When the software system gives an output that deviates from the specifies requirements or varies from the expected behavior, a defect or a bug is presumed to be in the system causing abnormal behavior. Or more specifically, when the execution of test cases by the quality assurance team produces results that are different from the expected outcomes, this disparity is termed as a defect. Any error or flaw that causes incorrect behavior, ranging from performance and usability glitches to customer complaints are categorized as defects. Despite the efforts of the development and the quality assurance teams, defects are a natural and inevitable part of the software development lifecycle. As the size of the projects increase and the scope becomes more complicated, the management of defects even more challenging, and the cost of fixing them increases noticeably. Therefore, the adoption of proficient defect management tools facilitates the company in attaining its fundamental aim of creating software application in compliance with quality standards and also contributes significantly towards continuous improvement of software processes.
Defect Management and Quality Assurance
The old English proverb, ‘A stitch in time saves nine’ accurately depicts the lifecycle of defects in the software development process. A defect which initially existed in the requirements or specifications but was not identified and resolved then snowballs into a more expensive and complex issue once it moves to the production and development stage. Furthermore, the cost of finding and fixing that defect also rises with the progression of every stage. Thus, the defect management tools are critically important for companies to not only reduce the testing efforts and costs but also enhance the overall development process. With the right defect management tool, the development and quality assurance teams are able to stimulate test coverage and even take effective measures for defect prevention in the future.
Uses of Defect Management for DevOps and Agile Organizations
The most important aspects of a defect management system that distinguishes from other tools and mechanisms include reporting abilities, email notifications, usability, dashboard visualization, ticket statuses, and accessibility. They can be used to track and organize all defects in the system and usually have a plug-in system that allows more room for personalization and enables the users to extend the tool so that it is much more suited to their needs. With additional features like filtering and detailed visualizations like charts, the users have access to advanced search options and comprehensive shared reports to track the progress of defects. The simplicity and flexibility of these tools make it easier for the teams to manage defects from different platforms (PC and mobile devices) which in turn makes them perfect for agile driven organizations. Defect management tools also have the flexibility for users to create custom fields, custom workflows along with the facilitation of notification about issue updates, and role-based access to the defects. Users are also able to monitor and track their backlogs, prioritize tasks and schedule them according to the severity and impact of bugs.
Enterprises, on a regular basis, receive large amounts of defect information during the data collection stage which makes the data mining and classification a challenging process. Owing to this, the data reports often reflect false data or erroneous entries. However, one of the main components of the defect management system including the cleaning of the defect list and reports as well. The defect management system automatically eliminates any false positives which are caused by loopholes or abnormalities in test cases, test environment, test code, or even test execution process. It also removes any duplicate cases or entries which generates false outputs as the results often look like there are various unrelated issues, when in fact there is only one. At the same time, defect management also ensures that scrubbing the defect report and list does not daunt the testers from the diligent process of defect reporting.
The extended use of defect management enables the development and quality assurance teams to detect the defect patterns and trends based on the software metrics and past data. These defect patterns make it easier for the managers to predict defect prone and most susceptible areas in the system to reduce the invested time and the testing efforts as well. This tool proves to be especially useful for project managers as it takes into account the associated risks, severity, process implications, and the detailed steps before assigning it to team members and allocating resources. The shared knowledge ascertains that everyone in the team is on the same page about the defects.
