How can Network Virtualization Help Boost Software Testing?

Software Testing is evolving each day with new approaches and methodologies. Virtualization is also being adopted for testing applications; especially for testing software over a virtualized network and to highlight real issues in a LIVE environment. Network Virtualization is a methodology that brings together the existing resources on a network by segmenting the existing bandwidth into independent channels with a secure interface. In this way, every subscriber is given a shared access to the resources of a common system.

Network Virtualization is leveraged to utilize the network speed, ensure reliability, bring flexibility, and make the software testing process scalable and secure. Software Testing teams can benefit from network virtualization as it provides accurate ways to test an application. In a networked environment, the software testing teams can derive actual results with expected instances and congestion issues.

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In this way, testers are provided with a complete range of testing scenarios that include delays and bad/good patches of a network. The greatest boon is that the testing happens in a production environment. Additionally, being able to understand the application’s functioning way before it goes live avoids failures in the LIVE environment. There are various commercial network virtualization products in the market, which are licensed as well as open source. They can be chosen as per the objectives of the project. The features of the product must be mapped to the application testing objectives, which could be a multi-tier Web application or a network-dependent application.

Why consider Network Virtualization for Application Software Testing?

Software Testing is responsible for completing and concluding the software development process, which makes it critical. The tester is expected to prepare the test environment and report on the results by leveraging various tools. Considering the significance of software testing, a lot of investments are done in the tools and testing platforms. Setting up an environment implies that costs pertaining to resources and time are involved.

Network virtualization enables enterprises to leverage virtual test environments and increases flexibility and efficiency of the hardware. Moreover, some of the software products need to get checked under particular conditions such as multiple configurations and network pressures. In such cases, the testing teams can depend on virtual networks to provide the required resources. The network settings can be altered as per the testing requirements.

Network Virtualization helps you to combine multiple physical networks into a single network or separate single physical networks into multiple analytical networks. This helps to test the applications/software under various settings and load test it for deriving near-to-real results. The current environment involves various challenges such as fluctuations in bandwidths, changes in the network, and spikes in traffic; network virtualization helps to gauge its impact on the application.

Key Advantages of Network Virtualization

Network virtualization, also referred to as Software Defined Networking (SDN), helps enterprises to program and make the network available on-demand, despite no physical access to the switches or routers. The network is thus available for testing activities whenever required. This brings a lot of advantages to the forefront that enterprises can leverage.

• Cost-effective networks

By leveraging Network Virtualization, it is possible to manage the network devices with a single management console. This doesn’t require physical access to the switches or any additional skill-sets to manage multiple switches and routers. This helps cut down the costs related to purchasing switches and routers and makes the process simpler and cost-effective.

• Brings Speed

Network Virtualization makes highly programmable networks available as per the required workload. This helps to deploy applications in a quicker time frame, thereby supporting faster go-to-market. This is a key factor to be considered while leveraging virtual networks as Speed is an important ingredient for a successful application launch.

• Offer scalability of networks

If the network availability is rigid and doesn’t give you the flexibility required to test your applications, then the idea of virtualization fails. Network Virtualization doesn’t limit the network topologies and provides scalability and flexibility to manage the network settings. In this way, you have the scope to create large virtual networks as per your testing requirements.

• Supports creation of automated Cloud environment

Fully automated and manageable infrastructures can only make an effective Cloud environment. Network Virtualization helps to automate the network infrastructure by enabling users to program and make the network available depending on the network/security policies. It also helps to automate a private or hybrid cloud environment. In this way, a Cloud environment gets ready for deploying and testing applications.

• Reduces Downtime

Resolving issues with the network leads to longer hours of downtime for the business applications. This results in a waste of time, efforts, and resources. Considering the competitive market scenarios, practically, organizations cannot afford to have a downtime. Network Virtualization has an analytics engine to monitor the networks and provide the past and current data. This information can be used by the application and the APIs, which results in improved scalability and accessibility of the application. Consequently, it also reduces downtime of the application and speeds up attempts pertaining to application upgrade/launch.

In Conclusion

New methodologies and approaches are required to boost better software development. Virtualization in various forms has been leveraged to bring speed, scalability, agility, and profitability to the process. Network Virtualization helps resolve various networking challenges for enterprises and also it helps manage the network at lower costs and makes it accessible at any point of time. This helps in reducing downtime of the application, which is a great strength and doesn’t disrupt the business revenue or impact the performance of the application.

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In a networked environment, software testers are provided with a complete range of testing scenarios that include delays and bad/good patches of a network. The greatest boon is that the software testing happens in a production environment.

At Cigniti, we offer an Enterprise-wide Service Virtualization Adoption Strategy after a detailed Service Virtualization Assessment, followed by Planning and Solutions. We assist you in Virtualization Tool Feasibility & ROI Analysis and also deliver Virtual Services Development and Maintenance. Cigniti’s Service Virtualization testing plays a vital role in three major ways – Reduces Operational Expenditures, increases Access to “Trustworthy” Test Environments, and reduces Business Risk to End-users.

Connect with us to build a relevant and efficient Virtualization strategy for testing your business applications.