QuickTest Professional

Introduction

Purpose 

The tutorial is for all users of Mercury QuickTest Professional. The information presented here will
enable you to begin utilizing interface commands, accessing menu functions, and preparing for
testing.

Time

20 minutes

Objectives

After completing this tutorial you will be able to:

 Explain the benefits of automated testing.

 Optimize your browser settings for QuickTest Professional.
 Identify the seven main phases of the QuickTest process.

 Navigate effectively using the QuickTest windows, menus, and icons.

Benefits of Automated Testing

If you have ever tested applications or Web sites manually, you are aware of the
drawbacks. Manual testing is time-consuming and tedious, requiring a heavy investment
in human resources. Time constraints often make it impossible to manually test every
feature thoroughly before the application is released. Serious bugs may have gone
undetected. Automated testing with QuickTest Professional addresses these problems by:

 Dramatically speeding up the testing process.

 Facilitating the creation of tests that check all aspects of an application or web site.
 Providing reusability for running these tests every time the site or application changes.

As QuickTest runs tests, it simulates a human user by moving the mouse cursor in
a Web page or application window, clicking Graphical User Interface (GUI) objects,
and entering keyboard input; however, QuickTest does this faster than any human user.

Optimizing Browser Settings

If you are using Internet Explorer as your browser, you should clear the option to use auto
complete for user names and passwords. This will ensure that all of your operations are
accurately recorded while creating your tests.
To clear the auto complete option:

 In your Internet Explorer menu bar, choose TOOLS > INTERNET OPTIONS > CONTENT tab.
 Click AUTOCOMPLETE in the PERSONAL information area. The AUTOCOMPLETE SETTINGS dialog
box opens.
 In the Use AUTOCOMPLETE FOR area, clear the USER NAMES AND PASSWORDS ON FORMS option.
 Click OK to save your changes and close the AUTOCOMPLETE SETTINGS dialog box, then
click OK again to close the Internet Options dialog box.

QuickTest Windows

Before you begin creating tests, take a moment to become familiar with the main QuickTest
window. The image below shows QuickTest window as it would appear after you record a test,
with all toolbars and panes (except the Debug Viewer pane) displayed. Place your mouse over
the titles to display a description of these key elements.

The Testing Process

The QuickTest testing process consists of seven main phases:

1. Preparing to record
2. Recording a session on your application
3. Enhancing your test
4. Debugging your test
5. Running your test
6. Analyzing the test results
7. Reporting defects

This tutorial provides you with an introduction to each of these phases.

Preparing to Record

Before you record a test, confirm that your application and QuickTest are set to match the needs
of your test.

1. Make sure your application displays elements you want to record, such as a toolbar or a
special window pane.
2. Check to see, that your application options are set for the purposes of your test.
3. View the settings in the Test Settings dialog box (Test > Settings) to ensure that data will
be recorded and stored correctly.
4. Review the Options dialog box (Tools > Options) to ensure that QuickTest will record and
store information appropriately. For example, you should confirm that the test is set to use
the appropriate object repository mode.

5. Make sure that all browsers are closed before you begin recording.
Recording a Session

As you navigate through your application or Web site, QuickTest graphically displays each step
you perform as a row in the KEYWORD VIEW.

A step is any user action that causes or makes a change in your application, such as clicking a
link or image, or entering data in a form. For example, if you wanted to test your course
registration website, you would:

1. Create a new, blank, test file.

2. Click the RECORD button and enter the details about the type of application being tested.
3. Log on to your corporate website and perform the steps to register for a class.
4. Click the STOP button to end the test.

QuickTest recorded your web browser operations from the time you clicked RECORD until you
clicked STOP.

Review a Recording

As you recorded your test, QuickTest generated steps in the KEYWORD VIEW representing
each operation you performed in the web browser.

The columns in the KEYWORD VIEW show different information for each step, as described in this
table:

Column Description
Item Displays the item for the step (test object, utility object, function call, or
statement) in a hierarchical icon-based tree.
Operation The operation to be performed on the item, for example, Click or Select.
Value The argument values for the selected operation, for example, the mouse
button to use when clicking the image.
Assignment The assignment of a value to or from a variable so you can use the value
later in the test.
Comment Any textual information you want to add regarding the step, for example,
Return to page used in first step of the test.
Documentation Auto-documentation of what the step does, in an easy-to-understand
sentence, for example, Click the "See Details" icon.

Enhancing Your Test

Using QuickTest, you can include checkpoints
that broaden the scope of your test. A
checkpoint verifies that expected information
is displayed in your application while the test is
running. For example, in the course
registration test described earlier, the user
could have added a checkpoint that evaluated
the property values of the COURSE NAME edit
box.

Most checkpoints can be added to a test either

while recording or after recording.

Using QuickTest, you can: Checkpoint List | View

 Replace fixed values with parameters.

 Add logic.

 Create conditional or loop statements.

Debugging Your Test

After you create a test, you should check that

it runs smoothly, without errors in syntax and
logic. You control the test run in the following
ways:

 Using the step commands: STEP INTO,

STEP OUT, and STEP OVER, to run a Debug Tools | View Larger
single step of a test.
 Using the PAUSE command to
temporarily suspend a test run.
 Setting breakpoints to stop a test run
at a pre-determined place.

If QuickTest displays a run-error message

during a test run, you can simply click the
DEBUG button to suspend the test and debug it.
Running Your Test
When you run a test, QuickTest opens the web
site or application and performs the steps you
recorded. QuickTest always runs a test from
the first step, unless you specify otherwise.
For example, you could choose these options:

 Start your test run from a selected

step
 Enter parameters to run the test for
each row in the data table
 Run only certain data sets
 Run your test until a specific point
within the test
Test Playback | View Larger
A yellow arrow in the left margin of the
KEYWORD VIEW indicates the step that
QuickTest is running.

Analyzing Test Results

As your test runs, QuickTest captures the

results of each step. When QuickTest finishes
running the test, the TEST RESULTS window
opens. You examine the test results to pinpoint
defects in your application.

Test Results | Let Me Try

Reporting Defects

You can print test results or, if you have

Mercury Quality Center installed, you can
report the defects you discover to a database.

Mercury Quality Center is a software test

management tool. A connection button from
the Test Results window lets you add defects
to a specific Quality Center project.

Quality Center Defects Grid | View larger

Benefits of Business Process Testing
Mercury Business Process Testing sits on top of a Web-enabled enterprise-class technology
platform that is fully integrated into Mercury Quality Center.

Business Process Testing is the first complete role-based test automation system to bridge the
quality chasm between subject matter experts and quality engineers. The Business Process
Testing system allows non-technical subject matter experts, such as Business Analysts, to define
test cases without the need for programming or scripting.

For more information on business components and Business Process Testing, refer to the
QuickTest Professional User's Guide and the Business Process Testing User's Guide.

Summary

This concludes the Getting Started with QuickTest Professional tutorial. Here are some key
points to remember:

 QuickTest Professional dramatically speeds up the testing process by facilitating the

creation of tests that check all aspects of an application or web site.
 A primary feature of QuickTest Professional is providing reusability for running these tests
every time a site or application changes is

 Using QuickTest Professional, you can include checkpoints that broaden the scope of
your test.
 If you use Quality Center, Mercury's software test management tool, you can report the
defects you discover to a central database.