Gray Box Testing in Software Testing With Example

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Gray Box Testing In Software Testing  

Gray Box Testing with example

What is Gray Box Testing?

Gray box testing is a type of software testing and a combination of black-and-white box testing.

it is a method to test the software application with partial knowledge of the internal working structure. In black-box testing, the tester is unknown of the internal structure of the application being tested, and in white-box testing, the internal structure of the application is known to testers.

Gray box testing is also known as grey box analysis or translucent testing.

Gary box Testing with example

In Simple words.

White-Box Testing: Internal structure (source code) is Known.

Black box testing: Internal structure (source code)is Unknown.

Gray Box Testing: Internal structure (source code)is partially Known.

Example of Gray Box Testing 

The Graybox Testing example is given below.

While testing any application feature like links or orphan links, if the tester encounters any bug with these links, then he can make the changes straight away in HTML code and can check in real-time.

How to Perform GrayBox Testing?

Follow the below steps to perform gray box testing : 

Step 1: Identify inputs 

Step 2: Identify the outputs 

Step 3: Identify the major paths 

Step 4: Identify Subfunctions 

Step 5: Develop inputs for Subfunctions 

Step 6: Develop outputs for Subfunctions 

Step 7: Execute test case for Subfunctions 

Step 8: Verify the correct result for Subfunctions 

Step 9: Repeat steps 4 & 8 for other Subfunctions

Step 10: Repeat steps 7 & 8 for other Subfunctions

The Objective of Gray Box Testing

The Objective of gray box testing is as follows.

• To provide combined advantages of both black box testing and white box testing. 
• To combine the input of developers as well as testers. To improve overall product quality. 
• To reduce the overhead of long processes of functional and non-functional testings. 
• To provide enough free time to developers to fix defects. 
• To test from the user's point of view rather than a designer's point of view.

Technique for Gray Box Testing

• Matrix Testing 
• Regression Testing 
• Orthogonal Array Testing or OAT
• Pattern Testing

Advantages of Graybox Testing 

Gray box testing combines the advantages of both black box testing and white box testing, making it a useful approach in software testing. Here are some advantages of gray box testing:

• Testers have access to some internal information: Gray box testers have limited access to the internal workings of the software under test. This allows them to make more informed test design decisions, such as identifying potential problem areas and selecting appropriate test data.
• Better test coverage: With some knowledge of the internal workings of the software, gray box testing can achieve better test coverage than black box testing. Testers can use this knowledge to create test cases that focus on specific areas that are more likely to cause errors.
• Cost-effective: Compared to white box testing, gray box testing is less time-consuming and less expensive. It requires less effort to prepare test cases because testers do not need to have complete knowledge of the software's internals.
• Reflects real-world usage scenarios: Gray box testing often simulates real-world usage scenarios more accurately than white box testing. It helps to identify the system's response to real-world conditions such as heavy user loads, concurrent transactions, and abnormal inputs.
• Identifies integration issues: Gray box testing can identify integration issues between different software components, which may not be visible in black box testing. This can help identify potential problems and resolve them before the software goes live.

Disadvantage of Software testing 

Gray box testing is a software testing technique that combines elements of both black box testing and white box testing. While gray box testing has some advantages, such as the ability to test more thoroughly than black box testing and the ability to find defects that might be missed by white box testing, there are also some disadvantages to this approach:

• Limited access to internal code: In gray box testing, testers have limited access to the internal workings of the software system. This can make it difficult to fully test all aspects of the system, especially those that rely on intricate internal mechanisms.
• Dependence on tester knowledge: Gray box testing requires testers to have a certain level of knowledge about the system being tested. If the testers lack sufficient knowledge, they may not be able to test the system adequately.
• Time-consuming: Gray box testing can be more time-consuming than black box testing, as testers may need to spend extra time setting up the testing environment and analyzing the system.
• Not as thorough as white box testing: Gray box testing is not as thorough as white box testing, as testers do not have full access to the system's internal code. This can lead to some defects being missed.

Hope !! The above Tutorial on Gray Box Testing with Example is helpful for you...

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QA acharya 

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