Enterprisewide Testware Architecture

Testware: the stuff of which tests are made. The term comprises a bewildering range of artifacts including data files, scripts, expected results, specifications, and environment information. It also implies how these artifacts are arranged, where they're stored and used, and how they're grouped and referenced. Since testware architecture has not traditionally been considered an important issue, individual projects and teams, even individual testers, have evolved their own approaches to the arrangement of their testware, resulting in much wasted effort. Of course, different applications and environments may demand unique testware architectures, but do they have to be so different? Isn't there a single, unified, flexible, and expandable approach that fits most, if not all, situations within an enterprise? Perhaps not, but the goal of uniform testware architecture across projects is certainly worth striving for. This presentation explains the key elements of good testware architecture and sheds light on ways of achieving a consistent approach across diverse projects.