The world of software updates has changed beyond recognition over the past twenty years. Nowhere is this more evident than in the area of ERP software. We have seen a move from siloed on-premises deployments to agile cloud infrastructure. At the same time, we have seen vendors eschewing large, infrequent upgrades in favor of programs of continuous innovation and adoption.
Although the infrastructure that supports enterprise applications has changed, alongside the method of delivering updates, one thing that hasn’t is the need to test your software before releasing it into the wild. The time and effort associated with functional testing is still frequently underestimated. Even in a world of instantly enabled cloud updates, you can’t just push code changes into production.
Testing has traditionally been a costly and time-consuming process. Justifiably so, as the cost and time to remediate would be significantly higher if a defect made its way into production. With the software update process becoming less burdensome, testing can now account for the larger part of a project.
With this in mind, ERP uses should be looking to test automation to introduce greater efficiency and accuracy. Saving time and money on the functional testing of software updates can help accelerate time to value on new features, reduce the risk of manual error, provide access to detailed business intelligence, and improve the quality, resilience and repeatability of your testing.
Across the enterprise software landscape, we are also beginning to see a small, but growing, skills gap. With more data, apps and workflows migrating to the cloud, in-house teams don’t always include highly skilled coding resource, so super users and administrators need to shoulder a greater degree of the testing burden.
Not all test automation solutions are created equal
There is more than one way to test your software. However, some ways are more efficient and effective than others. A quick comparison of the solutions available in the market shows the usual mix of strengths and weaknesses. However, we’re not here to talk about other solutions, we’re here to talk about the solution that Oracle’s own Upgrade Planning Methodology advises as the recommended partner tool for test automation: SwifTest.
The similarities between solutions don’t generally make the headlines, it’s the differences that count. So, what makes SwifTest unique?
First, SwifTest was built specifically for Oracle Cloud and JD Edwards applications. It is application aware, which means it changes as your app changes. Your tests remain relevant from one iteration to the next.
From the creation of test scripts and data to the execution, documentation and auditability of the tests themselves, every aspect of Swiftest is designed to save on the time and effort required to carry out testing. SwifTest demonstrates the gold standard for documentation, providing easy access to an auditable trail of test schedules and results.
The creation, editing and maintenance of scripts is both simple and intuitive. Point and click functionality means super users and administrators can take ownership of the testing process, there’s no need for coding, scripting and technical resource. Powerful search and replace functionality makes editing of scripts more efficient.
The more you use SwifTest, the greater the value you get. Harness the true value of functional testing by creating, storing, editing and executing tests; all of which becomes a virtuous circle as you have more tests in the repository to call on. Combine individual scripts to replicate complex end-to-end workflows with downstream dependencies to ensure no errors make it through to the production environment.
