Comparing Functional Testing and Integration Software Testing Services

Testing a software or application after development is essential to find and fix bugs before release. However, testing can be time-consuming and difficult with large applications that have numerous features. Testing a single component or page without examining the rest of the software can lead to missed bugs or false positives.

Different types of tests are available to check the code for bugs, performance issues, and potential security breaches. Among all the tests, functional testing is one the most important. Functional testing as the process of testing the functionality of an application. This includes the different features and general business logic. However, integration testing checks the different parts and components of a system to make sure that they all work together.

In this article, we will go into the details of these two types of tests and understand how they can be performed on your code to help identify any issues before they become a problem for your users. Plus, we will go through functional vs. integration testing differences in detail.

Must Read: Mobile App Development Process: Easy Step to Build your First App

Before That, Let’s Understand the Basics of Testing

Application or software testing is conducted to run the codebase through different test scripts. The purpose is to find potential errors and bugs that can hurt the user experience. A business must always ensure that its application, website, or any digital solution is working exceptionally well. However, as we have said before, testing applications and solutions is a complex task. At times, software testing services can get complex; hence testing experts use test scripts.

Test scripts are lists of actions to perform while testing particular areas of an application. Test scripts provide clear instructions for testers on what they should do and how they should do it. In general, test scripts take 1-2 hours to run and 10 minutes to analyze results. Then we have benchmark software testing services, which can take weeks or months to run and a few days to analyze results. In addition to this, there are performance tests, which can take between hours to weeks to run. However, it can take between a few minutes to days to analyze results.

Let’s get into the details of integration and functional testing, along with analyzing the difference between functional and integration testing.

What is Integration Testing?

Integration testing involves testing different parts of a system to check whether they are working together. Moreover, it checks whether all the parts work synergistically to deliver the intended function. The testing professionals merge or combine different components or modules to detect issues and defects in them. As a result, they are able to identify the performance and health of every single component. To give you an example of integration testing services, here’s how it goes down.

Take, for instance; we need to check whether the homepage and login page of an application integrate well. The testers will integrate these two modules and check for a few things;

1. How does the login page link to the homepage?
2. They will check whether the user receives the welcome message as they sign up on the application.
3. Plus, they will also check whether the end user navigates smoothly to the welcome page after signing up.

In addition to this, depending on the purpose of the application and intended experience, the testers checklist can include other pointers as well. So, the testers basically check for a few things in integration tests;

• Data flow
• Performance
• Smoothness
• Any changes taking place in the database

Pros and Cons of Integration Testing

Pros of Integration Testing

• Flexible Testing: Integration testing services are flexible, this means that they can be done with any relevant module, wherever it is ready. The testers won’t have to wait for all the modules to be ready before starting the tests.
• Easily Detects Issues: Another benefit of this type of software testing service is that it can detect all the issues easily. Moreover, it can catch the issues that might have been missed at the time of unit testing.
• Maximum Coverage of Tests: Integration testing services have the widest testing scope. It can test multiple modules and increases the test’s reliability of the results.

Cons of Integration Testing

• The Tests Fail Easily: One of the biggest downsides of this type of software testing services is a single error can render the entire test strategy to fail. So, creating the integration test sequences and code required expertise and due diligence.
• Takes a Lot of Time: Creating the integration test is difficult, but what is even more complex is fixing the mistakes or defects.
• Dependent on Stubs and Drivers: The integration tests are driven by stubs and drivers. Hence, creating the right stubs and drivers is mandatory for testing. Failure to do so results in inadequate testing results.

What is Functional Testing?

The second type of software testing service we have today is functional testing services. As the name suggests, functional testing verifies that each function, feature, and module of the application built is working as intended. It’s one of the most important testing services for software. Development companies use this test type to enhance the application or software quality and outcome. They conduct this test to find and eliminate any type of defects or errors in the application.

The functional testing services hold importance because it helps find a whole set of possible errors in the application. Moreover, the functional testing services address all the concerns that are not addressed with unit testing services.

To understand it better, let’s take the example of eCommerce application testing. Let’s say after developing the application; the testers conduct the functional test. They will check;

• Whether the transaction history of the user’s interaction with the application is stored properly?
• They will also check whether the transaction and other details are displayed properly on the application.

In addition to this, the testers will check whether there is anything hindering the transitions or causing a delay in them, etc. Hence, the functional testing services check and validate whether the application is functioning as intended. It checks the accuracy of the functions and pinpoints the errors, no matter how small, to ensure that the developers can fix it properly.

Pros and Cons of Functional Testing Services

Pros of Functional Testing:

• Better User Experience: Functional tests help provide a better user experience, which increases the user’s satisfaction levels.
• Zero-Defect Product: The detailing and efficiency provided by a functional test ensures that the developed solution does not have any bugs or errors.
• Higher Security: With functional testing services complete,  the testers can ensure the highest form of security in the application or software by correcting the critical loopholes and setting the record straight.
• Customized Tests: With functional testing, it is easier to create bespoke test cases for different forms of functionality. We can mold the test according to the requirements for the best results.

Cons of Functional Testing

• Logical Errors: In functional software testing services, it is possible to miss the logical interlinking between the codes, libraries, etc., which can result in incomplete results.
• Costs More: In functional testing, some test cases are repeated, which means that there will be redundancy. As a result, it will cost more to conduct these tests.
• Complex and Challenging: Function performance testing of a software or application is complex. It takes a lot of efforts and time to create context-specific tests.

Difference Between Functional and Integration Testing

Moving on, we will try to find out the functional and integration testing differences with the help of a table;

In addition to the table, we have a couple of other key points to understand the functional vs integration testing difference.

• When to Perform Functional and Integration Testing

  Functional testing services are essential to perform when you have to check a complex business application or software. For best results, functional testing is performance after internal testing and before regression testing. The key is fixing the bugs, but it can also work effectively to implement new features.

  Integration testing services are crucial when the software you have built will be exposed to frequently changing requirements. It is required when the changing units are involved and when some modules need to interact with APIs and be tested according to the data presented by that API in response. Moreover, integration testing is also imperative for testing complex software.

• Process Involved in Functional and Integration Testing

  Another element of difference is the process involved in software testing services. The functional testing services process begins with understanding and verifying the requirements specifications. This helps with creating a plan for the tests. Then the testers design the test cases and create the traceability matrix document. The testers then input data according to their requirements and execute the test cases. They will then compare the test results with the expected output and validate the created functions.

  Integration testing services process begins with understanding the application architecture and workflow of the different modules. The testers get an overview of each module’s functionality and identify their entry/exit points. The first part is completed with the planning of the integration test. The second part begins with identifying the most appropriate testing approach and identifying the test conditions in relation to the data flow. The testers then work on the designing part of test scenarios and test cases, and create the test scripts.

Conclusion

To ensure the intended performance of an application conducting tests is an important part of the job. The developers and testers come together to check the application’s performance according to the requirement.

Out of different software testing services, integration and functional testing services are two important ones. The testers complete these tests by creating bespoke test cases and running the application through them to identify the results. Hence, the testers are able to check the software or application’s performance and ensure the intended results.