Editing Software testing (section)

=== Static, dynamic, and passive testing ===

There are many approaches to software testing. [[Code review|Reviews]], [[software walkthrough|walkthrough]]s, or [[Software inspection|inspections]] are referred to as static testing, whereas executing programmed code with a given set of [[test case]]s is referred to as [[dynamic testing]].<ref name="GrahamFoundations08">{{Cite book |last1=Graham, D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ss62LSqCa1MC&pg=PA57 |title=Foundations of Software Testing |last2=Van Veenendaal, E. |last3=Evans, I. |publisher=Cengage Learning |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-84480-989-9 |pages=57–58}}</ref><ref name="OberkampfVerif10">{{Cite book |last1=Oberkampf, W.L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7d26zLEJ1FUC&pg=PA155 |title=Verification and Validation in Scientific Computing |last2=Roy, C.J. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-139-49176-1 |pages=154–5}}</ref>

Static testing is often implicit, like proofreading, plus when programming tools/text editors check source code structure or compilers (pre-compilers) check syntax and data flow as [[static program analysis]]. Dynamic testing takes place when the program itself is run. Dynamic testing may begin before the program is 100% complete in order to test particular sections of code and are applied to discrete [[Function (computer science)|functions]] or modules.<ref name="GrahamFoundations08" /><ref name="OberkampfVerif10" /> Typical techniques for these are either using [[Method stub|stubs]]/drivers or execution from a [[debugger]] environment.<ref name="OberkampfVerif10" />

Static testing involves [[software verification|verification]], whereas dynamic testing also involves [[software validation|validation]].<ref name="OberkampfVerif10" />

Passive testing means verifying the system's behavior without any interaction with the software product. Contrary to active testing, testers do not provide any test data but look at system logs and traces. They mine for patterns and specific behavior in order to make some kind of decisions.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Lee |first1=D. |last2=Netravali |first2=A.N. |last3=Sabnani |first3=K.K. |last4=Sugla |first4=B. |last5=John |first5=A. |title=Proceedings 1997 International Conference on Network Protocols |chapter=Passive testing and applications to network management |year=1997 |publisher=IEEE Comput. Soc |pages=113–122 |doi=10.1109/icnp.1997.643699 |isbn=978-0-8186-8061-8 |s2cid=42596126}}</ref> This is related to offline [[runtime verification]] and [[log analysis]].