In the wake of the recent case where a hacker stole $31m of Ether, you may be looking at outsourcing your testing needs. Have your in-house testers missed spotting any vulnerability in the default smart contract code? Can you trust your developer team to validate the same critical code they developed? Are you wondering whether the underlying codes will withstand hacking? 

Do you want to engage testers with deep domain knowledge in the banking sector? Well, you don’t have to look far. eTestware provides a unique service, a one-stop shop for all your requirements of outsourced blockchain testing.

Why eTestware?

In today’s dynamic landscape, more and more blockchain applications are emerging. Easier experimentation, collaboration, and greater integration is driving the momentum. New integrations in blockchain are currently being developed. For instance, artificial intelligence is being considered for effective storage and analysis of big data to sync with blockchain. Blockchain applications are also being developed for governmental purposes. So there is a greater need for meticulous testing by a testing ecosystem independent of the developer network. eTestware fulfills the requirement, with its capabilities of simultaneous testing by a team of independent testers.

The challenges of experimentation in blockchain development include the use of precise terminology, clear business requirements, design specifications, and most importantly, rigorous testing protocols. Thus testers need to have excellent knowledge of the business processes in various domains of blockchain application that your developer team may lack. By outsourcing your testing to eTestware, whose specialized testers have proven track records and experience of testing critical to blockchain applications, you are cementing the success of your product. Dedicated testers understand the blockchain technology very well, and are best equipped to handle the specialized testing ecosystem.

Why testing is so critical to blockchain development

Blockchain technology has revolutionized the way businesses are conducted. It is at the core of digital currencies such as Bitcoin that has gone mainstream. With increasing abilities of deployment and integration, testers must understand how to evaluate blockchain applications. Where are they likely to encounter problems? Moreover, blockchain applications are not limited to the financial world – it’s smart contract underpinning has the ability to be integrated into many different areas like energy allocation to government services. All of the above bring challenges that are unique to blockchain debugging.

Blockchain differs from other traditional applications, requiring testers to approach specific requirements and acceptance criteria. The significance of the smart contract cannot also be ignored. Once the smart contract is implemented, its execution cannot be reversed. Besides, smart contract codes define how seamlessly the software performs with increased workloads. This calls for robust outsourced testing specialized in debugging the code.

The testing ecosystem for blockchain application

The blockchain software testing is a highly specialized domain that requires proven expertise and a rigorous approach.

The testing ecosystem of blockchain applications includes the following:

• Functional testing– It is the basic testing of the components and systems and its workings. As blockchain technology is finding newer applications every day, this stage of testing is a significant part of the blockchain testing life-cycle. Testing is undertaken with respect to use scenarios, and specific business processes involved.
• Integration testing– It tests the integration or interfaces between components and different parts of the system. With blockchain being deployed in various systems and environments, integration testing ensures consistency in performance critical to the flawless implementation of the blockchain.

• Security testing – Security testing is essential to blockchain application debugging, as blockchain finds use in highly secure financial, government or regulatory environments. Rigorous testing is undertaken for security considerations. Is the application vulnerable to attacks? Is the authorization well entrenched and robust? How well does the system protect data and maintain the objective? Does it have the built-in capability to ward off malicious attacks?
  Testing for confidentiality, integrity, authentication, access, authorization, and non-repudiation are critical components of security testing in blockchain applications.
• Performance testing – One of the most important criteria of blockchain applications is speed.The performance and latency vary with the size of network and size of transactions. Performance testing is a critical stage of the testing lifecycle, as it tests the speed of performance with a given workload, and whether desired criteria are met. By defining the metrics for tuning the system and identifying performance bottlenecks like database configuration, this process helps to determine whether the application is ready for production.

Specialised testing specific to blockchain applications

• Peer/node - The power of a blockchain application lies in the shared ledger being precisely the same at each node, with exactly the same set and sequence of transactions. It is achieved through consensus across all nodes in the order in which transactions are added to the network, validated by rigorous testing. Where nodes fail to fall concurrently or participate in the network within given time, performance testing helps to validate the consensus. Do the nodes in the network sync with other validating peers? Is the integrity of the network and shared ledger maintained throughout the testing?

• Smart contract testing – At the core of the blockchain validation process is the ‘smart contract. It refers to the set of software constructs that automatically execute transactions when pre-defined conditions and business logic are met.Testing smart contracts involve simulation of all possible expected and unexpected variables for every contract and the triggers that execute transactions. Smart contract testing requires expert knowledge of possible scenarios, business and transaction variables, that are specific to blockchain implementation.
  In a given dynamic network, with vast numbers of nodes and probable combinations, automation of testing is significant. Besides, as smart contracts enforce a set of rules through strong cryptography, validation of the encryption codes is also required using robust testing methodologies.
  Smart contract testing is complicated and requires specialized capabilities for validations. Testers need API skills and QA skills, besides regulatory, security, data and business process compliance skills. The reason why outsourcing the testing ecosystem to a dedicated team of specialized testers has become the rage. Outsourcing is helping to bridge the gap between business processes and technology for a more sturdy application.

Why is contract testing so critical to blockchain?

When a contract is created, it is perpetual. So when a flaw is discovered, a fresh version of the contract is created and deployed. When you do so, data stored in the previous contract has to be to manually initialized in sync with the past data. Another problem that comes up is that of updating a contract or rolling back an update. It places a huge challenge for the quality assurance and debugging team.

The smart contract testing process begins with validating the methods, the encryption, and transmission. However, the most complex stage is validating the processing and execution of the contracts, which is a manually intensive process.
In outsourced testing, the entire testing lifecycle is validated in minute detail from functional and non-functional tests, to specific automated and manual smart contract tests for the right business impacts.

eTestware Focus on Smart ContractsAs smart contracts are a new model of computing, their deployment to a blockchain requires careful integration. Software testers need to have a thorough grasp of the new protocols involved. Moreover their applications to enterprise purpose, also need to be understood by the testers. As smart contract testing includes a complex process of manual validation, in addition to automated testing, testers of blockchain need to be equipped with the relevant skills, which may not always be possible with in-house teams. On the other hand, outsourcing the testing through eTestware ensures a testing ecosystem well-versed with the protocols and complexities of the blockchain validation process.
The challenges of smart contract testing are many. Use cases need to effectively link smart contracts to real assets, which require in-depth domain knowledge. The irreversibility or permanence of the blockchain smart contracts means granular considerations, before designing a new version of the contract. With the code being visible to all parties within the network, it requires validation for suitability to the particular business process. Thus, a dedicated testing environment that is neutral and self-governing assumes importance.

How eTestware differs from other playerseTestware is the go-to company for blockchain testing services. By outsourcing software testing of blockchain applications, you save many problems while gaining a debugging advantage.

• Test automation services in addition to manual testing
• Industry-specific testing service offerings
• Access to best of breed professionals specialized in smart contract testing
• The advantage of independent validation of the smart code

Rigorous testing and benchmarking is the mainstay of software assessment and business transformation. As the range of blockchain deployment extends to almost every industry, there is a high investment in blockchain development. This means that there cannot be shortcuts about the testing of the blockchain application. Outsourcing the highly specialized skills of blockchain testing ecosystem is a sure-fire way to decrease the potential of having disasters with your software deployment under multiple scenarios.