Test Control Notation Version Research Articles

<i>Inmap-t</i>: Leveraging TTCN-3 to Test the Security Impact of Intra Network Elements

This paper rejuvenates the notion of conformance testing in order to assess the security of networks. It leverages the Testing and Test Control Notation Version 3 (TTCN-3) by applying it to a redefined notion of System under Test (SUT). Instead of testing, as it is classically done, a software/firmware/ hardware element, an intangible object, namely the network, is tested in order to infer some of its security properties. After a brief introduction of TTCN-3 and Titan, its compilation and execution environment, a couple of use cases are provided to illustrate the feasibility of the approach. The pros and cons of using TTCN-3 to implement a scalable and flexible network testing environment are discussed.

Combining usage-based and model-based testing for service-oriented architectures in the industrial practice

Usage-based testing focuses quality assurance on highly used parts of the software. The basis for this are usage profiles based on which test cases are generated. There are two fundamental approaches in usage-based testing for deriving usage profiles: either the system under test (SUT) is observed during its operation and from the obtained usage data a usage profile is automatically inferred, or a usage profile is modeled by hand within a model-based testing (MBT) approach. In this article, we propose a third and combined approach, where we automatically infer a usage profile and create a test data repository from usage data. Then, we create representations of the generated tests and test data in the test model from an MBT approach. The test model enables us to generate executable Testing and Test Control Notation version 3 (TTCN-3) and thereby allows us to automate the test execution. Together with industrial partners, we adopted this approach in two pilot studies. Our findings show that usage-based testing can be applied in practice and greatly helps with the automation of tests. Moreover, we found that even if usage-based testing is not of interest, the incorporation of usage data can ease the application of MBT.

Titan TTCN-3 Based Test Framework for Resource Constrained Systems

Wireless communication systems more and more become part of our daily live. Especially with the Internet of Things (IoT) the overall connectivity increases rapidly since everyday objects become part of the global network. For this purpose several new wireless protocols have arisen, whereas 6LoWPAN (IPv6 over Low power Wireless Personal Area Networks) can be seen as one of the most important protocols within this sector. Originally designed on top of the IEEE802.15.4 standard it is a subject to various adaptions that will allow to use 6LoWPAN over different technologies; e.g. DECT Ultra Low Energy (ULE). Although this high connectivity offers a lot of new possibilities, there are several requirements and pitfalls coming along with such new systems. With an increasing number of connected devices the interoperability between different providers is one of the biggest challenges, which makes it necessary to verify the functionality and stability of the devices and the network. Therefore testing becomes one of the key components that decides on success or failure of such a system. Although there are several protocol implementations commonly available; e.g., for IoT based systems, there is still a lack of according tools and environments as well as for functional and conformance testing. This article describes the architecture and functioning of the proposed test framework based on Testing and Test Control Notation Version 3 (TTCN-3) for 6LoWPAN over ULE networks.

RRM Conformance Testing Validation of Cell Handover in TD-LTE System

In order to verify the protocol conformance of RRM (radio resource management) handover procedure in TD-LTE system, We proposed an implementation program of terminal RRM conformance test system with TTCN-3 (Testing and Test Control Notation version 3), designed the testing process of handover in cells, developed the corresponding test cases, and completed the protocol conformance test of Terminal RRM Handover procedure.

History, status, and recent trends of the testing and test control notation version 3 (TTCN-3)

This overview article presents the Testing and Test Control Notation (TTCN-3) success story and serves as an introduction to this Special Section that contains five articles selected from the TTCN-3 user conference in 2011. The article sketches the development of TTCN-3 from its very beginning. It summarizes the current status of the language by reviewing its standardization process, available test suites, tools, and services as well as its training program. In addition, the article puts the articles selected for this Special Section into perspective, with regard to the evolution of TTCN-3 and the testing methodology in general. Last but not least, it discusses indicators for possible future developments of TTCN-3.

The Development of RRM Conformance Test in TD-LTE Idle_State

In order for the RRM conformance of implementation in TD-LTE system idle_state, taking inter-frequency cell reselection procedure as the point of penetration, a new testing scheme is designed by developing testing and test control notation version 3(TTCN-3) test case to verify the RRM conformance. Furthermore, the test case is operated on the TTworkbench developed by German Testing tech. It also generates test execution flow chart to check the RRM conformance of idle_state functions.

The Improvement and Verification of Conformance Testing Platform in TD-LTE System

Firstly,This paper improves the test framework for protocol conformance testing platform.Secondly, A testing suit is exploited by the test control notation version 3(TTCN-3) to verify the protocol conformance testing. Furthermore, It gets TTCN simulation graphics through specific the re-establish testing suit. At last, Theoretical analysis and simulation results show the advantages of testing program as well as the feasibility of the platform.

TTCN-3 in Conformance Testing of RRC Connection Reestablishment

In order to verify the protocol conformance of radio resource control (RRC) connection reestablishment in LTE system, a new testing method is designed by implementing testing and test control notation version 3(TTCN-3) abstract test suit. Furthermore, the test suit is operated on the TTworkbench developed by German Testing tech. It also generates graphical presentation format (GFT) to check the protocol conformance of RRC functions. The scheme has been successfully applied in the project development of TTCN extended test set instrument in LTE system.

Quantifying the evolution of TTCN-3 as a language

Ten years of maintenance, nine published revisions of the standards for the Testing and Test Control Notation version 3 (TTCN-3), more than 500 change requests since 2006, and 10 years of activity on the official TTCN-3 mailing list add up to a rich history, not unlike that of many successful Open Source Software (OSS) projects. In this article, we contemplate TTCN-3 in the context of software evolution and examine its history quantitatively. We mined the changes in the textual content of the standards, the data in change requests from the past 5 years, and the mailing list archives from the past 10 years. In addition, to characterize the use of the TTCN-3 we investigated the meta-data of the contributions at the TTCN-3 User Conference, and the use of language constructs in a large-scale TTCN-3 test suite. Based on these data sets, we first analyze the amount, density, and location of changes within the different parts of the standard. Then, we analyze the activity and focus of the user community and the maintenance team in both the change request management system and the official TTCN-3 mailing list. Finally, we analyze the distribution of contributions at the TTCN-3 User Conference across different topics over the past 8 years and construct use anomalies during the development of a large-scale test suite. Our findings indicate that the TTCN-3 is becoming increasingly stable as the overall change density and intensity, as well as the number of change requests are decreasing, despite the monotonous increase in the size of the standards.

A generic interoperability testing framework and a systematic development process for automated interoperability testing

Interoperability is a prerequisite to allow users to access systems implemented by different vendors seamlessly. A good baseline to achieve interoperability is the implementation of a common set of standards. However, this is often not sufficient as different implementations of a standard are not necessarily interoperable. Therefore, different implementations of systems need to be assessed for interoperability by applying interoperability testing. In this article, we present a generic framework that enables automated interoperability testing with message checks, which assess the compliance of messages exchanged between systems. The goal of this framework is the provision of a basic functionality of interoperability test entities, the definition of a generic interoperability test environment, and guidelines for the specification of automated interoperability tests. The framework also considers aspects related to interoperability testing including verdicts, automation, and limitations of the system under test. Through the application of the framework, interoperability of systems can be assessed, systems can be validated, and standards can be improved. In addition, we present a systematic development process for automated interoperability tests to formalize the development and specification of an interoperability test system. We also consider aspects and critical issues, which are important for the development of a complete interoperability test system. The framework and the process are language and system technology independent. We present their application in a case study that includes interoperability tests for the Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) using the Testing and Test Control Notation Version 3 (TTCN-3).

Defining a Formal Semantics for Real-Time Test Specification with TTCN-31

Real-time software is usually used in circumstances where safety is important and the margin for errors is narrow. These kinds of systems have applicability in a broad band of domains as: automotive, avionics, air traffic control, nuclear power stations, industrial control, etc. As the name denotes, the main feature of applications is the criticality of their timeliness. Guaranteeing certain timeliness requires appropriate testing. As manual testing is burdensome and error prone, automated testing techniques are required. Although the importance of having a standard environment for automatic testing is high, the technologies in this area are not sufficiently developed. This paper reviews the standardized test description language Testing and Test Control Notation version 3 (TTCN-3) as a mean for real-time testing and proposes extensions to enable real-time testing with TTCN-3. The aim is to provide a complete testing solution for automatic functional and real-time testing, built around this already standardized testing language. The solution includes an environment for designing and running the tests written in the extended language. As a proof of concept, test examples, designed using the enhanced TTCN-3, are mapped to real-time platform implementations and the timeliness of each implementation is analyzed.

A Workload Generation Method for TTCN-3 Performance Testing

TTCN-3(Testing and Test Control Notation version 3) is a test specification and implementation language to define test procedures for black-box testing.As TTCN-3 has been widely accepted and applied in many fields of testing,the demand of using TTCN-3 in performance testing is emerged and increased rapidly.In performance testing,how to define and generate workload is an important issue.However,because of TTCN-3 language's insufficient support,testers usually need to make a great effort to manually write workload generation code in TTCN-3.This paper proposes a model-driven method to facilitate workload generation in TTCN-3 performance test.According to the method,the LQM(Load Quantity Model) is used to character the workload quantities and the constraints between the quantities,while the LPM(Load Profile Model) could define the value of each quantity and its changes with respect to time.This paper also presents a series of algorithm to automate the transformation from the model to the TTCN-3 test system.Finally,together with a set of control points the authors designed in this paper,the TTCN-3 test system could be executed in order to generate the expected workload.A case is used to demonstrate the capability of the method and validate the accuracy of the generated workload.

A conformance test tool for next generation network applications and systems

AbstractThis paper describes the architecture and operations of a test system NGNAS‐SIOTP. NGNAS‐SIOTP is designed based on the Testing and Test Control Notation Version 3 (TTCN‐3) specifications for the conformance testing of next generation network applications and systems. By specifying conformance test cases in abstract level, the test cases are language and platform‐independent, and the implementation of the test cases can be more convenient. We use an Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) Browsing test case of XHTML Structure Module and an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) test case of Replaces Extension Header Field to illustrate how conformance tests can be implemented and conducted in our NGNAS‐SIOTP. These test cases conform to the OMA Enabler Test Specification (Conformance) for OMA Browsing and RFC documents for IMS. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Software testing and quality assurance: theory and practice

Software testing and quality assurance: theory and practice

From testing to anti-product development

The requirements for testing in large software projects drastically changed in recent years. The reasons for this mainly come from evolving development processes, demanding early stabilisations of complete software loads, early handover to subsequent steps, high software release quality, and in particular flexible adaptations to changing roadmaps. This study is an experience report from industrial testing in the field of telecommunications software and based on a speech given by the author at the Testing and Test Control Notation version 3 (TTCN-3) User Conference in Berlin 2006. It advocates to consider modern testing rather as the development of an anti-product that is to be developed in parallel to the product. This anti-product is itself a complex software system. Following this approach has a significant impact on the testing in these large software projects mentioned and leads to a number of consequences for the development of test systems and the structure of test teams. In this study, the role and virtues of TTCN-3 as programming language for anti-products as well as for defining the test system structure are investigated. Dealing with large embedded software systems that have several concurrent parts and additionally obey soft real-time requirements, similar constraints also hold for the test system. The virtues of parallel testing/software development life cycles as it becomes mandatory in following modern development processes are presented, and it is shown how TTCN-3 turned out in our experience to be a language particularly well suited for this purpose because of its advanced structured programming concepts derived from strong typing, template concepts and parametrizations of templates.