Simplify Enterprise Testing With the Right Tools: Two Case Studies
The right toolsand the right strategies for using themenable successful testing of enterprise applications at H&R Block and Burlington Coat Factory.
by Edmund X. DeJesus
Posted September 29, 2003
Enterprise architects face a perplexing dilemma about testing. On the one hand, enterprise applications are so valuable and important that they must be tested thoroughly. On the other hand, enterprise applications are so valuable and important that they can't be interrupted or disturbed for testing at all. Luckily, there are strategies and tools for dealing with this dilemma. You can perform the testing that is so essential, while ensuring the continuity of business operations.
How H&R Block Makes Testing Less Taxing
Keeping track of your customers' moneyand their taxesare probably two of the most serious responsibilities that an enterprise can take on. H&R Block does both with Web-based systems. The company's applications must be accurate and available for any of its thousands of users anytime, year-round.
In addition, it faces inescapable external deadlines: tax laws change annually. Some changes are major, some minor, but all must be assimilated into the H&R Block systemsand into its test strategies. Increasing the difficulty of testing, the Block systems employ various architectures, including Web-based, Windows XP and 2000, UNIX, and some legacy systems.
Block uses a range of tools to test both system performance and load balancing, as well as to acquire statistics and perform monitoring. "We use mostly Empirix test tools," reports Mike Deloney, director of quality assurance at the Kansas City headquarters.
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