API Testing – A rising trend in 2016

By: Lakshminarasimhan Rajabather, Vice President, Platform & Technology, Maveric Systems

Growing popularity of APIs

There is an increasing popularity and usage of APIs over the past few years. However, for decades APIs have been the standard method of connecting internal components and external systems. Today, Web APIs are the driving force behind almost all social platforms, payment systems. With, B2B communication & IoT driving most business processes, Open and Web APIs have been growing in numbers, providing almost everything from postal address look-up to complete banking services. With thousands of Web/Open APIs available for consumption, API connectivity has become the norm than an exception for many business & technology services.

But, in its most basic essence, what exactly are APIs? They are the routines and protocols which form the building blocks which can be shaped into contextual solutions based on requirements and business needs without compromising the interface during each unique implementation.

During the past few years, these building blocks called APIs have found greater relevance and implementation primarily due to the emergence of the following  trends :

The growth of Agile, DevOps and Two Speed IT

The emergence of new-age technologies such as Mobile, Big Data, IoT, Social, and Cloud

Strong impetus provided by business drivers in the form of Digitalization of Channels, Virtualization, Business Processes Outsourcing, Processes Outsourcing, Infrastructure and Testing Infrastructure Outsourcing

Rise in API Testing

Given that all businesses are rapidly adopting APIs and building new ones to meet their business and end-consumer demands, the need for validating these implementations has risen sharply in past few years and are likely to drive developments in API testing in the forthcoming years as well:-

1.Much like the factors driving the growth of APIs itself, Agile and DevOps methodology have also caused a rise in the “Shift Left” philosophy which necessitates early testing or testing along with development.

2.Testing in Agile and DevOps often involves testing components that are not yet available.

3.GUI Tests cannot sufficiently verify functional paths and services associated with multi-tier architectures.

4.Increase in the level of automation across the SDLC.

API Testing is the only effective way of testing applications and service when the business logic is embedded in servers and interface. Virtualization of Services provided by the APIs using Service Virtualization platforms based on the API specification will allow testing of/with systems being developed and consequently development to progress. The increase in automation across the SDLC is leading to increased test automation across API/Middleware/Interfaces.

Benefits of API Testing:-

1.Being easy to create, maintain and execute, API testing also overcomes many of limitations of GUI tests & when it comes to testing for Agile & DevOps which involve short release cycles and fast feedback loops.

2.API Testing is the only effective way of testing when there is no GUI, when business logic is embedded in servers and interfaces, when APIs are consumed internally across applications, and finally, when integrating external partner interfaces such as Cloud, BPaaS, PaaS, SaaS, IaaS, TIaaS become essential technology drivers.

3.Test First Delivery’, ‘First Day Testing’ approaches incorporate API-Interface testing from the beginning of development till delivery

4.Finally, on a macro level, the development of API testing also marks the evolution of testing itself from physical to logical layers – namely, API, Middleware, Messaging & Database layers.