Test case prioritization based on fault sensitivity analysis using ranked NSGA-2

Abstract

This paper discusses regression testing in software maintenance, focusing on test case prioritization to verify modifications to software functionality efficiently. The primary goal is to rank test cases, prioritizing those covering more code or faults with minimal execution time. The challenge lies in prioritizing numerous test cases generated during development and maintenance. Various algorithms, including greedy approaches and meta-heuristic techniques, address this challenge. The paper introduces a ranking-based non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-2) for test case prioritization, emphasizing cases sensitive to faults caused by modifications or new functionality. Historical data is prioritized, with key objectives including the sensitive index, execution cost, and average percentage of fault detection (APFD). The proposed model is tested on handcrafted and benchmark Java-based applications, comparing its performance to state-of-the-art algorithms in test case prioritization.