Data Extraction Configuration for Software Testing Accuracy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Software developers often lack access to real data from customer systems for testing, leading to inefficiencies in software development and maintenance, as they typically test on different data, which may not replicate customer system issues.
Innovation Solution
A system that generates a configuration file to extract relevant data from customer systems for testing, using customer and module identities, allowing developers to perform testing on actual customer data and associate results with the correct system, facilitating the development of software fixes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If developers test software on different data instead of real customer data, then testing can be performed without accessing customer systems, but the testing does not accurately replicate customer system issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a data extraction mechanism that acts as an intermediary between the customer system and the development system. Configuration files are generated and sent to customer systems, which extract relevant data and return it to developers. This intermediary process enables developers to obtain real customer data without direct access to customer systems, resolving the contradiction between testing accuracy and ease of operation.
2Reliability
If developers do not have access to real customer data, then customer privacy and security are protected, but additional development is required to compensate for insufficient testing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the specific data needed for testing from customer systems through configuration files. Instead of granting broad access to customer data, the system selectively extracts relevant information based on predefined configurations. This extraction approach maintains data security while providing sufficient information for accurate testing, thereby improving software quality without significantly impacting development efficiency.
3Reliability
If developers perform additional development to compensate for insufficient testing, then software may handle unforeseen situations better, but the time to deliver quality software increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables preliminary testing with real customer data before final software deployment. By extracting and analyzing actual customer system data in advance, developers can identify and address potential issues earlier in the development cycle. This preliminary action with authentic data reduces the need for extensive post-deployment debugging and additional development, thereby decreasing overall software delivery time while maintaining high reliability.
Data Source
AI summary
At least one computing device generates a configuration file associated with a module of a software system for use in extracting data from the module in the software system according to a specification. The configuration file is provided to the customer system using a module identity. Extracted data is received from the customer system. Testing relating to the functionality of the customer system is performed on at least some of the received extracted data, and a result of the testing is associated with the customer system using the module identity.