Code Coverage

Code coverage is a measure used in software testing.  It describes the degree to which the source code of a program has been tested.  It is a form of testing that inspects the code directly and is therefore a form of white box testing.  Currently, the use of code coverage is extended to the field of digital hardware, the contemporary design methodology of which relies on Hardware description languages (HDLs).   To measure how well the program is exercised by a test suite, one or more coverage criteria are used.  There are a number of coverage criteria, the main ones being:

• Function coverage - Has each function in the program been executed?
• Statement coverage - Has each line of the source code been executed?
• Condition coverage (also known as Branch coverage) - Has each evaluation point (such as a true/false decision) been executed?
• Path coverage - Has every possible route through a given part of the code been executed?
• Entry/exit coverage - Has every possible call and return of the function been executed?

Source:  Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_coverage

Grid-Tools - Using Code Coverage

All testers and some developers grapple with the problems of testing as much of an application as possible with a minimum amount of effort.  Grid-Tools are strong believers in achieving the best code coverage possible in testing and development, as increasing code coverage is the route to improved testing. 

Stop using copies of production data in your testing. They are too large and will not contain the specific test cases you need for maximum code coverage.  Using advanced tools like Datamaker to generate minimum sets of test input combinations can aid in this process.  Create data to ensure a richer, more meaningful and complete set of data to exercise more code than ever before.  Improve your end-to-end testing strategy and offer better and faster solutions; solutions different from existing ‘vendor driven’ approaches in the testing market today.  Our products exist in parallel with academic innovation, and offer you something completely different ... and of more value. 

Read our white paper on achieving maximum code coverage.