ISTQB FOUNDATION 4.0 | Tutorial 55 | Defect Management | Defect Report Template | CTFL Tutorials

Summary

This tutorial delves into the ISTQB Foundation Level certification, focusing on Chapter 5.5: Defect Management. It explains the necessity of writing defect reports, detailing their objectives such as providing resolution information, tracking work product quality, and suggesting improvements in development and testing processes. The video outlines essential fields for a defect report, including a unique identifier, title, date observed, issuing organization, author's role, test object and environment, test context, description, expected versus actual results, severity, priority, status, and references. The script emphasizes the importance of defect management for overall process improvement.

Takeaways

• 📚 The tutorial is focused on chapter 5.5 of ISTQB Foundation level certification, specifically on defect management.
• 🔍 Defect management is crucial for understanding the process of handling defects within the software testing life cycle (STLC).
• 🤔 Three key questions about defects are addressed: what is a defect, why write a defect report, and what should be included in a defect report.
• 📝 A defect report is essential for providing sufficient information to those responsible for resolving the issue, beyond just the tester's knowledge.
• 🔑 The objectives of writing a defect report include providing detailed information for resolution, tracking the quality of the work product, and offering ideas for improving the development and testing process.
• 📈 Defect reports help in evaluating the quality of both the test cases and the work products being tested, such as code or design.
• 💡 By analyzing defect reports, insights can be gained on which areas of the development or testing lifecycle need improvement.
• 📋 The minimum fields to include in a defect report are outlined by standards like ISO/IEC 29148, but organizations can add more based on their needs.
• 🔑 Key fields in a defect report include a unique identifier, title, date of observation, issuing organization, author and role, test object and environment, and a detailed description of the defect.
• 🔄 The status of a defect throughout its lifecycle, known as the bug or defect life cycle, can vary by organization but commonly includes statuses like new, open, resolved, reopened, and closed.
• 📘 Defect reports are not only for resolving issues but also serve as a tool for generating reports, tracking progress, and learning lessons to improve the overall test process.

Q & A

What is the main purpose of writing a defect report?

The main purpose of writing a defect report is to provide those responsible for handling and resolving reported defects with sufficient information to resolve the issue, and to document the defect for other stakeholders to understand what went wrong.

Why are verbal communications not recommended for defect reporting?

Verbal communications are not recommended because they are not documented and thus cannot be easily shared with all stakeholders who might be interested in the defect. It's important for the information to be accessible and understandable to everyone involved.

What are the three objectives typically associated with writing a defect report?

The three objectives are: 1) Provide sufficient information for resolving the defect, 2) Provide a means of tracking the quality of the work product, and 3) Provide ideas for improvement of the development and test process.

How does a defect report help in evaluating the quality of work products?

A defect report helps in evaluating the quality of work products by identifying which test cases are effective in finding defects and which areas of the product have the most defects, indicating potential areas for improvement in development or testing processes.

What is the significance of including the role of the author in a defect report?

Including the role of the author in a defect report is important because it clarifies who identified the defect, which can be a tester, developer, or designer. This helps in understanding the context of the defect and the perspective from which it was found.

What is meant by the 'test object and environment' in a defect report?

The 'test object and environment' refers to the specific item being tested and the conditions or settings in which the defect was identified. This provides context to understand where and under what circumstances the defect occurred.

Why is it important to include the expected and actual results in a defect report?

Including the expected and actual results in a defect report is important because it clearly outlines the discrepancy that constitutes the defect, helping those resolving the issue to understand the nature of the problem and what needs to be corrected.

What is the 'severity' of a defect, and why is it important to include in a defect report?

The 'severity' of a defect refers to the impact of the defect on the system or the end user. It is important to include because it helps prioritize which defects need to be fixed first, based on their urgency and impact.

What is a 'defect life cycle', and how does it relate to the status of a defect in a report?

A 'defect life cycle' is the journey a defect goes through from identification to resolution, including stages like 'new', 'open', 'resolved', 'reopen', and 'closed'. The status of a defect in a report helps track its progress through this life cycle.

Can additional fields beyond the standard ones be included in a defect report?

Yes, while there are standard fields recommended by guidelines like ISO/IEC 829, additional fields can be included in a defect report as per the product, project characteristics, or domain-specific requirements to provide more detailed information.

How does a defect report contribute to the overall improvement of the test process?

A defect report contributes to the overall improvement of the test process by providing insights into common issues, areas of weakness, and opportunities for improvement within the development and testing life cycle, allowing for more informed decision-making and process refinement.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Understanding Defect Management and Reporting

This paragraph introduces the topic of defect management within the context of the ISTQB Foundation Level certification, specifically focusing on Chapter 5.5. It discusses the importance of writing a defect report, the process of managing defects in the software testing life cycle (STLC), and the key questions related to defects that should be answered. The paragraph emphasizes that a defect is a deviation from expectations or requirements, often referred to as an anomaly. It also outlines the objectives of a defect report, which include providing sufficient information for resolving issues, tracking the quality of work products, and offering ideas for improving development and testing processes.

05:00

📝 Key Components of a Defect Report

This section delves into the specifics of what should be included in a defect report. It clarifies that while there are standards such as ISO/IEC 29148 that suggest minimum fields, organizations can tailor their defect reports to their needs. The paragraph lists typical fields found in a defect report, such as a unique identifier, title, date of observation, issuing organization, author details, test object and environment, test context, detailed description, expected versus actual results, severity, priority, status, and references. It also touches on the bug life cycle and the organization's freedom to define its own status conventions, highlighting the importance of these reports in defect management and process improvement.

10:01

🎓 Conclusion and Invitation for Further Learning

The final paragraph serves as a conclusion to the tutorial, summarizing the importance of understanding and effectively managing defects through detailed reporting. It invites viewers to look forward to sample questions in the next tutorial and to continue their learning journey with Chapter 6. The speaker expresses their availability for addressing queries and encourages continuous learning and exploration in the field of software testing.

Keywords

💡ISTQB Foundation Level Certification

The ISTQB Foundation Level Certification is an internationally recognized qualification for software testers. It signifies that the individual has a foundational understanding of software testing principles and practices. In the video, this certification is the context in which the tutorial is being presented, and the focus is on a specific chapter related to managing test activities.

💡Defect Management

Defect management refers to the process of identifying, documenting, tracking, and resolving defects or issues in software development. It is a critical component of the software testing life cycle. The video script discusses the importance of understanding this process and its role in ensuring software quality.

💡Defect Report

A defect report is a document that provides a detailed account of a software defect, including its nature, impact, and steps to reproduce it. The script emphasizes the importance of writing a defect report to communicate issues effectively to stakeholders and to facilitate the resolution process.

💡Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC)

The Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC) is a series of phases or stages that define the testing process within the software development life cycle. The video mentions STLC in the context of understanding the process of managing defects and the activities and artifacts involved in it.

💡Deviation

In the context of software testing, a deviation refers to a discrepancy between the expected and actual results of a software application. The script uses the term to describe what a defect is, highlighting the importance of identifying such deviations during the validation process.

💡Validation Process

The validation process in software testing is the act of evaluating the software to determine whether it complies with the specified requirements. The script mentions this process as the context in which deviations, or defects, are experienced and identified.

💡Test Case

A test case is a set of defined conditions or variables under which a software application is tested to determine whether it behaves as expected. The script discusses how test cases can result in the identification of defects and how they can be evaluated for quality through defect reports.

💡Quality of Work Product

The quality of a work product refers to the level of excellence or fitness for use of the output from a development or testing process. The video script explains how defect reports can provide insights into the quality of both the items being tested and the testing artifacts themselves.

💡Bug Life Cycle

The bug life cycle, or defect life cycle, is the series of stages a defect goes through from its discovery to its resolution. The script briefly touches on this concept, explaining that the status of a defect at any point in time can be tracked, which is crucial for effective defect management.

💡Unique Identifier

A unique identifier is a specific value that is used to distinguish a particular defect from others. The script mentions this as one of the essential fields in a defect report, which helps in tracking and referencing the defect throughout its life cycle.

💡Priority

In the context of defect management, priority refers to the level of urgency associated with resolving a defect. The script explains that including the priority in a defect report helps in determining which defects need to be addressed first, based on their impact and urgency.

Highlights

Introduction to Chapter 5.5 on defect management in ISTQB Foundation level certification.

Explanation of the importance of understanding the process of managing defects within the life cycle.

Three key questions related to Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC): what is a defect, why write a defect report, and what to include in it.

Definition of a defect as a deviation experienced during the validation process of testing.

Objectives of writing a defect report: providing sufficient information for resolving issues, tracking quality of work products, and suggesting improvements.

The necessity of documenting defects for stakeholders beyond the tester.

Use of defect reports for evaluating the quality of test cases and work products under test.

How defect reports can provide insights into areas of the development and testing process that need improvement.

The role of defect reports in identifying the most problematic areas within a project.

Overview of the fields typically included in a defect report according to ISO/IEC 82900.

Customization of defect report fields based on product, project characteristics, and domain specifics.

List of minimum fields to be included in a defect report: unique identifier, title, date, issuing organization, author, test object, environment, and context.

Importance of including detailed description, expected vs. actual results, and severity in defect reports.

Discussion on the priority and status of defects, and the flexibility for organizations to define their own statuses.

The concept of a defect life cycle and its significance in tracking and managing defects.

Inclusion of references in defect reports for additional context and information.

Emphasis on the value of defects in improving the overall test process and the importance of learning from them.

Conclusion of Chapter 5 and a look forward to sample questions and Chapter 6 in the next tutorial.

Transcripts

Hello friends and greetings for the day

welcome back to another tutorial on

istqb Foundation level certification we

are in chapter 5 talking about managing

test activities and continuing ahead

with our next segment which is 5.5

defect management and here we'll be

talking about what is the reason we

should write a defect report and what

can be include in a defect

report

when it comes to defect management

someone should really understand what

exactly is the process of managing

defects within the life cycle and what

are those activities and artifacts

involved in managing defects Al together

when it comes to a stlc which is

software testing life cycle in fact at

some point of time anyone should be able

to answer three different questions

related to this that is what is a defect

why should we write a defect report and

what should we include in a defect

report in this particular section we'll

be talking about answering the two

questions because the first question has

been already answered in the chapter one

that is what is defect a defect is

certainly a deviation experiened as a

part of the validation process which is

testing and it is even referred to as

the deviation from the expectation or

deviation from the requirements or even

sometime we do use the words like

anomalies which are identified between

the expected and the actual result so

this has been discussed as a part of

chapter one in this particular tutorial

we'll be talking about why should I

write a defect report and what should be

include in a defect reports so let's

quickly look into it and understand more

about the reason the objective involved

in writing a defect report so when it

comes to the objectives the typical

defect reports objectives include

provide those responsible for handling

and resolving reported defects with

sufficient information to resolve the

issue it's a very straightforward thing

when the testing is being conducted and

a test case fails it's only a tester in

very much isolation who knows what went

wrong what was the problem what was the

defect all about but until unless this

person writes a report nobody else can

really understand what went wrong and

verbal Communications are not

recommended at this point of time that

means a tester cannot go to everybody's

desk because it's just not the developer

who is going to reol resolve the issue

but there are many other stakeholders

who might be interested in the defect

information to take a call to make a

decision or sometime to defer it or

probably take resolution actions and not

just summary is enough there are many

other things which we do include in the

defect report thus documenting it is

very important for others stakeholders

to understand that what is the defect

all about so that's the very first

objective whereas the second objective

says provide a means of tracking the

quality of the work product when we talk

about the quality of the work product

here we certainly understand that the

work products what we are using or what

we are testing both the things can be

evaluated right from the defect report

for example if the if you talk about our

own what defects like test cases then

what test cases are resulting into good

identification of defects and what test

cases are not really helping us to find

some good defects I can make judgment on

the selection of regression test Suite

or those test cases to be put into

regression test Suite also I can select

good candidates learn lessons from the

test cases which can be very helpful on

a long run for me to even write similar

type of test cases for upcoming projects

as well on on the other hand the test

artifacts which we are testing like code

design if I'm finding a lot of defects

related to code then I know my unit

testing was poor or if I find a lot of

defs related to code I can even say the

development has to improve right so it

helps me understand the quality of the

work product on either side of it

whereas the third objective involved in

defect management or for writing defect

report includes provide ideas for

improvement of the development and T

Test process so so certainly by having

defect report being created or written I

can capture those information which will

also tell me which face identified the

issue or the defect and which work

product had most number of defects

related to it which could further help

me to understand that which area of the

life cycle needs a little bit of more

Improvement in a simple example assume

that I got 100 defects in a project out

of which 70 were related to

misunderstanding of requirement however

we say that we conducted static testing

at the time when the requirements were

being written that means we reviewed the

requirement and we found some good

defects there as well but point being

made is if in Dynamic testing out of 100

70 defects were related to

misunderstanding of requirement then I

think my static testing needs to be

improved so it's just not the other

activities of the development life cycle

but within testing also the previous or

early testings could also be improved by

just having defect management done

properly thus these three object

contribute to the overall defect

management by being conducted in a very

very professional way so given that we

know the objectives it's time for us to

understand what exactly should be

include in a defect report in nutshell

so when it comes to writing a defect

report it's not really a standard list

of items what I can include or standard

list of fields Legends what should I

include in the defect report however

there are certain standards like ISO i e

829 which do declare that these SE are

some of the minimum Fields what you

should always include but however you

can include anything beyond that as per

your product and project characteristics

or even related to your domain specific

so it's not necessary that these are the

only Fields what you're going to see in

a moment are the only fields to be

included in defect report you can

certainly have more and more details

further Beyond this in order to make

sure that you have a wonderful defect

management as per your expectation does

istqb does not claim that this is the

very very standard list of defect report

Fields what you should have and there's

nothing else required so let's quickly

have a look on what are those fields we

are talking about so defect report

logged during Dynamic testing typically

include now when we say typically of

course we are trying to talk about those

simple things what which should be their

bare minimum so the items include unique

identifier which is identification ID of

a defect title with a short summary of

the anomaly being reported a short

oneliner which will tell the people that

what is the defect all about then date

when the anomaly was observed issuing

organization and author including their

role so date is of course to track the

progress issuing organization means who

identified it and the author the person

who did that and of course their role

because it's not necessary that only

testers can find a defect when it comes

to review even developers designers can

also find defects so in that context it

becomes pretty important to include the

name of the person as well and their

role also identification of the test

object and environment the test object

means here the item being tested and the

environment certainly means where did

you identify as we do understand there

are a lot of stage lot of different

environments so we do make sure that

which environment did we identify it in

also to add context of the defect which

basically talks about the test case

being run the activity being performed

which face other relevant information

such as technique which helped you find

it so include any any of those

information which helps someone

understand more about how this defect

can be understood or how this effect can

be identified further or even reproduced

when required further to add description

so summary is just a oneline title but

description of the failure would further

give all the details of the description

of a defect which helps detailed

understanding of the issue and that can

include any relevant test logs uh

database dumps screenshots or any kind

of video recording as well also expected

results and actual results should be

captured along with the defect report

sity which certainly means the impact of

the defect on the system or the end user

priority to fix which in simple word

means the urgency to resolve the issue

like what should be fixed first compared

to other defects and status of defect at

any point of time however on this point

I would like to share that there is a

complete defect tracking life cycle

which do make a lot of sense sense to

any organization the Journey of a defect

is called as bug life cycle or defect

life cycle but the status are completely

left to organization that what kind of

status do you like to make use of you

have the complete freedom on that

however there are some common and

standard uh naming conventions for some

of the status like new open resolved

reopen and closed but on top of it if

you wish you can always have your own

custom status to determine what is the

life cycle for a defect in your

organization or your project further to

add of course you can include any kind

of references which you think could be a

good source of information for someone

to understand that what was the defect

all about so put together these are all

those common fields what why must look

forward to include when it comes to

defect management or writing a defect

report which in turn would help you to

understand the defect at any point of

time generate reports or even spend your

time learning lessons from your defects

to improve your test process altoe

however we'll talk about the test

process improvements in the next level

that is test manager but at this point

just want to let you know that defects

are very helpful in determining the

overall test process Improvement as well

well that's all from this particular

tutorial team and with that we also

complete the chapter five we'll look at

some sample questions in our next

tutorial and get started with chapter

six so that's all from this particular

tutorial team should you have anything

else feel free to comment below I'm

always there to address your queries and

answer them well till then keep learning

keep exploring keep understanding the

context thanks for watching the video

team and happy

[Music]

learning