Manual testing is a type of software testing in which all the test cases are run by a tester, without any automated tools. The purpose of manual testing is to identify any bugs/errors and ensure that the software meets all of its functional requirements.
Some types of manual testing are shown in the illustration below:
To perform manual testing, follow the steps given below:
Select areas to test by going through the software documentation or guides.
Analyze and draft test cases that cover all the requirements mentioned in the documentation.
Execute all the test cases manually by using black-box or white-box testing.
Report any bugs or errors to the development team.
Run the failing test cases after the bugs are fixed by the development team.
Although manual testing is an integral and fundamental part of the software testing process, it does have some challenges, which are as follows:
Manual testing is time-consuming and requires patience from the tester.
It requires resources, such as high cost and skilled labor.
It can become repetitive and boring.
For new software, new test cases will need to be drafted.