What is big bang testing?

In the world of software development, big bang testing is a type of integration testing.

Before software can be deployed and made available to users, it has to pass through a rigorous process in which all the different modules that make up the software are tested.

The big idea

Testing ensures that the end product works exactly as it is intended to and does not run into any unforeseen errors.

In big bang integration testing, all the different modules are integrated simultaneously. After integration, the system is tested as a whole.

This is in contrast to the second model of integration testing, which uses an incremental approach.

The above example shows a system that consists of four different modules.

In big bang testing, all four modules are integrated simultaneously to test the system as a whole. The modules are not tested individually. Instead, they are tested together once the entire system is complete.

Advantages

Since all the modules are tested at once, big bang testing requires little to no planning beforehand.

All the modules are completed before testing begins.

Another advantage of using big bang testing is that it tests the entire system.

Disadvantages

Any defects in the interface of the modules are detected at a very late stage of software development.

It is challenging to isolate the defects, as the entire system is being tested at once, and any of the modules involved could have caused the error.

Big bang testing is also very time-consuming, as all possible test cases have to be tested at once.

Ideally, big bang testing should only be used for small systems.