Software Testing Performance & Load Testing 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary goal of performance testing?
- Find functional bugs in the application
- Evaluate system speed, scalability, and stability under load (Correct answer)
- Verify that UI elements render correctly
- Check database schema integrity
Correct answer: Evaluate system speed, scalability, and stability under load
Performance testing evaluates how a system behaves in terms of speed, scalability, and stability under various load conditions, not functional correctness.
Question 2: Which type of performance test is designed to push the system beyond normal operational capacity to find its breaking point?
- Load test
- Stress test (Correct answer)
- Spike test
- Soak test
Correct answer: Stress test
Stress testing deliberately exceeds normal operational limits to identify the point at which the system fails or becomes unstable.
Question 3: Which metric measures the elapsed time from when a user sends a request to when they receive a complete response?
- Throughput
- Error rate
- Response time (Correct answer)
- Concurrency
Correct answer: Response time
Response time is the interval between a user submitting a request and receiving the full response, making it a key user-experience metric.
Question 4: In performance testing, 'throughput' refers to which of the following?
- The time to complete a single transaction
- The number of requests processed per unit of time (Correct answer)
- The percentage of failed requests during the test
- The maximum number of concurrent users supported
Correct answer: The number of requests processed per unit of time
Throughput is the rate at which a system processes transactions or requests, typically expressed as requests per second or transactions per minute.
Question 5: What does a soak test (also called an endurance test) primarily evaluate?
- System performance under peak load for a short period
- System stability and potential memory leaks over an extended period (Correct answer)
- System recovery time after an unexpected failure
- Response time under minimum possible load
Correct answer: System stability and potential memory leaks over an extended period
Soak testing runs the system under sustained load for a long duration to uncover memory leaks, resource depletion, and gradual performance degradation.
Question 6: In performance testing, what is a 'virtual user' (VUser)?
- A real user being observed during a live test session
- A simulated entity that mimics real user behavior to generate load (Correct answer)
- An administrator account with elevated privileges used during testing
- A test account with intentionally restricted permissions
Correct answer: A simulated entity that mimics real user behavior to generate load
A virtual user is a software-simulated entity that replicates real user behavior, allowing performance tools to generate significant load without requiring actual human participants.
Question 7: What is the purpose of establishing a 'baseline' in performance testing?
- To define the minimum acceptable performance threshold for release
- To create a reference measurement for comparing future test results (Correct answer)
- To set the maximum load the system is required to handle
- To document the average response time observed in production
Correct answer: To create a reference measurement for comparing future test results
A baseline captures system performance under known conditions and serves as a reference point so future results can be meaningfully compared to detect improvements or regressions.
Software Testing Performance & Load Testing 1
What is the primary goal of performance testing?