Manual Testing

What Does Manual Testing Mean?

In software testing, manual testing is the process of manually reviewing and testing a software/application for errors, defects and/or vulnerabilities.

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This type of testing is performed by software developers and testers, without any automated tools, to identify any defects within the software from the perspective/experience of an end user.

Techopedia Explains Manual Testing

Manual testing is usually part of a comprehensive software testing process and is performed prior to software release. Software testers use and review the developed software the way an end user would use it. The testing process can be a systematic process that uses formal test plans and action cases or can informally be performed by a user domain expert. Software can be tested for multiple user roles such as for software admin and software user—both using software but in a different way. Some of the steps within a manual testing approach include:

  • Unit testing
  • User acceptance testing (UAT)
  • Integration testing
  • System testing

Although manual testing primarily reviews and tests a website from an end-user perspective, manual testing may also be performed by software developers/testers using their knowledge and experience to identify defects within software.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…