Why API testing is critical for today’s Business applications?

In today’s competitive world, businesses should understand the fact that only the best applications thrive well and continue to attract a lot of traffic. This prevalent concept has made software application development and software product development vital for all businesses across industries.

The Application Program Interface (API) is a set of processes, protocols, routines and tools for building these critical software applications. It is rather an interface that allows software applications to communicate with one another and is mainly used while programming the graphical user interface (GUI) components. There is a lot of significance as an API specifies how its software components should interact with each other.

API Testing

APIs are essential for creating an effective and connected experience for customers and thus businesses are beginning to realize their value. Understanding the depth of its role with respect to applications, hence the importance of API testing has come into place.

This specific testing involves testing of the application interfaces directly as part of the integration testing to determine if the application perfectly meets the expectations for functionality, performance, reliability and security.

According to a report on API Testing market outlook from MarketsandMarkets, the global API testing market size is expected to grow from USD 384.3 Million in 2016 to USD 1,099.1 Million by 2022, at a CAGR of 19.69% from 2017 to 2022. It has also been predicted that in the API testing market, the BFSI vertical is expected to grow at the highest rate during the forecast period (2017-2022).

Undoubtedly, investing more time and effort in API testing leads to better quality products that dominate the market with good reliability, security and performance.  

What Does API Testing Revolve Around?

– To ensure the APIs work as expected

– To specify and ensure the application can handle the desired load

– To establish the APIs work seamlessly through the operating systems and devices

– To ensure the data that passes through the API is in lieu of compliance & security

– To make sure all the business rules have been correctly implemented at the API level

– To enable a better user experience

– To ensure easier expansion of applications

– To make sure the API provides the required functionality

How is API Testing Done?

1. Set up the Environment:

Initially setting up the environment should be done with the required parameters that need to be configured for the given API. This includes configuration of server and database as per the API requirement.

2. Define the Test Plan:

The test plan varies based on product type and API. But a solid test plan should cover all scenarios in depth, clearly define the priority of scenarios that need to be tested. It should also include some of the common testing types like unit, integration, security, performance and third-party API tests.

3. Make an API Call:

It is important to make an API call to ensure there are no broken links in the process of testing as it is crucial before proceeding with the actual testing.

4. Combine Data with API Tests:

This step helps to make sure the interface functions as expected with the provided parameters after being configured.

Are these API’s Really Business Critical; How does API Testing Play a Key Role?

The interface is the heart of any application and if the product interface is not good enough, then it shows an adverse effect on its viability. It is a known fact that applications are getting more complex due to the varying end-user needs and in order to meet them, the API’s have become vital tools for businesses across every industry segment. Hence, it necessitates the need for an effective API testing at first hand.

Moreover, there is a significant chance that the API’s can be hacked. It is also unfortunate that whenever resources are exposed to the internet, it is likely to be attacked in some way or the other. Hence integration testing and API security testing is critical for all businesses today.

This testing not only ensures security standards but also confirms that the overall system will perform well even under varying loads or network conditions.

Joe Colantonio, an eminent testing domain blogger in his blog on “Why API Testing is Important,”  justifies the importance of API testing, saying that API testing is important with the agile practices on the go and with the internet of things (IoT) all around.

He further adds that agile has increased the frequency with which applications are released which in turn has created an increased demand for new ways to quickly test them. GUI tests are typically too slow to get the test coverage and since API tests do not rely on a UI to be ready, thus they can be created early in the software development process.

Undoubtedly Robust API Testing is the Future; But WHY?

– It tests the API’s for their capabilities to integrate, stand out to expected functionalities, equally, weigh aptly for performance parameters and meet up the security standards

– It helps to verify code, discover the defects at an early stage and evaluate any unwanted code

– This testing exposes coding issues that either manual or automated tests might miss

– Its superiority is that it is far less time consuming than functional GUI testing

– This aptly tests the core of your product’s functionality and it is the truth that functionality typically determines the end user’s expectations

– With API’s, integration of tools or programs can happen at any point of time to enhance the experience and functionalities of the software

– API testing is indispensable and test automation is leveraged currently to make the testing process faster and error-free

Pure play testing services providers like TestingXperts have a good number of expert API testers and provide the perfect environment to test your application interface effectively and efficiently as they have:

How can Testingxperts help you with Effective API Testing?

– Expertise on a wide range of API protocols like XML, SOAP, JSON, REST, Gdata, YAML, ATOM, RSS, and RDF etc.

– Experience with testing for code level functionality and ensure test accuracy

– Experience to perform end-to-end application validations at various layers of the application

– Expertise on leading industry tools for API testing for functional, load, and security testing

– Ample exposure with the automation of API test cases

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