Most software systems have installation procedures that are needed before they can be used for their main purpose. Testing these procedures to achieve an installed software system that may be used is known as installation testing. These procedures may involve full or partial upgrades, and install/uninstall processes.
Installation testing may look for errors that occur in the installation process that affect the user’s perception and capability to use the installed software. There are many events that may affect the software installation and installation testing may test for proper installation whilst checking for a number of associated activities and events. Some examples include the following:
- A user must select a variety of options.
- Dependent files and libraries must be allocated, loaded or located.
- Valid hardware configurations must be present.
- Software systems may need connectivity to connect to other software systems.
Installation testing may also be considered as an activity-based approach to how to test something. For example, install the software in various ways and on the various types of systems that it can be installed. Check which files are added or changed on disk. Does the installed software work? What happens when you uninstall?
