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Testing Fundamentalstesting~15 mins

Root cause analysis in Testing Fundamentals - Build an Automation Script

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Perform root cause analysis on a failed login test
Preconditions (2)
Step 1: Open the login page
Step 2: Enter username 'testuser' in the username field
Step 3: Enter password 'wrongpassword' in the password field
Step 4: Click the login button
Step 5: Observe the error message displayed
Step 6: Check the application logs for error details
Step 7: Identify the root cause of the login failure
✅ Expected Result: Login fails with an error message 'Invalid credentials'. Logs show authentication failure due to incorrect password.
Automation Requirements - Python Selenium
Assertions Needed:
Verify error message text is 'Invalid credentials'
Verify login button is disabled after failed attempt
Verify URL remains on login page
Best Practices:
Use explicit waits to wait for error message visibility
Use Page Object Model to separate page elements
Use clear and descriptive assertion messages
Automated Solution
Testing Fundamentals
from selenium import webdriver
from selenium.webdriver.common.by import By
from selenium.webdriver.support.ui import WebDriverWait
from selenium.webdriver.support import expected_conditions as EC

class LoginPage:
    def __init__(self, driver):
        self.driver = driver
        self.username_input = (By.ID, 'username')
        self.password_input = (By.ID, 'password')
        self.login_button = (By.ID, 'loginBtn')
        self.error_message = (By.ID, 'errorMsg')

    def open(self, url):
        self.driver.get(url)

    def enter_username(self, username):
        self.driver.find_element(*self.username_input).clear()
        self.driver.find_element(*self.username_input).send_keys(username)

    def enter_password(self, password):
        self.driver.find_element(*self.password_input).clear()
        self.driver.find_element(*self.password_input).send_keys(password)

    def click_login(self):
        self.driver.find_element(*self.login_button).click()

    def get_error_message(self):
        wait = WebDriverWait(self.driver, 10)
        error_element = wait.until(EC.visibility_of_element_located(self.error_message))
        return error_element.text

    def is_login_button_enabled(self):
        return self.driver.find_element(*self.login_button).is_enabled()

    def current_url(self):
        return self.driver.current_url


def test_failed_login_root_cause_analysis():
    driver = webdriver.Chrome()
    login_page = LoginPage(driver)
    try:
        login_page.open('https://example.com/login')
        login_page.enter_username('testuser')
        login_page.enter_password('wrongpassword')
        login_page.click_login()

        error_text = login_page.get_error_message()
        assert error_text == 'Invalid credentials', f"Expected error message 'Invalid credentials' but got '{error_text}'"

        login_button_enabled = login_page.is_login_button_enabled()
        assert not login_button_enabled, "Login button should be disabled after failed login attempt"

        current_url = login_page.current_url()
        assert 'login' in current_url, f"Expected to remain on login page but URL is {current_url}"

    finally:
        driver.quit()

This script uses Selenium with Python to automate the root cause analysis of a failed login.

The LoginPage class follows the Page Object Model to keep selectors and actions organized.

Explicit waits ensure the error message is visible before reading it, avoiding timing issues.

Assertions check that the error message is correct, the login button is disabled, and the URL remains on the login page, confirming the failure behavior.

The try-finally block ensures the browser closes even if assertions fail.

Common Mistakes - 3 Pitfalls
Using time.sleep() instead of explicit waits
Hardcoding XPath selectors that are brittle
Not closing the browser after test
Bonus Challenge

Now add data-driven testing with 3 different username and password combinations to verify error messages.

Show Hint

Practice

(1/5)
1. What is the main goal of root cause analysis in software testing?
easy
A. To find the main reason behind a problem
B. To write more test cases quickly
C. To increase the number of bugs found
D. To improve the user interface design

Solution

  1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of root cause analysis

    Root cause analysis aims to identify the fundamental reason why a problem occurs.
  2. Step 2: Compare options with the purpose

    Only To find the main reason behind a problem matches the goal of finding the main reason behind a problem.
  3. Final Answer:

    To find the main reason behind a problem -> Option A
  4. Quick Check:

    Root cause analysis = find main reason [OK]
Hint: Root cause analysis = find main problem reason [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Confusing root cause analysis with test case writing
  • Thinking it increases bug count directly
  • Mixing it with UI design improvements
2. Which of the following is a correct first step in performing root cause analysis?
easy
A. Fix the bug immediately without investigation
B. Ignore the problem if it is rare
C. Ask 'Why?' repeatedly to dig deeper
D. Write automated tests before analysis

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify the initial action in root cause analysis

    The process starts by asking 'Why?' multiple times to understand the problem deeply.
  2. Step 2: Evaluate the options

    Only Ask 'Why?' repeatedly to dig deeper describes this investigative questioning approach correctly.
  3. Final Answer:

    Ask 'Why?' repeatedly to dig deeper -> Option C
  4. Quick Check:

    Root cause analysis starts with asking 'Why?' [OK]
Hint: Start root cause analysis by asking 'Why?' [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Trying to fix before understanding the cause
  • Ignoring rare problems without analysis
  • Confusing test writing with root cause steps
3. Consider this scenario: A test fails because the login button does not respond. After investigation, you find the button's click event is not bound due to a missing script file. What is the root cause?
medium
A. The script file is missing, so click event is not bound
B. The login button is not visible
C. The test case is incorrect
D. The server is down

Solution

  1. Step 1: Analyze the failure reason

    The test fails because the login button does not respond to clicks.
  2. Step 2: Identify the root cause

    The missing script file causes the click event not to bind, which is the main reason for failure.
  3. Final Answer:

    The script file is missing, so click event is not bound -> Option A
  4. Quick Check:

    Missing script file = root cause [OK]
Hint: Root cause is the missing script causing failure [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Blaming the test case instead of the cause
  • Assuming UI visibility is the problem
  • Incorrectly blaming server downtime
4. You have a failing test due to a timeout error. You suspect the root cause is a slow database query. Which debugging step will best confirm this?
medium
A. Ignore the timeout and rerun the test
B. Check the test script syntax
C. Restart the test environment
D. Run the database query separately and measure time

Solution

  1. Step 1: Identify the suspected root cause

    The slow database query is suspected to cause the timeout.
  2. Step 2: Choose the debugging action to confirm

    Running the query separately and measuring its time will confirm if it is slow.
  3. Final Answer:

    Run the database query separately and measure time -> Option D
  4. Quick Check:

    Measure suspected cause to confirm root cause [OK]
Hint: Test suspected cause directly to confirm [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Checking unrelated test script syntax
  • Restarting environment without analysis
  • Ignoring the error and rerunning blindly
5. A web app test fails intermittently due to a 'null reference' error. After root cause analysis, you find the error happens only when the user profile data is missing. How should you fix this to prevent future failures?
hard
A. Increase test timeout to avoid failure
B. Add a check in code to handle missing profile data gracefully
C. Remove the user profile feature entirely
D. Ignore the error since it happens rarely

Solution

  1. Step 1: Understand the root cause

    The null reference error occurs because the code does not handle missing user profile data.
  2. Step 2: Choose the fix to prevent recurrence

    Adding a code check to handle missing data gracefully will stop the error from happening again.
  3. Final Answer:

    Add a check in code to handle missing profile data gracefully -> Option B
  4. Quick Check:

    Fix root cause by handling missing data [OK]
Hint: Fix root cause by coding safe checks [OK]
Common Mistakes:
  • Ignoring rare errors instead of fixing
  • Removing features unnecessarily
  • Changing unrelated test settings
Recommended

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10 questions~5 mineasy hard