Introduction of Smoke Testing / Build Verification Test

Smoke testing is done by developers before the build is released or by testers before accepting a build for further testing. In software testing, a smoke test is a collection of written tests that are performed on a system prior to being accepted for further testing. The tester “touches” all areas of the application without getting too deep, looking for answers to basic questions like, “Can I launch the test item at all?”. There is no need to get down to field validation or business flows. If you get a “No” answer to basic questions like these, then the application is so badly broken, there’s effectively nothing there to allow further testing. These written tests can either be performed manually or using an automated tool.