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Manual Functional Testing process for KFS at Cornell University

Author: Tony Lombardo
Created on: 08/05/2010
Last Modified on: 08/06/2010

Contents

I am a tester, how do I go about testing KFS?

These are the main things you need to know to test (well, almost!). Your Testing Coordinator or QA Lead may have additional instructions for you and as things change during QA. You may also see instructions that modify or change what is state here on our email list service. (For additional information on the Roles and Responsibilities of our QA Team members please see: KC QA Team Roles and Responsibilities).

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• Please "rinse and repeat" as often as your committed testing time allows!

What is Jira?

Jira is an issue management tool designed principally for software projects. It is built an sold by Atlassian. The Kuali software projects use Jira for managing bugs, tasks and project issues. Each software project may have one or more Jira projects or spaces to manage their issues. To access a list of the the Kuali Jira home page and a list of all Kuali's Jira projects click here: https://test.kuali.org/jira/secure/BrowseProjects.jspa.

updated: KHensley, 2010-03-05 Fri

Where should I go to test KFS?

Each release has has its own server with a copy of the application. Please check with your Testing Coordinator or one of the QA Leads to make sure you are using the correct environment for your release. Occasionally during a project, the environment we are using to test may change. We will let you know via email and in the News and Announcements section of your release page.

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How to Login? Unless otherwise instructed by your QA Lead or the test script your are using, login as quickstart (there is no password)

How and where do I record any bugs that I find?

The Kuali projects use an issue tracking tool called Jira. People working on the project will also refer refer to these issues as "Jiras." If someone says to you, "Could you please create a Jira for that?" they mean please record the issue using, our web-based, issue tracking software of the same name. Each of the Kuali software projects has serveral Jira projects to keep the bugs and issues organized. The one where we enter bugs for Kuali Coeus is known as the QA Feedback project. It's shorthand name is KRAFDBCK. Each issue in a Jira project is given a unique ID which consists of the short name and a number as in KRAFDBCK-199. If you have that number you can always find your bugs by entering them in the Jira search box at the top right of the screen. Here is s a link to the Jira, "KRA QA Feedback Feedback" project (note the project still uses acronym of KC's old name: "KRA" for "Kuali Research Administration").

A bug stopped me from testing, should I set it to Blocker priority?

• Well of course, it all depends. It is natural to think that if you cannot proceed with testing that you are "blocked" and that this means the priority is Blocker. However, what is a priority in one context is not in another. In the case of "Blocker" we think big - in terms of the application or an entire Module as a whole.
• In KC we we use Blockers for really serious issues with a big impact to testing or the application. If you are asked to test the Sponsor Lookup and you click on the icon and nothing happens, you may well consider yourself blocked. But in terms of the Application and Module, it turns out it is not so severe because you find you can enter the sponsor if you know the ID and you can find the ID in the maintenance document. It maybe critical, but certainly not a blocker.
• Also, please note that setting Blocker priority sends emails to the DMs, QA Manager and QA Leads and everyone "hops to it" with the old Adrenaline rush.

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• An important module, Proposal or Budget say, in the application is rendered unusable or unavailable. For instance, you cannot search for or open existing Proposals or you cannot create new ones.
• There are seriously lost or corrupted data, such as situations where you cannot save a proposal or budget or data is transmitted to a grants.gov form that would have serious consequences or prevents submission.
• The issue is affecting all users and not just a single or small group of users.
• The application as whole is completely down and is preventing anything from being tested.

What is the backdoor login and when should I use it? (edit)

• The back door login is a feature that allows you to login as a new person without first logging out
• Testing while logged in using the backdoor feature is definitely not recommended - especially for permissions. Testing this way cannot be considered conclusive and bugs will be sent back to you for retesting
• Please open a new instance of your browser and login with the user that has the permissions you are trying to test.
  7.
  I got an exception error/stack trace, can I just insert a screenshot of an exception error in my bug report? (edit)
• Please include both the text as well as a screenshot of the entire screen (press Alt-PrtScn).
• The disadvantage of screenshots is that they are not searchable and this makes it hard to find them. Screenshots, on the other hand, may convey some information to the developer that the exception will not.
• To include the text, copy the big chunk of error text on your screen and paste it at the end of the step-by-step instructions you provided for creating the bug.
• Here is a sample of what exception errors look like: KC Exception Error Sample.

What's the quickest way to enter a new bug?

The following link will save you some clicks two and directly open a blank bug report screen for the QA Feedback project in Jira: Create Bug Report
Fill in all the fields according to these instructions: KC QA Reporting Issues in JIRA - KRAFDBCK

Please remember, that other than this, there are no shortcuts to entering a quality bug report! Please see I am a tester, what do I need to do to test KC?

What should I do with all of the jira@kuali.org email messages I receive? (edit)

The JIRA bug tracking system will send automatic email messages to the Reporters and Assignees of any JIRA issues, so when you create a new issue you will receive email updates any time that JIRA is modified. The QA process itself updates the status of a JIRA several times as the issue moves through the system, so you can expect to receive several email messages from jira@kuali.org for that issue alone. You might create a rule to filter and move these messages to a different folder so your Inbox doesn't get cluttered. It's important to at least read the most recent email message received for each JIRA, as it will often have comments or questions from the QA team or Developers for the Reporters (testers).

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