How are releases tested

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Before releasing a version of AOLserver, there must be a defined process for ensuring quality in the release.

Currently (July 2004), testing is mostly manual and not easily repeatable, as well as time consuming. Tests need to be automated so the results can be verified and quickly repeated by others.

While there will be a need to implement our own custom tests for specific behaviors of functionality specific to AOLserver, there is likely to be a tool or collection of tools that implement general HTTP and HTTPS testing which we can leverage immediately. The following is an initial list of tools to consider, listed in no particular order:

  • FREE: ab (ApacheBench) - "ab is a tool for benchmarking your Apache Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) server. It is designed to give you an impression of how your current Apache installation performs. This especially shows you how many requests per second your Apache installation is capable of serving."
  • FREE: Hammerhead 2 - "Hammerhead 2 is a stress testing tool designed to test out your web server and web site. It can initiate multiple connections from IP aliases and simulated numerous (256+) users at any given time."
  • FREE: Siege - "Siege is an http regression testing and benchmarking utility. It was designed to let web developers measure the performance of their code under duress, to see how it will stand up to load on the internet. Siege supports basic authentication, cookies, HTTP and HTTPS protocols."
  • FREE: SPIKE - "When you need to analyze a new network protocol for buffer overflows or similar weaknesses, the SPIKE is the tool of choice for professionals."
  • NON-FREE: Co-Advisor - "Co-Advisor is a tool for testing the quality of protocol implementations. Hundreds of test cases will keep your developers and QA busy fixing bugs, violations, and vulnerabilities. The current focus is on HTTP intermediaries such as firewalls, filters, caching proxies, surrogates, and XML switches. Client- and server-agent tests may be added next. Co-Advisor is made by The Measurement Factory."

Category Release Management