Flexibility of model based testing in practice

We all hear people arguing, model based testing is much better than traditional testing. "Why" you ask? "Well, it's much more flexible" comes the answer. And you sit back and think, "hmm, that really didn't answer my question?".

So let me try to answer your question - why are models more flexible? Let me give you a real life example of a case where model based testing proved to be flexible. I was working on a model for a new feature for the system under test. We started out designing and implementing model based testing on this particular feature the way it was implemented. It so happens that the feature contains a list of items (we call it a journal, when you confirm your entries you post the journal), and each item has associated a set of attributes (we call these dimensions - they are generic and used for analysis later on). We had developed a model for testing the posting functionality of this journal, and the model created roughly 300 test cases. Now it so happens that the dimension attributes can be set to a blocked state preventing posting the journal - which we had modeled.

Now somebody comes along and says: "You know what? This is simply used for forecasting, there is no need to prevent posting of blocked dimensions." At exactly this time you take a deep breath and brace youself for an argument on how the requirements were setup before you realize, well... this is not a problem at all, we used model based testing. We went back and looked at the model, and literally changed one line of model code changing the expected result from the PostJournal action to always be true. Viola, we had fixed 300 test cases.

In conclusion, model based testing allows for design changes at a later stage of development, as changes only need to be introduced on the model level. This is an huge benefit, especially because during the end game the pressure starts rising to finish before the deadline, and it is exactly at that time you do not have time to change 300 test cases because a requirement changed. Oh, and by the way, do requirements change in late game? Of course they do, that's the whole reason we invented SCRUM instead of the waterfall model (but that's for another post).