 500 error (Thiserror occurs when server is down), HTTP 400 error (when file is not found) andso on.

(vii)  “Father”pop up displayed when Print/Print Preview button clicked. (This was codedby the developer to mark this coding portion (for his/her own purpose as a mark to indicate where he/she madechanges, however, forgot to remove it). Once the developer fixed it, it still displayed the same thing (becauseit was in the servers memory and could not go). Now, I had to reset memory of the server from my machine.  Therefore, what I did is, I went to thewebsite I was testing (for example, http://mysite.app.org/My_profile) and addedreset.aspx at the end of the URL (Now the URL becomeshttp://mysite.app.org/My_profile/reset.aspx and hit enter. It took me to theserver memory and I selected section and submitted the query and it wascleared.  Retested again and it is nowOK.

(viii) I was testing a web application. On one page, I clicked Save &Continue button twice (my mistake).  Oncethis button is clicked twice, the system displayed an error message, “Could notsave the answers, please contact technical support”. (When clicked only once,the button works fine.).

Solution:  Once the user clicks the button once, thebutton was disabled later so that the user cannot click twice.

(ix) I was testing a web-based application. Once all the fields areentered on the one of the pages, we had Print Preview button.  If the user clicks this button, we weresupposed see the same information in a new window in PDF format. While lookingat the data in PDF file, there were some fields missing, for example, Date ofBirth was missing in the PDF file.

 

48.Tell me about the worst boss you’ve ever had. (Here, you shouldbe careful not to say any negative words about the past boss. This will give areflection that you cannot work with different nature of people. You should beable to show them that you can cope with any king of boss. Therefore, just takean idea below how the answer should be.)

Answer: I can hardly think of anyManager that was really bad. But when I compare, then I remember of a Test Leadwho was just made a lead from the developers team. She used to feel that shehas been very proud of her position and used to boss around. Some times, sheused to call home and check where I was and what I was doing. Or have Icompleted my job before leaving and so on. I think, whatever she did, was inthe benefit of the company and myself in the long run which would give me moreconfidence in future.

 

49.What do you like about QA?

Answer: The best thing I like aboutQA is, I like the job which is more process oriented. For example, we have towork right from reading the requirement documents, providing feedback to theBusiness Analysts as necessary, writing test plans, test cases, execute thetest cases, interaction with different developers, attend walk-through meetingand so on. I am a very detailed oriented person. When I test applications, Itry to get into the depth of functionality so that I don’t miss out anything.Finally, I love logging defects.

 

50.What are all the basic elements in a defect report?

Answer: The basic elements in adefect report are: Defect ID, Header, Description, Defect Reported by, Date,Status, Version, Assigned to, Approved by, Module where the defect was foundand so on.

 

51.What is the difference between verification and validation?

Verification: Verification is aprocess to ensure that the software that is made, matches the original design.In other words, it checks whether the software is made according to thecriteria and specification described in the requirement document. It is tocheck whether you built the product right as per design. It is a low levelchecking. (It is done in walk-through meetings generally). It checked whetherit is made accordingly to the design..

Validation: Validation is a processto check whether the product design fits the client’s need. It checks whetheryou built the right thing. It checks whether it is designed properly.

 

52.How do you know it is sufficient testing?

Answer: Every company has entry andexit criteria. When we test applications, we refer to exit criteria. When weare about to finish testing, then the QA Team (QA Manager) refers to the exitcriteria (exit criteria tells the level of defect that you can be comfortablewith before it goes to production. For example, there should be ZERO criticaldefect, ZERO high level defect, ZERO medium defect, 1 Low level defect, all thetest cases must be 100% executed etc). Once the exit criteria meet therequirements, then the software is considered to be sufficiently tested.

Every company has entry and exitcriteria. When we test applications, we refer to exit criteria. When we areabout to finish testing, then the QA Team (QA Manager) refers to the exitcriteria (exit criteria tells the level of defect that you can be comfortablewith before it goes to production. For example, there should be ZERO criticaldefect, ZERO high level defect, ZERO medium defect, 1 Low level defect, all thetest cases must be 100% executed etc). Once the exit criteria meet the requirements,then the software is considered to be sufficiently tested.

 

53.How to derive test scenarios and use cases? What are the contents and format?

Answer: Test scenarios are derivedfrom requirement documents. We follow each and every functionality (calledbusiness rules) mentioned in the requirement document. One functionality canhave multiple business rules. For example, let us say in there is onerequirement called “Login”. This “Login” may have various scenarios. Forexample, one scenario is, enter the right User ID and wrong password. Thesystem should display an error message. Another scenario would be to enterwrong User ID and right Password. The system should display an error message.The third scenario could be to enter the right User Name and right Password.The system should allow the user to get into the system. This is how the testcases are derived from the requirement documents or from the Use Cases.

(For contents for formats of testscenario, please refer to question 4 in qaquestions.com)

 

54.What are the types of test cases that you write?

Answer: We write test cases forsmoke testing, integration testing, functional testing, regression testing,load testing, stress testing, system testing and so on.

 

55.How to write Integration test cases?

Answer: I have never writtenseparate Test Cases Integration Testing. Since Integration Testing is a test tocheck whether the all the modules are integrated together or not (meaning thatwhen the developers compile all their module and make a build, all modulesshould be working when they are combined together and those modules whencombined, should work as expected). If they are not integrated (combined) in anice way, then the application breaks. Basically, when we do the functionaltesting, the integration testing is automatically done. This is my experience.

 

56.How to write Regression test cases? What are the criteria?

Answer: Regression test cases arealso based on the requirement documents. They are written more into detail andwith every release (build), the testers need to do regression testing. Thecriteria for regression testing are; there should be no major defects while wedo our smoke test and functional testing.

 

57.Is there a format for a test case? Do you follow any methodology for numberingtest cases?

Answer: Yes. It depends upon thecompany how the company has followed the numbering of test cases. However,normally, it is just a simple numbering in most of the time (see question 4 ofqaquestions.com). But some companies may also relate this numbering to therequirement number. For example, if the requirement for Login is “REQ-LOG-001”,then we can number the test cases like REQ-LOG-001-001 and so on.

 

58.What is Test Harness?

Answer: (Definition fromwww.wikipedia.org) “In software testing, a test harness or automated testframework is a collection of software and test data configured to test aprogram unit by running it under varying conditions and monitor its behaviorand outputs. It has two main parts: the test execution engine and the testscript repository.”

 

59.How to write User Acceptance Test plan & test cases?

Answer: The way of writing Test Planand Test Cases is the same in all the test phases. However, specifically forUser Acceptance Testing, the testers use data nearly real data (meaning thatthe data is very much similar to the production data or real data). For theformat, please refer to question 3 and 4 in qaquestions.com.

 

60.What are the different matrices that you follow?

Answer: There are various reports wenormally prepare in QA:

· Test summary Report – It is areport that has list of the total test cases, list of executed test cases,remaining test case to be executed, executed date, pass/fail

· Defect Report – In this report wenormally prepare a list of defect in spreadsheet e.g. defect # CQ12345 [if youlog a defect in the application called Rational ClearQuest]

· Traceability Matrix [also calledRTM (Requirement Traceability Matrix)] Report – the document which shows therelationship between the functionalities or the business rules and the testcases. So, with the help of Traceability Matrix we make sure that we includesall the functionalities in our test cases according to the requirementdocument.

 

61.Explain Bug Life Cycle.

Answer: I would describe this asbelow:

A Tester finds a defect and logs it.(But before you log it, you must try to recreate it for 3 or 4 times so thatyou are 100% sure that it is a bug)

The defect is now approved ordisapproved by the Test Lead.

(If it is disapproved, then the testlead will come to you ask for more details and you have explain to him why itis a bug)

After the Test Lead approves thebug, it is now assigned to a development Team Lead (or Development Manager).He/she now assigns that bug to the concerned developer. The developer now looksinto the bug and fixes it. Once the fix is ready, there will be another buildready to test. The tester now tests the defect. It the defect is fixed, thenthe tester closes the defect, if not then the test will reopen it and same cyclestarts. See Defect Life Cycle

 

62.What will you do if developer does not accept the bug?

Answer: If the developer does notaccept the defect, then he will reject it. Once it is rejected, then it comesback to the tester. Now, the tester will ask for clarification with thedeveloper why the defect is rejected. Since everything is based on therequirement documents, both tester and developer will have to look at therequirement document, validate it and then reopen it if necessary or close.

 

63.What are the different tests that can be done for Client Server Application andWeb-based Application? Give details.

Answer: For both client server andweb based applications, the testing is the same except one thing: We test webbased applications in different browsers, for example, Internet Explorer (willtest in different versions like IE 5.0, IE 6.0, IE 7.0), Firefox, Safari (forMac) and so on where as for client server, we don’t need to test in thebrowsers.

 

64.What is an inspection?

Answer: An inspection is a formalmeeting, more formalized than a walkthrough and typically consists of 3-10people including a moderator, reader (the author of whatever is being reviewed)and a recorder (to make notes in the document). The subject of the inspectionis typically a document, such as a requirements document or a test plan. Thepurpose of an inspection is to find problems and see what is missing, not tofix anything. The result of the meeting should be documented in a writtenreport. Attendees should prepare for this type of meeting by reading throughthe document, before the meeting starts; most problems are found during thispreparation. Preparation for inspections is difficult, but is one of the mostcost-effective methods of ensuring quality, since bug prevention is more costeffective than bug detection.

 

65.Give me five common problems that occur during software development.

Answer: Poorly written requirements,unrealistic schedules, inadequate testing, adding new features afterdevelopment is underway and poor communication. Requirements are poorly writtenwhen requirements are unclear, incomplete, too general, or not testable;therefore there will be problems. The schedule is unrealistic if too much workis crammed in too little time.

Software testing is inadequate ifnone knows whether or not the software is any good until customers complain orthe system crashes. It’s extremely common that new features are added afterdevelopment is underway.

Miscommunication either means thedevelopers don’t know what is needed, or customers have unrealisticexpectations and therefore problems are guaranteed

 

66.What is the role of documentation in QA?

Answer: Documentation plays acritical role in QA. QA practices should be documented, so that they arerepeatable. Specifications, designs, business rules, inspection reports,configurations, code changes, test plans, test cases, bug reports, user manualsshould all be documented. Ideally, there should be a system for easily findingand obtaining of documents and determining what document will have a particularpiece of information. Use documentation change management, if possible.

 

67.What if the software is so buggy it can’t be tested at all?

Answer: In this situation the bestbet is to have test engineers go through the process of reporting whatever bugsor problems initially show up, with the focus being on critical bugs. Sincethis type of problem can severely affect schedules and indicates deeperproblems in the software development process, such as insufficient unit testing,insufficient integration testing, poor design, improper build or releaseprocedures, managers should be notified and provided with some documentation asevidence of the problem.

 

68.How do you know when to stop testing?

Answer: This can be difficult todetermine. Many modern software applications are so complex and run in such aninterdependent environment, that complete testing can never be done. Commonfactors in deciding when to stop are…

Deadlines, e.g. release deadlines,testing deadlines;

Test cases completed with certainpercentage passed;

Test budget has been depleted;

Coverage of code, functionality, orrequirements reaches a specified point;

Bug rate falls below a certainlevel; or

Beta or alpha testing period ends.

 

69.What if there isn’t enough time for thorough testing?

Answer: Since it’s rarely possibleto test every possible aspect of an application, every possible combination ofevents, every dependency, or everything that could go wrong, risk analysis isappropriate to most software development projects. Use risk analysis todetermine where testing should be focused. This requires judgment skills,common sense and experience. The checklist should include answers to thefollowing questions:

· Which functionality is mostimportant to the project’s intended purpose?

· Which functionality is mostvisible to the user?

· Which functionality has thelargest safety impact?

· Which functionality has thelargest financial impact on users?

· Which aspects of the applicationare most important to the customer?

· Which aspects of the applicationcan be tested early in the development cycle?

· Which parts of the code are mostcomplex and thus most subject to errors?

· Which parts of the applicationwere developed in rush or panic mode?

· Which aspects of similar/relatedprevious projects caused problems?

· Which aspects of similar/relatedprevious projects had large maintenance expenses?

· Which parts of the requirementsand design are unclear or poorly thought out?

· What do the developers think arethe highest-risk aspects of the application?

· What kinds of problems would causethe worst publicity?

· What kinds of problems would causethe most customer service complaints?

· What kinds of tests could easilycover multiple functionalities?

· Which tests will have the besthigh-risk-coverage to time-required ratio?

 

70.What can be done if requirements are changing continuously?

Answer: Work with management earlyon to understand how requirements might change, so that alternate test plansand strategies can be worked out in advance. It is helpful if the application’sinitial design allows for some adaptability, so that later changes do notrequire redoing the application from scratch. Additionally, try to… · Ensurethe code is well commented and well documented; this makes changes easier

for the developers.

· Use rapid prototyping wheneverpossible; this will help customers feel sure of their

requirements and minimize changes.

· In the project’s initial schedule,allow for some extra time to commensurate with

probable changes.

· Move new requirements to a ‘Phase2′ version of an application and use the original

requirements for the ‘Phase 1′version.

· Negotiate to allow only easilyimplemented new requirements into the project; move

more difficult, new requirementsinto future versions of the application.

· Ensure customers and managementunderstand scheduling impacts, inherent risks and

costs of significant requirementschanges. Then let management or the customers

decide if the changes are warranted;after all, that’s their job.

· Balance the effort put intosetting up automated testing with the expected effort

required to redo them to deal withchanges.

· Design some flexibility intoautomated test scripts;

· Focus initial automated testing onapplication aspects that are most likely to remain

unchanged;

· Devote appropriate effort to riskanalysis of changes, in order to minimize regression-

testing needs;

· Design some flexibility into testcases; this is not easily done; the best bet is to minimize the detail in thetest cases, or set up only higher-level generic-type test plans;

· Focus less on detailed test plansand test cases and more on ad-hoc testing with an understanding of the addedrisk this entails.

 

71.What if the application has functionality that wasn’t in the requirements?

Answer: It may take serious effortto determine if an application has significant unexpected or hiddenfunctionality, which it would indicate deeper problems in the softwaredevelopment process. If the functionality isn’t necessary to the purpose of theapplication, it should be removed, as it may have unknown impacts ordependencies that were not taken into account by the designer or the customer.

If not removed, design informationwill be needed to determine added testing needs or regression testing needs.Management should be made aware of any significant added risks as a result ofthe unexpected functionality. If the functionality only affects areas, such asminor improvements in the user interface, it may not be a significant risk.

 

72.How can software QA processes be implemented without stifling productivity?

Answer: Implement QA processesslowly over time. Use consensus to reach agreement on processes and adjust andexperiment as an organization grows and matures. Productivity will be improvedinstead of stifled. Problem prevention will lessen the need for problemdetection. Panics and burnout will decrease and there will be improved focusand less wasted effort. At the same time, attempts should be made to keep processessimple and efficient, minimize paperwork, promote computer-based processes andautomated tracking and reporting, minimize time required in meetings andpromote training as part of the QA process. However, no one, especiallytalented technical types, like bureaucracy and in the short run things may slowdown a bit. A typical scenario would be that more days of planning anddevelopment will be needed, but less time will be required for late-night bugfixing and calming of irate customers.

 

73.What is parallel/audit testing?

Answer: Parallel/audit testing istesting where the user reconciles the output of the new system to the output ofthe current system to verify the new system performs the operations correctly.Let us say, for example, the currently software is in the mainframe systemwhich calculates the interest rate. The company wants to change this mainframesystem to web-based application. While testing the new web based application,we need to verify that the web-based application calculates the same interestrate. This is parallel testing.

 

74.What is system testing?

Answer: System testing is black boxtesting, performed by the Test Team, and at the start of the system testing thecomplete system is configured in a controlled environment. The purpose ofsystem testing is to validate an application’s accuracy and completeness inperforming the functions as designed. System testing simulates real lifescenarios that occur in a “simulated real life” test environment and test allfunctions of the system that are required in real life. System testing isdeemed complete when actual results and expected results are either in line ordifferences are explainable or acceptable, based on client input.

Upon completion of integrationtesting, system testing is started. Before system testing, all unit andintegration test results are reviewed by Software QA to ensure all problemshave been resolved. For a higher level of testing it is important to understandunresolved problems that originate at unit and integration test levels. You CANlearn system testing, with little or no outside help. Get CAN get freeinformation. Click on a link!

 

75.What is end-to-end testing?

Answer: Similar to system testing,the *macro* end of the test scale is testing a complete application in asituation that mimics real world use, such as interacting with a database,using network communication, or interacting with other hardware, application,or system.

 

76.What is security/penetration testing?

Answer: Security/penetration testingis testing how well the system is protected against unauthorized internal orexternal access, or willful damage. This type of testing usually requiressophisticated testing techniques.

 

77.What is recovery/error testing?

Answer: Recovery/error testing istesting how well a system recovers from crashes, hardware failures, or othercatastrophic problems.

 

78.What is compatibility testing?

Answer: Compatibility testing istesting how well software performs in a particular hardware, software,operating system, or network environment.

 

79.What is comparison testing?

Answer: Comparison testing istesting that compares software weaknesses and strengths to those ofcompetitors’ products.

 

80.What is acceptance testing?

Answer: Acceptance testing is blackbox testing that gives the client/customer/project manager the opportunity toverify the system functionality and usability prior to the system beingreleased to production. The acceptance test is the responsibility of theclient/customer or project manager, however, it is conducted with the fullsupport of the project team. The test team also works with theclient/customer/project manager to develop the acceptance criteria.

 

81.What is a Test/QA Team Lead?

Answer: The Test/QA Team Leadcoordinates the testing activity, communicates testing status to management andmanages the test team.

 

82.What is software testing methodology?

Answer: One software testingmethodology is the use a three step process of…

1. Creating a test strategy;

2. Creating a test plan/design; and

3. Executing tests. This methodologycan be used and molded to your organization’s needs. Rob Davis believes thatusing this methodology is important in the development and in ongoingmaintenance of his customers’ applications.

 

83.What is the general testing process?

Answer: The general testing processis the creation of a test strategy (which sometimes includes the creation oftest cases), creation of a test plan/design (which usually includes test casesand test procedures) and the execution of tests.

 

84.How do you create a test strategy?

Answer: The test strategy is aformal description of how a software product will be tested. A test strategy isdeveloped for all levels of testing, as required. The test team analyzes therequirements, writes the test strategy and reviews the plan with the projectteam. The test plan may include test cases, conditions, the test environment, alist of related tasks, pass/fail criteria and risk assessment. Inputs for thisprocess:

· A description of the requiredhardware and software components, including test tools. This information comesfrom the test environment, including test tool data.

· A description of roles andresponsibilities of the resources required for the test and scheduleconstraints. This information comes from man-hours and schedules.

· Testing methodology. This is basedon known standards.

· Functional and technicalrequirements of the application. This information comes from requirements,change request, technical and functional design documents.

· Requirements that the system cannot provide, e.g. system limitations. Outputs for this process:

· An approved and signed off teststrategy document, test plan, including test cases.

· Testing issues requiringresolution. Usually this requires additional negotiation at the projectmanagement level.

 

85.How do you create a test plan/design?

Answer: Test scenarios and/or casesare prepared by reviewing functional requirements of the release and preparinglogical groups of functions that can be further broken into test procedures.Test procedures define test conditions, data to be used for testing andexpected results, including database updates, file outputs, report results.Generally speaking…

Test cases and scenarios aredesigned to represent both typical and unusual situations that may occur in theapplication.

Test engineers define unit testrequirements and unit test cases. Test engineers also execute unit test cases.

It is the test team that, withassistance of developers and clients, develops test cases and scenarios forintegration and system testing.

Test scenarios are executed throughthe use of test procedures or scripts.

Test procedures or scripts define aseries of steps necessary to perform one or more test scenarios.

Test procedures or scripts includethe specific data that will be used for testing the process or transaction.

Test procedures or scripts may covermultiple test scenarios.

Test scripts are mapped back to therequirements and traceability matrices are used to ensure each test is withinscope.

Test data is captured and baselined, prior to testing. This data serves as the foundation for unit and systemtesting and used to exercise system functionality in a controlled environment.

Some output data is also base-linedfor future comparison. Base-lined data is used to support future applicationmaintenance via regression testing.

A pretest meeting is held to assessthe readiness of the application and the environment and data to be tested. Atest readiness document is created to indicate the status of the entrancecriteria of the release.

Inputs for this process:

Approved Test Strategy Document.

Test tools, or automated test tools,if applicable.

Previously developed scripts, ifapplicable.

Test documentation problemsuncovered as a result of testing.

A good understanding of softwarecomplexity and module path coverage, derived from general and detailed designdocuments, e.g. software design document, source code and software complexitydata.

Outputs for this process:

Approved documents of testscenarios, test cases, test conditions and test data.

Reports of software design issues,given to software developers for correction.

 

86.How do you execute tests?

Answer: Execution of tests iscompleted by following the test documents in a methodical manner. As each testprocedure is performed, an entry is recorded in a test execution log to notethe execution of the procedure and whether or not the test procedure uncoveredany defects. Checkpoint meetings are held throughout the execution phase. Checkpointmeetings are held daily, if required, to address and discuss testing issues,status and activities. The output from the execution of test procedures isknown as test results. Test results are evaluated by test engineers todetermine whether the expected results have been obtained. Alldiscrepancies/anomalies are logged and discussed with the software team lead,hardware test lead, programmers, software engineers and documented for furtherinvestigation and resolution. Every company has a different process for loggingand reporting bugs/defects uncovered during testing. A pass/fail criteria isused to determine the severity of a problem, and results are recorded in a testsummary report. The severity of a problem, found during system testing, isdefined in accordance to the customer’s risk assessment and recorded in theirselected tracking tool. Proposed fixes are delivered to the testingenvironment, based on the severity of the problem. Fixes are regression testedand flawless fixes are migrated to a new baseline. Following completion of thetest, members of the test team prepare a summary report. The summary report isreviewed by the Project Manager, Software QA Manager and/or Test Team Lead.

After a particular level of testinghas been certified, it is the responsibility of the Configuration Manager tocoordinate the migration of the release software components to the next testlevel, as documented in the Configuration Management Plan. The software is onlymigrated to the production environment after the Project Manager’s formalacceptance.

 

87.What testing approaches can you tell me about?

Answer: Each of the followingsrepresents a different testing approach:

Black box testing,

White box testing,

Unit testing,

Incremental testing,

Integration testing,

Functional testing,

System testing,

End-to-end testing,

Sanity testing,

Regression testing,

Acceptance testing,

Load testing,

Performance testing,

Usability testing,

Install/uninstall testing,

Recovery testing,

Security testing,

Compatibility testing,

Exploratory testing, ad-hoc testing,

User acceptance testing,

Comparison testing,

Alpha testing,

Beta testing, and

Mutation testing.

 

88.How do you divide the application into different sections to create scripts?

Answer:  First of all, the application is divided indifferent parts when a business analyst writes the requirement document (or UseCases or Design Document), he/she writes EACH requirement document for EACHmodule.  Let us say, if there are 12different modules in an application that a business analyst has written therequirements for, then a tester would write the test cases for each module,which means in 12 different sections. This is the standard practice. There might be scenarios where you might have to break down scripts intosub-categories.  For example, if a testeris writing a script for Login Page, he/she might write one for positive andnegative testing and another sub-set of test cases would be for error messagewhen the wrong information is entered. In short, the test cases are divided according to the modules.

(The following questions were askedto Padma in one of her interviews very recently)

 

89. What is your goal?

(This question is asked to check howambitious you are as far as your career is concerned, whether you like the jobyou are doing and so on.  Therefore, nomatter what, you should stick to your QA job at this point and say that youlove this so much and your goal is some thing similar to the one below)

Answer:  My goal is to be QA Lead (or QA Manager) innear future.

 

90. Whatare you expecting from our company?

Answer:  My expectation from you company would be Iwill have more challenges and new things to learn and whatever the skills Ihave to contribute, hopefully, I will be able to contribute if they are in anyway helpful to enhance productivity of the company.

 

91. Whatdid you learn from your previous companies?

Answer:  I learned a lot from the previous companieswherever I have worked.  Wherever I haveworked, I found out the there is always something to learn.  Different companies have different ways ofworking.  The environment and technologyalways differ from one company to another company.  I have never found one company’s environmentmatching with another company.  Forexample, if one company is using documents called requirement documents, thenthe other company might be using Use Cases and some companies might be usingDesign Document and so on.  Therefore, inmy experience, there are always new things to learn in every company and we canalways contribute these thing in the next company if they help to be moreproductive.

 

92. Whatdo you want to be in next 2 years?

Answer: I want to be QA Lead inanother two years.

WhyQA Lead? Why not something else?

Answer:  QA is the only thing I love doing it.  I love this job and want to progress in thissector.  I want to know how to manage QAprocess, how to handle different jobs and so on.  Since the next step is the QA Lead, thatwould preferably be one I will targeting for.

 

93.Why do you want to work for this company?

Answer: (This is a trickyquestion.  They want to know what reallyinterests you and you have to be careful when you answer this question.  You must admire the line of that company.  For example, if you are being interviewed bya pharmaceutical company, then tell them that you are always interested in themedical applications and the better part of your company is that it hasexciting products that I am really curious to learn.  That’s why I would feel really great if I amgiven the opportunity to work in your company)

 

94. Didyou get any compliments from your previous employers?  What were those situations?

Answer:  Yes. I did. There were many occasions where I had compliments.  For example, I was testing an applicationgoing a little bit off my test cases. After I finished executing my test cases,I always think in a way what a real user would possibly click in various partsof the application. So I was just clicking back and forth and at one specificscenario, the application simply broke and displayed an error message.  That scenario was not in the test cases. Themanager really appreciated me and thanked for finding this kind of criticaldefect.

 

95. Whatare your strengths?

Answer: I am a very detailedoriented person. I have the sense of urgency. I can prioritize my job accordingto the deadline. I am very much dedicated towards my job. I am honest. I havethe skills and expertise in QA process. These are some of my strengths.

 

96. Whatis your weakness?

Answer: I think my weakness is thatwhenever I am given some responsibilities and there is a deadline for it, Iwork day and night, 7 days a week. This is probably bad for my family life, butI can’t sleep unless I am done with my assignments.

(Note: You should think of yourweakness where because of your weakness (like the one above), still theemployer benefits. DON’T SAY anything negative thing, like “I cannot work longhours, it is hard for me pick up things, it is difficult for me to understandrequirement documents etc)

 

97. Whatis your salary requirement?

$70k (negotiable), or ($35 per hour)

 

98. Pleaseprovide information (an example) of your experience testing Linux and UNIXenvironments (including type of system tested, how tested, actualcommands and steps used for test) Testing applications using Linux and UNIX.

Answer: I have tested applicationsusing UNIX. For every backend testing I have done in the past, I have used UNIXplatform while performing backend testing. For example, when the data is fedinto the system in the front end, that data goes to the database after thebatch processing. From the database, the data is now sent to the ETL system (inXML format) for data manipulation as per our need (ETL is a software tool of AbInitio company which is used to manipulate data in the data warehouse). In theETL system, we manipulate those data according to our need), for example, itcould be income statement of the company, balance sheet, monthly reports, andso on. In order to produce income statement, we need to run a job in ETL. To runthis job, we use UNIX. In the same way, different types of jobs are created foreach need (creating balance sheet is another job, creating reports is next jobetc) then I had to run different jobs in the ETL system. Once we run the job,the running job finally creates an output file which is now validated by ustester. This output file can be in text format or GUI format. Thus, this is thescenario where I had to use UNIX. (I have used Linux much, however, since UNIXand Linux are the same thing, I should have no problem in using Linux)

 

Some of the commands I used whiletesting using UNIX are;

Ls –l ———>to check the file list

Pwd———-> to see which directory Iam in

Cd ———–>change the directory

Cd .. ———>change the directoryone level up

Mkdir ———>make a directory

Rmdir ———>Delete the directory

setenv name v ——>Set environment

kill% ——–>Kill the running job

vi ———>editor Used to writescripts

more——-> to see the contents pageby page

cat —–>list contents of the file

chmod ——–>change permission

cp ——–>copy

rm —–>delete a file

 

99. Howdo you do risk assessment? (This question was asked to Mona in her interview)

Answer:  (This is what Mona answered):  The risks by understanding the infrastructureof the application, hard drive and system capabilities etc. Also added “Riskand Mitigation Strategy” column within the test plan. The major risk for thecompany was system getting crashed upon receiving several hits by the users .Company did not set any metrics at the development phase as to what it canhandle. I told him that i noted mitigation strategy to deal with each knownrisk within the test plan.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE QUESTIONS…………

 

Whatis SQL and how is it used?

The following are the some of thethings that a tester has to know (but may not be asked in the interview)What isa cookie?  (You must know how to cleancookies)

A small text file of informationthat certain Web sites attach to a user’s hard drive while the user is browsingthe Web site. A Cookie can contain information such as user ID, user preferences,archive shopping cart information, etc. Cookies can contain PersonallyIdentifiable Information.

Doesa tester have to know about cookie?

Yes. A tester has to know HOW TO CLEAN cookies (Does not have to know the definition).

Whydo we need to clean cookies?

A tester can clean cookies byopening Internet Explorer browser and Firefox browser (whatever you areusing).  We need to clean cookiesBECAUSE:

When we get a new build (what is abuild?  See qaquestions.com), we mustclean cookies.  (Remember, once thedevelopers fix the defects, the configuration team makes a build and thisprocess continues until the product (application) is ready to handover to thecustomer).  If we don’t clean cookies,then there is a possibility that we may get the same error which was alreadyfixed by the developer.  Why?  Because the error is sitting in your computerhard drive and the computer feels easy to get the same information from thehard drive rather than going to the server and pulling new thing for the samething.  For example, let us say, when youwere testing a page, there was a button called “OK”.  The client decided that “OK” is NOT the rightbutton here, therefore, that button name was changed from “OK” to“Continue”.  Accordingly, you wrote adefect saying that “OK” button should be changed to “Continue” button.  Now, this defect is fixed (the developerchanged the “OK” button to “Continue”). Now, you started testing, there is apossibility that you might see “OK” button again.  Why? Because you DID NOT clean your cookies.

Therefore, you must clean yourcookies before you starting testing a new build.

Howto clean cookies?

Cookies are cleaned in the browserslike IE (Internet Explorer), Firefox, Safari (for MAC and windows both),Netscape and so on. 

However, the mostly used (90%)browser is IE (Internet Explorer)

Here is how you clean cookies in IE(Internet Explorer):

1. Open IE (Internet Explorer)

2. On the menu, click Tools–>Internet Options–>Click Delete button(It is in General Tab), (You will see different buttons now, for example,Delete Files, Delete Cookies, Delete History, Delete Forms, Delete Passwords, DeleteAll).

3. Click Delete All button.

Now the cookies are cleaned in IE.

 

Here is how you can clean cookies inFire Fox:

1. Open Firefox Brower.

2. Click Tools.

3. Click Error Console.

4. Click Clear.

Now the cookies are cleaned inFirefox.

Whatare different types of protocols?

-Generally, a Tester does NOTnecessarily have to know different types of protocols.  This is Network Engineers job.  However, if you want to know more for yourknowledge, you can visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_network_protocols.

Whatis Web Architecture?

-A tester does not necessarily haveto know this unless you are a very Senior Tester testing networks and doingsome kind of development. However, if you want to know more about it, pleasevisit: http://www.objs.com/survey/WebArch.htm

Doesa Tester need SQL?

Answer: Yes.  For a Tester, SQL is needed.  I had the same question in mind before I cameto the actual implication-what is SQL used for? And now, I know that when we do the backend testing (see qaquestions.comfor details), we need to write SQL queries to retrieve the data from thedatabase and compare this data to the one with reports or output.  Another scenario is, if something goes wrongin the application, for example, if there is an error, then we might have towrite SQL queries to retrieve the data from the database and check what wentwrong.  Let’s say, we need to check inthe Error Log table what went wrong.  Tocheck this, we open the database, go to Error Log table and find out thathappened.  In the Error Log table, thereare many records, so which one is your error then?  To find out which one is yours, we need towrite SQL queries. Example, you logged in to the application with UserID=devin99 and password=sn992jj.  Now, toretrieve your record, you can write a query some thing like this:  select * from Error Log where userID=devin99;This query will retriev your record only so that you can see what happened.

Whatis a ‘Show Stopper’?

A show stopper is a defect or bugthat stops the user for further action (testing).  It has no work around.  In other words, it stops every thing and theuser cannot go any further.  This iscalled show stopper in software industry language.  (This is not an interview questions, but youhave to know this terminology)

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1) What helps to make good testcase?

2) What are the things to wrongusually during the testing?

3) What language is LoadRunnerscript based on? C

4) What did you use for metrics?

5) What results do you get afterrunning the load test?

6) What did you do by using QTP?

7) What are the environments you canuse QTP?

8) What is the percentage of themanual and automated testing usually?

9) Whom do you discuss more aboutthe problems/issues you get?

10) As QA analyst tell me about 2 ofyour collogues strengths and weakness?