Workload Data Replay for Software Test Accuracy
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Solution Overview
Problem
Software testing often fails to identify issues in customer software before release, due to non-customer-like test environments and limited visualization of workload data, leading to inefficient resource use and suboptimal test results.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that compare prior and current software workload run data to determine statistical measures, allowing for real-time analysis and visualization through a customizable web dashboard, enabling better alignment with customer production environments and reducing test inefficiencies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If traditional software testing methods are used with non-customer-like test environments, then testing cost and time are reduced, but test accuracy and problem identification capability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by capturing and storing customer production workload data before testing begins. This workload data is then replayed during software testing to ensure the test environment accurately reflects real customer conditions, thereby improving test accuracy without significantly increasing testing time
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the customer production environment by capturing workload data from the production system and replaying it in the test environment. This copying approach allows testing to be performed with high fidelity to real customer conditions while maintaining separate test and production systems
2Reliability
If comprehensive workload data collection and analysis is performed, then test coverage and quality are improved, but system complexity and resource requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system introduces an intermediary workload data management layer that captures production workload data, stores it, and replays it during testing. This intermediary layer simplifies the overall system architecture by decoupling data collection from data analysis, making the system more manageable while maintaining comprehensive test coverage
Solution Approach 2:
The system extracts workload data from the complex production environment and separates it into a standalone data capture and replay mechanism. This extraction approach allows comprehensive data collection without requiring the entire production system complexity to be replicated in the test environment
3Ease of operation
If detailed workload data is collected and analyzed without visualization, then data accuracy is maintained, but user understanding and decision-making efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies visual differentiation techniques to workload data, using color-coded metrics and visual indicators to represent different workload characteristics and performance measures. This allows users to quickly understand complex data patterns without losing underlying data detail, as the visual representation complements rather than replaces the detailed data
4Adaptability or versatility
If test environments are made identical to customer production environments, then test realism is improved, but resource requirements and testing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of replicating the entire production environment, the system copies only the essential workload data characteristics from production and replays them in the test environment. This selective copying approach achieves environment alignment where needed while avoiding the resource consumption of full environment replication
Data Source
AI summary
Aspects of the present invention include a method, system and computer program product for comparing data from prior and current software workload runs and for visually presenting the resulting compared data to a user for further data interpretation. The method includes a processor obtaining prior software workload run data from a database; obtaining current software workload run data; comparing the prior software workload run data with the current software workload run data to determine one or more statistical measures between the prior software workload run data and the current software workload run data; and displaying the determined one or more statistical measures therebetween to allow a user to analyze the prior software workload run data and the current software workload run data.