Patent ID: 7421683

Claim:
A method for identifying required updates of test scripts used to test an application, the method comprising: capturing auxiliary data items associated with the application, the auxiliary data items including information about how the application works, the auxiliary data items including information regarding at least one of: a layout of a screen; the types of user-interface elements used by the application; where data entered into the application will reside in an underlying data system; data processing code; and an underlying workflow of the application as a user navigates from screen to screen; recording one or more test scripts, each test script corresponding to a user's interactions with the application; correlating the captured auxiliary data items with at least one of user interface objects, properties, functionality, data requirements, and workflow associated with the application to generate mapping data by identifying a tag associated with a user interface object with which the user interacts while operating the application and by mapping the tag to a corresponding auxiliary data item; determining, from the mapping data, which test scripts reference each user interface object, property, functionality, data requirement, or workflow and storing information indicating which test scripts reference each user interface object, property, functionality, data requirement, or workflow; determining that one of the auxiliary data items has been altered, the alteration of the one of the auxiliary data items indicating a particular manner in which the application has been altered; consulting the stored information to identify test scripts that reference a user interface object, property, functionality, data requirement, or workflow corresponding to the altered one of the auxiliary data items; and reporting the identified test scripts to a user.