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Performance testing
Performance testing is a testing technique that determines the speed, scalability, and stability of an application under a given workload. It helps to ensure the quality of the software.
Why do we Need Performance Testing?
To ensure that the system will meet the expected service levels in production as well as to render a positive user experience, it is critical to undertake performance testing. Also, to avoid the cost of solving a problem in production performance that can be prohibitive, a continuous or an ongoing performance testing strategy is advisable. More specifically, performance testing is important:
To verify if the application satisfies performance requirements( for example, the system needs to manage up to 500 or 800 concurrent users)
To check for computing bottlenecks in an application
To compare systems in order to identify the better system of the lot
To measure stability under peak internet traffic events
Types of Performance Testing:
Capacity Testing
Load Testing
Volume Testing
Stress Testing
Soak Testing
Capacity Testing:
Capacity Testing is to determine how many users the system/application can handle successfully before the performance goals become unacceptable. This allows us to avoid the potential problems in future such as increased user base or increased volume of data.
Load Testing:
Load Testing is to verify that the system/application can handle the expected number of transactions and to verify the system/application behaviour under both normal and peak load conditions (no. of users).
Volume Testing:
Volume Testing is to verify that the system/application can handle a large amount of data. This testing focuses on Data Base.
Stress Testing:
Stress Testing is to verify the behavior of the system once the load increases more than the system’s design expectations. This testing addresses which components fail first when we stress the system by applying the load beyond the design expectations. So that we can design a more robust system.
Soak Testing:
Soak Testing is aka Endurance Testing. Running a system at high load for a prolonged period of time to identify the performance problems is called Soak Testing. It is to make sure the software can handle the expected load over a long period of time.
The Performance Testing Process
The goal of performance testing is the same for every software, though the methodology can vary a bit. So, here’s what a typical performance testing process looks like:
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Choosing the testing environment: First, select your test environment, performance testing tools, and production environment. Select appropriate software, hardware, network configuration, etc., to use for your test.
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Identifying performance metrics: Next, identify software performance metrics such as response time, throughput, transactions, load time, and resource distribution like CPU, memory, and disk space.
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Planning the test: Identify test scenarios covering user variability, target metrics, and test data. It will help you plan and design a few models of your performance tests.
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Configuring the chosen test environment: Organize the elements of your test environment in addition to the performance testing tools you need for different test cases. For example, to test your website’s performance, performance testing tools such as Kinsta APM can help.
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Implementing the test design: Create your performance test depending upon your test design, which will help your team stay on track during the entire testing process instead of getting confused.
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Executing performance testing: Now, you can start the test. As it runs, monitor the trial and collect the resulting data so your developers can use it to improve the software performance.
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Analyze, report, and retest: After you have the test results in hand, analyze the data and plan what you need to overcome the highlighted issues. Lastly, troubleshoot the problems and execute the performance testing again to track the improvements. Keep retesting until you troubleshoot all of the problems detected.
Top 27 Performance Testing Tools
We’ve collected the best performance testing tools available on the market to help you decide which could work for your unique testing requirements
the most used and common is Apache JMeter helps you measure and analyze software performance. It’s an open source tool based on Java that people use mainly for testing web app performance, but it also finds usage on other services.
