[QA.TEM.5] Run tests in parallel for faster results

Category: RECOMMENDED

Parallelized test execution is the practice of concurrently running multiple test cases or suites to accelerate test results and expedite feedback. As software grows and becomes more modular, especially in architectures like microservices, the number of test cases also increases. Running these tests sequentially could significantly slow down delivery pipelines. By creating many test beds and distributing test cases across them asynchronously, tests can be run in parallel to allow for faster iterations and more frequent deployments.

Adopt a scaling-out strategy to test bed provisioning to establish multiple test beds tailored for specific test scenarios. Each test bed, provisioned through infrastructure as code (IaC), should have the necessary infrastructure and data setup for its designated test cases. Serverless infrastructure or container orchestration tools combined with state machines, such as AWS Step Functions, can improve your ability to dynamically provision and run tests in a scalable and cost-effective way. Test operations should not impact the data or outcome of other test beds. As tests are parallelized across multiple test beds, ensure data isolation to maintain test integrity. Use monitoring solutions to track parallelized test runs, ensuring each test bed is performing optimally and to help in debugging any anomalies.

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