In the software testing industry, handling defects efficiently is critical to ensuring the reliability and high quality of digital products and applications. A key concept that clarifies the different stages a defect goes through from discovery to closure is the Defect Life Cycle. It is also popularly called as the Bug Life Cycle in software testing.

Being aware of this cycle optimizes communication between developers, project managers, and testers while also simplifying this testing process.

What is a Defect in Software Testing?

It is important to clearly define and understand what is a defect before walking further into the topic of defect life cycle. Any deviation from the software application’s expected behavior is called a defect. In simpler terms, software is termed as defective if it does not work as intended or does not meet the requirements.

This article sheds light on defects and their types: Software Defects and Their Different Types

The Difference between Bug and Defect

It is well-known that the terms “defect” and “bug” are often used interchangeably. Even though it is pretty commonly used industry jargon, there are a few minor differences that one needs to be aware of. The difference between a defect and a bug is:

Defect: Identified prior to the software product’s release during the testing phase.

Bug: Usually detected by end users after the software has been deployed.

In real-world scenarios, both terms are often used to describe the same issue: a software error, fault, or flaw. The context and the detection phase are the main differences.

How Defects Get Introduced and Their Impact Across Teams

Common causes of defects include:

  • Coding errors
  • Vague requirements
  • Inadequate testing
  • Poor communication

You’ll see defects affecting various stakeholders:

  • Defects can cause users to become frustrated and lose faith in a product. This is ultimately detrimental to a brand’s reputation and thus, its revenue.
  • Product teams may experience difficulties due to frequent disastrous feature rollbacks, missed or delayed deadlines.
  • Sales teams experience challenges when trying to gain or retain customers.
  • Bugs increase technical debt and rework for developers.
  • QA teams will feel pressured to detect issues sooner.

Because every stakeholder experiences a bug’s ripple effect uniquely and with varying intensity, early detection and a structured defect life cycle are necessary.

Understanding the Defect Life Cycle in Testing

In software testing, a defect follows a structured workflow referred to as the defect life cycle. It ensures that every flaw is precisely monitored, assessed, and fixed at the earliest. The life cycle includes a number of statuses that define how the defect has progressed through the pipeline of testing and development.

The normal phases of a defect’s life cycle are explained as follows:

  • New: When a tester identifies a flaw, they note it in a defect tracking system along with the related information about the defect, including a clear description, screenshots, steps to replicate, severity, and priority. In such cases, the flaw is tagged as “New.”
  • Assigned: The defect is assigned to a developer for additional assessment after the QA lead or test manager has validated it. The new status tagged to the defect is “Assigned.”
  • Open: The developer acknowledges the defect assignment and starts working on identifying the root cause of the issue. The status is changed to “Open” in this scenario.
  • In Progress/Fixed: After zeroing down on the root cause, the developer starts working on fixing the defect. The status is then changed to “In Progress” or “Fixed” after it has been fixed.
  • Pending Retest: Post-fix the defect is reassigned to the testing team, waiting for their acknowledgement. At this stage, the status is changed to “Pending Retest.”
  • Retest: To confirm that the issue has been successfully resolved, the QA team retests the application.
  • Verified/ Resolved: Once it is confirmed that the defects are no longer experienced after the fix, the defect status is tagged as “Verified” or “Resolved.”
  • Reopened: The defect is tagged as “Reopened” and reassigned to the developer if it is observed again in the system.
  • Closed: Once the defect has been fixed, retested, and verified, the defect is tagged as “Closed.”

A Real-Life Example of the Defect Life Cycle in Action

To clearly understand the defect life cycle in simpler terms, let us take a look at the example below, which is a common occurrence:

  • A tester identifies that a mobile app’s login button does not work as expected.
  • They record the issue in the tracking tool and tag it as “New”.
  • The defect is assigned to a developer by the QA lead, and the status is changed to “Assigned.”
  • A missing onClick handler is caught by the developer. The status is thus now changed to “Fixed” after they resolve it.
  • After being notified, the tester retests the login button, and the status is changed to “Pending Retest.”
  • The tester changes the status to “Verified” or “Resolved” after the defect has been fixed.
  • Finally, the test manager marks the defect status as “Closed”.

The team’s clarity and accountability are ensured by the structured workflow.

The Optional States in Defect Life Cycle

Some organizations, teams, and tools provide intermediate or conditional statuses along with the primary main stages explained above:

  1. Deferred: While the defect continues to exist, it will be resolved in a later version.
  2. Duplicate: The defect was already reported earlier.
  3. Rejected/Not a Defect: The reported behavior has been reported with the specifications.
  4. Cannot Reproduce: Using the steps provided, the developer is unable to replicate the issue.

These optional phases support teams in effectively setting priorities and handling expectations.

Importance of Defect Life Cycle in Software Testing

  1. Enhanced Visibility: All stakeholders, including managers, developers, and testers, can see the current status of each defect due to the structured life cycle.
  2. Enhanced Communication: Clear transitions and status updates reduce miscommunications and increase teamwork.
  3. Streamlined Processes: Clearly defining the clear phases ensures that work is made easier to manage, ensures prompt retesting, and ensures flaws from being overlooked.
  4. Metrics and Reporting: Teams can generate reports on metrics that are vital to continuous improvement, such as average time to fix, defect density, and defect leakage rate, with the help of defect life cycle.

Tools for Managing Defect Life Cycle

The defect life cycle in testing can be simplified and automated with the help of multiple tools. Some of the prominent choices include:

  1. Jira: This highly configurable defect and project tracking platform is well-liked for agile project management, defect tracking, and sprint planning.
  2. testRigor: This AI-empowered, no-code test automation platform allows testers to catch and handle defects straight from automated test runs by integrating with a wide variety of bug tracking tools.
  3. Bugzilla: This open-source defect tracking tool was developed by Mozilla, and is known for its ease of use and endurance in managing software defects.
  4. Redmine: It is an adaptable project management and defect tracking application that includes calendars, Gantt charts, and role-based access control.
  5. MantisBT (Mantis Bug Tracker): It is an open-source, user-friendly web-based platform for tracking defects and managing project flaws.
  6. TestRail: This is an all-inclusive test management solution facilitated for seamless test case execution and defect linking by integration with issue tracking tools like Bugzilla and Jira.

These tools help testers to easily assign defects, record them, and monitor the defect progress using workflows customized to the needs of the organization.

Best Practices for Managing Defect Life Cycle

  • Clearly define the priority and severity of the defect to help in triage.
  • To accelerate resolution, ensure that the defect reports are detailed and reproducible.
  • Use consistent and standard naming conventions for statuses.
  • To ensure timely progress, develop SLAs (Service Level Agreements) for each step.
  • Conduct regular meetings with developers and testers to thoroughly triage defects.
  • Set up notifications and updates that are triggered automatically to alert everyone.

Conclusion

The Defect Life Cycle tracks the defects that are detected, managed, and resolved in a structured, open, and cooperative manner throughout the software development life cycle. It ensures that the defects are not only monitored but also efficiently and successfully resolved. Embracing a robust defect management practice can drastically boost the output of your team and the quality of your finished product if you are involved in the software testing field. Teams can reduce time-to-fix, improve software quality, and maintain higher role alignment by clearly understanding the meaning of the defect life cycle.