There are many tools available for .NET automation testing and development. That gives you the option to choose the one better suited to meet their business requirements and infrastructure. Once you figure out the right tool, working on the project becomes a lot easier.
There are many criteria for choosing a particular tool. For example, you can check Cross-OS and platform functionality if you want to build integrations through DevOps. Or you can see which automation technologies that a particular tool supports. You can also go for a tool that requires less coding skills/ technical expertise. Price can also be an important criterion if you want to create an open-source project, depending on your budget.
In this article, we’ll list out various tools that you can use for the development and testing of .NET applications.
1. Jenkins
Jenkins is a development automation tool that integrates with hundreds of plugins to extend its services. It’s an open-source CI/CD tool, and you can use it for many languages, including .NET. It has a built-in lifecycle management system.
Jenkins has a plugin architecture that developers can use to extend its functionalities. Its distributed style can be adapted for many different types of machines/systems to promote faster and easier code building. It also has error checking and built-in support functions for beginners.
You can configure Jenkins through the MSBuild plugin. What’s more, installing Jenkins is very easy with a Java-based program.
2. SmartBear TestComplete
SmartBear is a testing tool that developers use to perform cross-platform and end-to-end testing. It can also test for HTML5 and has built-in integration with lifecycle management colts such as Jenkins and Jira.
It can identify UI elements and objects in code and can share it through repositories. AI integration makes object identification easy with a built-in object spy tool. It also has data options with full metrics coverage to calculate test results.
With scriptless recording, this tool can record and play your test later. It also has keyword-driven testing that allows you to test without coding. The reporting is automated, and you can generate multiple test reports effortlessly. Using this tool, you can reuse the test cases for other projects too. It can also integrate with other test automation tools for more accurate testing and reporting.
3. Azure DevOps
This is a popular framework with automated Azure pipelines for DevOps code development and testing. You can use Azure DevOps for CI/CD and testing pipelines. You can also integrate it into other projects, and it supports Kubernetes and Azure functions.
You can also use the build pipeline option to generate your projects’ code. You can edit the pipeline to use different services. You can also input triggers so that you have branches for different commits in your repository. The pipelines are cloud-hosted, and you can use their integrating abilities to adapt it for different projects and functions.
For this, you need to have a Microsoft Azure account along with a Visual Studio Office subscription. You can also use Azure Repo or GitHub Repo for your projects created by this tool.
4. Testarchitect
Testarchitect is a testing automation tool that you can use for DevOps projects. It has various automation options for testing .NET code. As per the tool’s documentation, you can automate 95% of a project through this.
It has options for codeless automation— i.e., built-in functions that you can use directly to start testing. The tool is keyword-driven, a systematic approach that decreases testing efforts incrementally after every test.
The test execution is dependent on various variables that you can configure as per your requirements. And if you need, you can use an action recorder to understand the test flow and then use it to define future tests for your project.
5. Redgate Toolkit
Developers can use the Redgate tool for development, deployment, and testing. If you’re looking for a tool that can specifically work with SQL server, this is the tool for you.
Developers face many problems in SQL, such as data inconsistency, fast growth, and inability to match tools and tasks. They also need to improve their competitive advantage while keeping the downtime low for the projects. Redgate’s SQL toolkit helps them code faster with its SQL prompt and SSMS support features.
It also helps them to make simultaneous code changes through SQL change automation, i.e., the code changes simultaneously in visual code and in the database. This allows you to deploy more quickly and save testing feedback time. The SQL toolkit also periodically compresses and creates backups for your code, allowing you to return to it if required.
6. Ranorex
Ranorex is a test automation tool that provides end-to-end testing for .NET and Java. It can run on its own Ranorex studio. This testing tool is keyword driven and has intelligent code completion and debugging options to verify your code.
This tool offers scalable web testing and can perform cross-platform, mobile device testing. It also has features for data-driven testing and can run test flows with different test data to increase coverage.
It can identify objects and can maintain code through repositories. You can add actions in the code and edit your previous actions for more detail-oriented tests. The test suite is flexible and can perform many functions such as combining modules, defining custom configurations, and using data bindings for final results.
Conclusion
Most engineers who start with .NET testing tools get confused about which one to choose. There are so many tools out there with different levels of reporting and testing capabilities. They also cater to different developers, based on their ability to code.
Since there are so many out there, making a perfect choice might seem impossible. All tools have their pros and cons. To make a decision, you should assess your requirements and understand what sort of tool your business needs. The best thing you can do is to get started in one and test out its capabilities. You can always switch to a different one if things don’t work out.
Also Read: A Beginner’s Guide To ASP.NET And XML
