Mark Last

Senior Academic

Test case generation and reduction by automated input-output analysis

Prachi Saraph, Mark Last, Abraham Kandell

In the software testing process, selecting the test cases and verifying their results requires a lot of subjective decisions and human intervention. For a program having a large number of inputs, the number of corresponding combinatorial black-box test cases is huge. A method needs to be established in order to limit the number of test cases and to choose the most important ones. In this research effort we present a novel methodology for identifying important test cases automatically. These test cases involve input attributes which contribute to the value of an output and hence are significant. The reduction in the number of test cases is attributed to identifying input-output relationships. A ranked list of features and equivalence classes for input attributes of a given code are the main outcomes of this methodology. Reducing the number of test cases results directly in the saving of software testing resources.

Publication language English
Pages 768-773
Journal Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Systems, Man and Cybernetics
Volume 1
Publication status Published - 01.01.2003

Keywords

Artificial neural networks
Feature ranking
Input-output analysis
Rule-extraction
Software testing
Test cases

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Control and Systems Engineering
Hardware and Architecture
Other files and links
Link to publication in Scopus