Performance Testing Guidance for Web Applications

J.D. Meier, Carlos Farre, Prashant Bansode, Scott Barber, and Dennis Rea
Microsoft Corporation

September 2007

This guide shows you an end-to-end approach for implementing performance testing. Whether you are new to performance testing, or looking for ways to improve your current performance testing approach, you will find insights that you can tailor for your specific scenarios.

The Final Release is Available! Start using the guide today, while we continue to make improvements.

• Download the Performance Testing Guidance for Web Applications Guide

This guide covers Microsoft's recommended approach for implementing performance testing for Web applications. These provide steps for managing and conducting performance testing. For simplification and tangible results, they are broken down into activities with inputs, outputs, and steps. You can use the steps as a baseline or to help you evolve your own process. The performance-testing approach used in this guide consists of the following activities as shown in the figure:

.

• Part 1, Introduction to Performance Testing
• Part II, Exemplar Performance Testing Approaches
• Part III, Identify the Test Environment
• Part IV, Identify Performance Acceptance Criteria
• Part V, Plan and Design Tests
• Part VI, Execute Tests
• Part VII, Analyze Results and Report
• Part VIII, Performance Testing Techniques

• Foreword By Alberto Savoia
• Foreword By Rico Mariani

• Introduction

• Chapter 1 – Fundamentals of Web Application Performance Testing
• Chapter 2 – Types of Performance Testing
• Chapter 3 – Risks Addressed Through Performance Testing

• Chapter 4 – Web Application Performance Testing Core Activities
• Chapter 5 – Coordinating Performance Testing with an Iteration-Based Process
• Chapter 6 – Managing an Agile Performance Test Cycle
• Chapter 7 – Managing the Performance Test Cycle in a Regulated (CMMI) Environment

• Chapter 8 – Evaluating Systems to Increase Performance-Testing Effectiveness

• Chapter 9 – Determining Performance Testing Objectives
• Chapter 10 – Quantifying End-User Response Time Goals
• Chapter 11 – Consolidating Various Types of Performance Acceptance Criteria

• Chapter 12 – Modeling Application Usage
• Chapter 13 – Determining Individual User Data and Variances

• Chapter 14 – Test Execution

• Chapter 15 – Key Mathematic Principles for Performance Testers
• Chapter 16 – Performance Test Reporting Fundamentals

• Chapter 17 – Load-Testing Web Applications
• Chapter 18 – Stress-Testing Web Applications

We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this guide and its companion content. If you have comments on this guide, send e-mail to

PerfTest@microsoft.com

We are particularly interested in feedback regarding the following:

• Technical issues specific to recommendations
• Usefulness and usability issues

This guide was produced by the following Team

• J.D. Meier, Microsoft, Senior Program Manager, patterns & practices
• Carlos Farre, Microsoft, Software Design Engineer Test, patterns & practices
• Prashant Bansode, Infosys Technologies Ltd
• Scott Barber, PerfTestPlus Inc, Chief Technologist
• Dennis Rea, Wadeware LLC

Many thanks to the following contributors and reviewers:

• Microsoft Contributors and Reviewers: Alan Ridlehoover; Clint Huffman; Edmund Wong; Ken Perilman; Larry Brader; Mark Tomlinson; Paul Williams; Pete Coupland; Rico Mariani
• External Contributors and Reviewers: Alberto Savoia; Ben Simo; Cem Kaner; Chris Loosley; Corey Goldberg; Dawn Haynes; Derek Mead; Karen N. Johnson; Mike Bonar; Pradeep Soundararajan; Richard Leeke; Roland Stens; Ross Collard; Steven Woody

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