How to perform test automation in DevOps?
Tags: devops, testing, discuss, tooling
Published: 2022-05-23 16:13:40

Automation has become a fundamental unit of DevOps that accelerates the development and deployment process. Initially, organizations faced immense challenges with their service-relation communications, distributing and maintaining tasks in their software development pipelines. With the aid of [DevOps automation](https://www.simform.com/blog/devops-automation/), they deployed their application features rapidly, improved customer experience, automated repeated tasks, and enhanced collaboration.

Automation has transformed IT infrastructures, modernized application development processes, and minimized manual labor across the development realm. In DevOps, automation comes in many folds. There are infrastructure automation, deployment automation, performance monitoring automation, etc. 


##What is test automation?

Test automation is the practice of running automated tests, managing test data, and leveraging test results to improve the quality of the software product. Test automation is also used to achieve continuous testing, which is essential for high-speed software delivery. By relying on devops test automation, one can 

- Detect bugs faster, which in turn enables you for quicker product deployment.
- Omit human errors in testing
- Simplifies testing process 
- Increases reliability


##Why do DevOps need test automation?

Automating end-to-end scenarios and scheduling the test makes it easier for future test cases. One can also leverage [devops automation tools](https://www.simform.com/blog/devops-tools/) like Selenium, Terraform, Nagios, etc to make the task easier. Enhancing automation testing grants you the below said advantages -

- Faster speed without comprising quality 
- Improved team collaboration
- Higher reliability than manual testing
- Ready for scalability
- Improves customer user experience 



##How to implement test automation and build automation flows?

Implementation of test automation is not complex as it seems. The core step one needs to undertake is to map out your release pipeline. This can be done by following four steps as follows:

- Identify all the stages in your release
- Identify core requirements needs for a build’s production journey
- Identify feedback mechanism for error detection and solving
- Prepare a list of all the procedures, services, and actions involved in the release cycle. 

Once you have mapped out your release cycle, you can start building your automation flows. How easily you can do it heavily depends on the types of tools you choose. 

Apart from having the right tool at your disposal, its crucial to make yourself familiar with some of the best practices for seamless integration. 

##Best practices for test automation

**Start building automation flow gradually** - Don’t try to do it all at the same time. Instead, focus on flows that are easy to automate. Pick the ones that are both predictable and repetitive in nature. 

**Test one at a time** - Instead of bundling multiple test cases in one test flow, limit the complexity of a single test flow. This will enable you to pinpoint the issues more easily. 

**Focus on building independent automated test cases** - Although the structure of flows can be reused between test cases, it's best to keep tests independent. This way, they can all be scheduled at the same time to run in parallel under different environments.

##Final thoughts

To unlock the full potential of DevOps, one needs to embrace automation. This will reduce the bottlenecks and increase efficiency, which will directly impact both your employees and customer happiness. If you have any queries regarding test automation, let’s have a discussion in the comments below.