There are typically five steps in an application’s lifecycle—writing requirements, establishing broad design components, building/developing the application, testing/stabilizing the app, and deploying. Unfortunately, they’re all targeted by a new software problem that developers must deal with.
It becomes increasingly difficult to maintain the app’s current functioning. Ensuring that the automated software testing goes well can be a challenge if you’re always fixing yet another issue and implementing a new feature as the development process moves through each of its five phases.
What Are Software Bugs?
Software bugs are flaws or faults in the conception, creation, or use of computer software. They often result in inaccurate or unexpected outcomes or lead it to act in ways that are not intended.
Program bugs may result in crashes, incorrect output, or unexpected functions. They’re almost like mini outages for businesses where the costs keep adding up.
Common Software Bugs
Here are some of the most typical bugs found in software.
Logic Errors
This is the most common type of error many software testing services face. This error entails that the program runs correctly, but it doesn’t produce the right output.
The flaw is typically in the underlying algorithm and the logic on which your software is based. The only way to solve it is by changing the software algorithm entirely.
Syntax Errors
Each computer language, including C, Java, Perl, and Python, has a unique syntax. A syntax mistake happens each time a programmer disregards the “grammar” of the computer language requirements. Fortunately, you can easily eliminate this error during the compilation stage.
Compilation Errors
Compilation is the process of transforming a high-level language-written program into a machine-readable format. At this point, many other issues, including syntax errors, can appear.
A compilation mistake can happen even though the syntax in your application’s source code is perfect. This can frequently be caused by an issue with the compiler.
Runtime Errors
You can fix these types of errors by going back to the coding stage and refining it.
Resource Errors
Another common error that automated software testing faces is resource error. This entails that a variable’s value overflows the maximum allowed value.
Examples include:
- Stack overflows
- Buffer overflows
- Access violations
- Using uninitialized variables
Communication Errors
This error is a result of a mismatch between the software and hardware. It may also be a result of a mismatch with your application interface. Interface errors are common when web protocols are misused.
While understanding these bug categories is important, it isn’t enough to protect your software quality control and testing services from defects. What are the root causes of these bugs?
For one, they occur when the following happens at the same time:
- Knowing the expected result
- Knowing the actual result
- Finding out that the two results are different from each other
It’s important to note that not all bugs will result in software failures. Some simply remain unnoticed.
Why Do Software Defects/Bugs Occur?
Software bugs can occur due to the following reasons:
- Lack of communication in the team
- The software’s complexity
- A code that isn’t properly documented
- Software development tools
Software bugs can also occur due to the rapidly changing requirements of a project. Let’s consider this, for example. You’re working for an e-commerce website.
The requirement at the beginning was for product search to be based on its name. However, later on, you learn that the search will also be based on the product code. This may result in insufficient or improper testing and bugs leaking into the production environment.
How Does Bug Testing Help?
Automated software testing helps you detect and fix a number of defects in a timely manner. It improves your product quality and reduces risks simultaneously.
It also examines the user’s interaction with the software and highlights circumstances in which a user may make a mistake or misinterpret the program output. Furthermore, testing aids in determining the system’s vulnerability to harmful operations.
Here are some more reasons why bug testing is important.
- The software development process is not possible without the product’s quality control.
- This process is just as important as the development process.
- Software testing is imperative for assessing the software solution’s quality.
How Can You Avoid Software Bugs?
Avoiding software bugs completely isn’t possible. However, there are ways to minimize the number of bugs.
Carefully plan and design the software: A well-built software architecture helps reduce the likelihood of errors. It is critical to ensure that each software function is well-defined and serves a clear purpose. Also, try to keep the code as simple and legible as possible.
Use automated software testing tools: Automated testing tools can catch bugs before they become major issues. Implementing unit tests, integration tests, and functional tests can help to detect bugs early on in the developmental process.
Code reviews: Peer code reviews can help uncover potential issues and improve overall code quality. Having numerous people check the code can help discover errors that a single developer would overlook.
Use debugging tools: Debugging tools can help you detect faults and errors in the code. Many programming languages and integrated development environments (IDEs) include debugging tools that you can use to go through your code and find errors.
Don’t stop testing: Throughout the development stage, testing should be a continual process. Continuous testing and refinement of software can aid in the detection of flaws and the general code quality.
Stay simple with your code: Understand that complicated codes will have more bugs. They will also be harder to test. A code needs to be simple and precise. It should only perform what it needs to.
Avoid large codes at all costs. Your code should be simple to read and understand by software testing services. This will result in fewer errors and fewer resources spent on correcting them. Avoid wasting time building sophisticated code that isn’t asked for.
Through these strategies, developers can reduce the number of bugs, if not avoid them completely. They can also detect some faults earlier on in the development stage.
All in all, fixing these bugs can be costly. In some cases, these bugs can also lead to legal costs in the form of lawsuits. This could happen in case a bug has caused a serious data breach in an organization.
Do Not Rush: If your organization is under a lot of pressure to deploy code by a given date, you’re more likely to make mistakes. Cutting corners and hurrying for a release may exacerbate software and company issues.
Spend your time ensuring that the best principles are followed, and you will prevent costly, time-consuming complications later on. Don’t let a shortage of resources affect your work.
How to Avoid Bugs Through Behavior-Driven Development
BDD encourages team members to use a Domain Specific Language (DSL) to communicate. The adoption of DSL helps to reduce misinformation among stakeholders.
When using BDD, tests can be written in a simple text language like English, allowing everyone on the team to contribute to the creation of tests without needing to learn code syntax.
The ease with which test cases are developed and reviewed may go a long way toward reducing challenges caused by communication gaps within and across organizations.
How to Avoid Bugs Through Test-Driven Development
TDD encourages creating failed tests for a feature/product prior to development. The test cases tend to pass as the feature/development product progresses, confirming the behavior of the intended product.
The chance of an unverified feature/product reaching its end-users is significantly reduced if automated software testing is done prior to the product. TDD is an effective method for avoiding problems caused by insufficient testing.
When you’re looking for bugs in software, carefully consider the following:
- Symptom
- Description
- Cause-and-Effect Relationship
Between the original code problem and the eventual failure that generates the symptom, there could be one or more cause-and-effect phases. This is the program’s primary weakness. It is the first trigger in the chain of events.
Final Words
There are many reasons that contribute to the growing complexity of software development projects. Furthermore, the people involved in the project have a significant impact on the project’s level of complexity. This doesn’t mean there are complications simply because of the number of people. But it’s often due to their diverse professional backgrounds.
Team member migration across projects may result in a loss of knowledge and competencies, causing the project to change. A larger code base is more challenging to manage since some people may not be fully aware of all components of the program. Nonetheless, it becomes increasingly difficult to manage the project as its complexity increases.
At Vates, we use our automated software testing tools to test every element of the software you’re using. From performance and functioning to security and usability, we determine all aspects of your software so you don’t have to. Our team understands how a minor error can lead to a major bug. And so our experts are also equipped with the right tools to avoid such instances. Contact our team now for more information.
