Directed test suite augmentation: techniques and tradeoffs

Test suite augmentation techniques are used in regression testing to identify code elements affected by changes and to generate test cases to cover those elements. Our preliminary work suggests that several factors influence the cost and effectiveness of test suite augmentation techniques. These include the order in which affected elements are considered while generating test cases, the manner in which existing regression test cases and newly generated test cases are used, and the algorithm used to generate test cases. In this work, we present the results of an empirical study examining these factors, considering two test case generation algorithms (concolic and genetic). The results of our experiment show that the primary factor affecting augmentation is the test case generation algorithm utilized; this affects both cost and effectiveness. The manner in which existing and newly generated test cases are utilized also has a substantial effect on efficiency but a lesser effect on effect...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2010
• Where: SIGSOFT
• Authors: Zhihong Xu, Yunho Kim, Moonzoo Kim, Gregg Rothermel, Myra B. Cohen
• Keywords: SIGSOFT 2010, Software Engineering, Test Case, Test Case Generation, Test Suite Augmentation