Section 1: Basic Software Testing Concepts
1. What is Software Testing?
Software Testing is the process of evaluating a software application to ensure it meets specified requirements and is free from defects.
2. What is the main goal of testing?
To identify defects, ensure product quality, and verify that software performs as expected.
3. What is the difference between Verification and Validation?
- Verification: Ensures the product is built correctly (reviewing design, documents).
- Validation: Ensures the right product is built (actual testing).
4. What is SDLC?
SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle) defines the process of developing software, including stages like Requirement Analysis, Design, Development, Testing, Deployment, and Maintenance.
5. What is STLC?
STLC (Software Testing Life Cycle) defines testing phases: Requirement Analysis → Test Planning → Test Case Design → Environment Setup → Test Execution → Test Closure.
Section 2: Testing Types and Levels
6. What are the different levels of testing?
- Unit Testing
- Integration Testing
- System Testing
- Acceptance Testing
7. What are the main types of testing?
- Functional Testing
- Non-functional Testing
- Regression Testing
- Smoke/Sanity Testing
- Performance Testing
8. What is Black Box Testing?
Testing the functionality of the software without knowing the internal code structure.
9. What is White Box Testing?
Testing the internal logic, code, and structure of the program.
10. What is Grey Box Testing?
A combination of both black box and white box testing techniques.
Section 3: Test Case Design & Execution
11. What is a Test Case?
A test case is a document that describes the input, action, and expected output to verify a specific functionality.
12. What are Test Scenarios?
Test scenarios are high-level test conditions that represent what to test.
13. What is a Test Plan?
A test plan outlines the scope, objectives, approach, resources, and schedule for testing activities.
14. What is Test Data?
Input data used to execute test cases.
15. What is Test Execution?
The process of executing test cases and comparing actual results with expected results.
Section 4: Defect Management
16. What is a Defect or Bug?
A defect is a deviation between the expected result and the actual result in the software.
17. What are the stages of a defect life cycle?
New → Assigned → Open → Fixed → Retested → Closed (or Reopened if issue persists).
18. What is Severity and Priority?
- Severity: Impact of a defect on the system.
- Priority: Order in which a defect should be fixed.
19. Give examples of Severity and Priority combinations.
- High Severity, High Priority – Login not working
- High Severity, Low Priority – Rare crash
- Low Severity, High Priority – Minor typo on home page
20. What tools are used for defect tracking?
JIRA, Bugzilla, Mantis, Redmine, HP ALM.
Section 5: Manual Testing
21. What is Smoke Testing?
A quick test to ensure the basic functionalities of an application work.
22. What is Sanity Testing?
A subset of regression testing performed after receiving a software build to verify specific functionality.
23. What is Regression Testing?
Testing existing functionalities to ensure new changes haven’t introduced defects.
24. What is Exploratory Testing?
Simultaneous learning, test design, and test execution without predefined test cases.
25. What is Ad-hoc Testing?
Unplanned testing performed without documentation or formal structure.
Section 6: Automation Testing
26. What is Automation Testing?
The use of specialized tools to execute tests automatically, compare results, and report outcomes.
27. Name some popular automation testing tools.
Selenium, QTP/UFT, Cypress, Appium, JMeter, TestNG.
28. What are the advantages of automation testing?
- Saves time and cost
- Improves accuracy
- Enables reusability of scripts
- Supports continuous testing
29. What are the disadvantages of automation testing?
- High initial setup cost
- Requires skilled testers
- Not suitable for exploratory testing
30. What is Selenium?
Selenium is an open-source automation tool used to test web applications across different browsers and platforms.
Section 7: Performance & Security Testing
31. What is Performance Testing?
Testing to check how a system performs under load or stress.
32. Types of Performance Testing:
- Load Testing
- Stress Testing
- Scalability Testing
- Endurance Testing
33. What is Security Testing?
Ensures that software protects data and maintains functionality as intended.
34. Name a few security testing tools.
Burp Suite, OWASP ZAP, Acunetix, Nessus.
35. What is Usability Testing?
Testing how user-friendly and intuitive the software interface is.
Section 8: Agile & DevOps Testing
36. What is Agile Testing?
Testing that follows Agile methodology, involving continuous testing and collaboration throughout development.
37. What is Scrum in Agile?
A framework within Agile where work is divided into sprints, with regular meetings and reviews.
38. What is Continuous Integration (CI)?
Frequent code integration and testing in a shared repository to detect issues early.
39. What tools support CI/CD?
Jenkins, GitLab CI, Bamboo, Azure DevOps.
40. What is Test-Driven Development (TDD)?
Writing test cases before writing the code itself to ensure each function is tested.
Section 9: Real-Time Testing Scenarios
41. What will you do if you find a bug during a demo?
Calmly acknowledge the issue, log the defect, analyze its cause, and provide a workaround if possible.
42. How do you prioritize test cases?
Based on business impact, user frequency, and critical functionality.
43. What is a Traceability Matrix (RTM)?
A document linking requirements to corresponding test cases to ensure coverage.
44. What are Entry and Exit Criteria?
- Entry Criteria: Conditions that must be met before testing starts.
- Exit Criteria: Conditions that must be met before testing is concluded.
45. What is End-to-End Testing?
Testing the complete workflow of an application from start to finish.
Section 10: Advanced & Conceptual Questions
46. What is API Testing?
Testing the functionality, reliability, and security of application programming interfaces (APIs).
47. What is the difference between Functional and Non-Functional Testing?
- Functional Testing: Verifies what the system does.
- Non-Functional Testing: Verifies how well it performs (speed, usability, security).
48. What is Configuration Testing?
Testing the application on different combinations of hardware, OS, browsers, etc.
49. What are Test Metrics?
Measurements that help track testing progress — e.g., Defect Density, Test Coverage, Pass/Fail Rate.
50. What qualities make a good Software Tester?
- Attention to detail
- Analytical thinking
- Curiosity and patience
- Communication skills
- Understanding of SDLC/STLC
