Combinations of Input and Preconditions

Combinations of Input and preconditions indicate that the number of defects in a software product can be very large. Moreover, defects that occur rarely are difficult to find in testing. In this section, we will learn about exhaustive testing along with why is it impractical and impossible.

What is Exhaustive Testing?

Exhaustive testing also read as complete testing occurs, when all the testers in your team are worn-out. Moreover, it is a quality assurance testing technique in which all data is put to the test. However, testing everything (all combinations of inputs and preconditions) is not possible except for minor cases.

Why Exhaustive Testing Is Impractical and Impossible

It is not possible to conduct complete testing or exhaustive testing. Consequently, for most systems, it is impossible because of the following reasons:

• Firstly, the domain of possible inputs of a program is too large to be completely used in testing a system.
• Secondly, there may be timing constraints on the inputs. That is to say, an input may be valid at a certain time and invalid at other times.
• Thirdly, design issues may be a fusion to completely test. For instance, a programmer may use a global variable or a static variable to control program execution.
• Above all, it’s not feasible to create all possible execution environments of the system. Further, this becomes more essential when the behavior of the software system depends on the real and outside world.

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