How To Write Effective Test Summary Report?

Defining Test Summary Report

Test Summary Report summarizes the completion of the respective test activities and deliverables and supporting documentation that provides documented evidence that the tests are executed, and each of the test cases are evaluated.

As one of the most important deliverables, the significance of the test summary report is great in the software development life cycle (SDLC). Prepared after the completion of the testing process at the end by the Test Managers, this report consists of all the necessary information related to the process of software testing and the results delivered by it.

Features of the Test Summary Report

From providing a complete insight into the process of testing to defining various steps taken to meet the exit criteria or the specified requirements, this report keeps track of each and every crucial attribute related to software testing.

A Test Summary Report Includes The following Information -

• Project Information: The document offers details about the project, along with a description of its name, its version, product name, date and time, etc.

• Test Objective: Another important detail considered in the document is the purpose of testing. Test reports created for different tests define the other purposes of testing. Hence, under the test objective, the test type and its purpose are defined. For example, the purpose of testing for unit testing will be different from that of performance & functional testing.

• Test Summary: Once the test objective is defined, the team summarizes the testing process. This includes details about the number of test cases executed, passed, failed, and blocked, along with the comments provided by the testers.

• Defects: One of the most important pieces of information provided in the document/report is details about the defects found by the team during the testing process. Here, the total number of bugs found by the team, their status, number of bugs open, resolved & closed, and their severity & priority are mentioned. 

Key Notes Regarding Test Summary Report Template

Test Summary Report Identity

This is a company generated unique number allocated to this report, which helps readers and the team members differentiate it from other documents, reports, and deliverables.

Summary

After assigning a unique identity to the report, the team moves on to summarize the testing process in the report while focusing on important and appropriate information. It defines which version and release of the project or software are being reported by the document to the reader to offer them clarity.

• Test Items: All the test items mentioned in the report should match the test item definitions provided in the relevant test plan, which is being covered by this report. Moreover, the team must mention any variances from the items specified in the test plan to avoid any ambiguous situation among readers. 

• Test Environment: Like test items, the test environment should also match the environment stated in the test plan, and any variances from it should be identified with proper references to validate that the correct test setup was used by the team for the process of testing.

• References: Includes any document or evidence supporting the report and its location within the configuration management system.

Variances

The team documents any changes or deviations from those areas and plans agreed by everyone in the reference documents. The areas that may concern the group accepting the results are given special attention. Moreover, to validate these variances, the team includes references supporting the documentation; these include change requests, enhancement requests, incident reports, test plans & specifications, among other references.

Summary of Results

After the analysis of the testing process, a summary of results is included in the report, which includes

• Defects patterns like open, close, resolved, in progress, etc.

• Pass & failure of incidents etc.

• Cost, detailed impacts & positive trends.

• Resolved and unresolved incidents and defects.

• Nature & cause of problems.

• Severity & Priority of incidents & defects. 

Evaluation

Based on the evaluation of the earlier stages of the format, the team offers information about the testing process, its limitation, drawbacks, failures, high & medium risk areas, or good quality areas and features. 

Summary of Activities

Finally, the team defines the testing activities, the efforts & time invested in it, along with the number of individuals/testers involved in the process. Unlike the summary of results, the foremost focus is on the process, techniques used to achieve set goals & requirements, the changes in the plan or activities, among other things.

Approval

The approvals from the authority in the form of signatures and documentation are included by the team to provide the testers. However, these should match the approval provided in the test plan to verify the result of the testing.

Guidelines For Creating Test Summary Report Template

• To be assured of its accuracy, the test summary report should be published after every test run cycle.

• It should include relevant metrics and details regarding the software testing process, such as test case adequacy, cost of finding defects, test case effectiveness, test efficiency, rework & review efforts ratio, etc.

• It must follow a standard format that can make report review easy for the members.

• The information provided should be clear, compact, and precise.

• Should mention all the testing activities and a detailed description of types of testing, its process, results, & more. 

• Most importantly, the test report should be maintained in a document repository system.

Advantages of Test Summary Report

• It justifies the testing efforts of the team as well as the steps & techniques used by them by providing an insight into the whole process.

• Reports the current status of the project.

• Helps measure the quality of the product.

• Assists the team in building a mature and accurate process.

• With the assistance of this report, the stakeholders and customers can take necessary corrective measures proactively.

• It is the final document that helps determine whether the software is ready for release or not.

• Delivers necessary details about each testing process to the client and other stakeholders of the project.