Entry Criteria:

Entry criteria specify the prerequisites that must be satisfied before starting a specific phase or activity in testing. These conditions help ensure the activity is executed effectively and minimize potential risks.

Typical Entry Criteria:

1. Resource Availability:

• Testers, developers, or other relevant team members are available.
• Necessary tools and environments (e.g., test execution tools, performance tools, staging environments) are set up.
• Adequate budget and time allocation.

2. Testware Availability:

• Test basis (e.g., requirements, user stories, acceptance criteria) is documented and accessible.
• Test cases, test scripts, or test data are prepared and reviewed.

3. Initial Quality Level:

• Smoke testing or basic validations have been conducted to ensure the system is stable enough to proceed.

4. Stakeholder Approvals:

• Necessary approvals from relevant stakeholders or project managers to start testing.

Special Cases in Agile Development:

Definition of Ready (Entry Criteria)

• Ensures user stories or tasks are clear, complete, and testable before development or testing starts.

Exit Criteria

Exit criteria define the conditions that must be met to conclude a testing activity or phase. They ensure all objectives are achieved before moving to the next phase.

Typical Exit Criteria:

1. Measures of Thoroughness:

• Achieved test coverage (e.g., requirement coverage, code coverage).
• A number of unresolved defects fall within the acceptable threshold.
• Defect density (defects per module) meets predefined standards.

2. Completion Criteria:

• Planned test cases are executed.
• All high-priority defects are fixed, and their fixes are verified.
• Regression testing is performed and automated if applicable.
• Static testing activities (e.g., reviews, and walkthroughs) are completed.

3. Stakeholder Acceptance:

• Risks associated with unresolved defects are reviewed and accepted by stakeholders.

4. External Constraints:

• Time or budget constraints have been reached, and stakeholders accept the risks of incomplete testing.

Special Cases in Agile Development

Definition of Done (Exit Criteria):

• Defines when a user story or feature is considered complete, often including unit tests, functional tests, and code reviews.