# A use case driven approach for system level testing

**Authors:** Muhammad Touseef, Zahid Hussain Qaisar  
**arXiv:** [1212.3060](https://arxiv.org/abs/1212.3060)  
**Date:** 2012-12-13  
**Summary page:** https://www.summarizepaper.com/en/paper/1212.3060v1/

## Key points

- The article proposes a technique for system testing derived from the specification without involving functional details
- Use case scenarios are created during the analysis phase to specify software system requirements and can also be used for creating system level test cases
- Benefits of using use case scenarios for creating test cases include reducing overall development cost of the system by designing tests at early stages of software development life cycle
- The proposed technique utilizes initial and post conditions applied as guards at each level of the use cases to enable generation of formalized test cases
- A state chart derived from sequence diagrams can model the entire behavior of the system, allowing generated test cases to be employed and executed on it in order to capture behavior with state changes
- This approach enables systematic refinement of specifications in order to achieve goals of system testing at early development stages
- The proposed technique offers an alternative solution that does not require detailed knowledge about implementation or design aspects, making it useful when such information is unavailable or incomplete.

## Summary

The article "A use case driven approach for system level testing" proposes a technique for system testing that is derived directly from the specification without involving functional details. Use case scenarios are created during the analysis phase to specify software system requirements and can also be used for creating system level test cases, which has several benefits including reducing overall development cost of the system by designing tests at early stages of software development life cycle. To address this issue, the proposed technique utilizes initial and post conditions applied as guards at each level of the use cases to enable generation of formalized test cases and make it possible to generate test cases for each flow of the system. A state chart derived from the combination of sequence diagrams can model the entire behavior of the system, allowing generated test cases to be employed and executed on it in order to capture behavior with state changes. This approach enables systematic refinement of specifications in order to achieve goals of system testing at early development stages. The authors note that their proposed technique offers an alternative solution that does not require detailed knowledge about implementation or design aspects, making it useful when such information is unavailable or incomplete. Overall, this paper presents a valuable contribution towards improving software quality assurance through effective use case-driven techniques for systematic refinement and validation during early stages of development.