Common Types of Software Bugs Every Tester Should Know

Software bugs are an inevitable part of the software development life cycle. No code is perfectly crafted at its first go. Bugs, anomalies, and errors need to be identified, recorded, and resolved. Therefore, creating a robust software product requires comprehensive testing and optimizations.

Throughout the testing process, teams are bound to encounter specific bugs that obstruct the development and testing process. If these bugs are not resolved in the early stages, they will disrupt the workflow in the later stages, and fixing them becomes far more challenging and time-consuming.

However, if testers are aware of the most common types of bugs or defects they are likely to encounter, they can tackle them earlier, faster, and more effectively.

• Functional Bugs

Functional bugs are associated with the functionality of a specific software component. For example, a Login button doesn’t allow users to login, an Add to cart button that doesn’t update the cart, a search box not responding to a user’s query, etc.

In simple terms, any component in an app or website that doesn’t function as intended is a functional bug.

• Logical Bugs

A logical bug disrupts the intended workflow of software and causes it to behave incorrectly. These bugs can result in unexpected software behavior and even sudden crashes. Logical bugs primarily take place due to poorly written code or misinterpretation of business logic. Example of logical bugs include:

1. Assigning a value to the wrong variable
2. Dividing two numbers instead of adding them together resulting in unexpected output

• Workflow Bugs

Workflow bugs are associated with the user journey (navigation) of a software application. Let’s consider an example of a website where a user needs to fill up a form regarding their medical history. After filling the form, the user has three options to choose from:

1. Save
2. Save and Exit
3. Previous Page

From the available options, if the user clicks on “Save and Exit,” the user intends to save the entered information and then exit. However, if clicking on the Save and Exit button leads to an exit from the form without saving the information, it leads to a workflow bug.

• Unit Level Bugs

Unit level bugs are very common, and they are typically easier to fix. Once the initial modules of software components are developed, developers perform unit testing to ensure that the small batches of code are functioning as expected. Here’s where developers encounter various bugs that get overlooked in the coding stages.

Unit level bugs are easier to isolate as developers deal with a comparatively small amount of code. Moreover, replicating these bugs takes less time, so developers can track the exact bug and fix it in no time.

For example, if a developer creates a single page form, a unit test will verify whether all the input fields are accepting appropriate inputs and validate buttons for functionality. In case a field doesn’t accept the appropriate characters or numbers, developers encounter a unit-level bug.

• System-Level Integration Bugs

System-level integration bugs primarily pop up when two or more units of code written by different developers fail to interact with each other. These bugs primarily occur due to inconsistencies or incompatibility between two or more components. Such bugs are difficult to track and fix as developers need to examine a larger chunk of code. They are also time-consuming to replicate.

Memory overflow issues and inappropriate interfacing between the application UI and the database are common examples of system-level integration bugs.

The Role of Real Devices in Bug Identification

For any software product (mobile app or web app) to be successful in a highly fragmented environment, it needs to be thoroughly tested in real user conditions. This helps in detecting and resolving maximum bugs an end-user might encounter in the real world.

Extensive testing requires a comprehensive device lab that enables testers to test their web and mobile apps across diverse device-browser-OS combinations. Bear in mind that setting up a comprehensive testing lab requires significant financial investment and maintenance effort. Naturally, this is not feasible for all organizations.

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