API Testing: Pros and Cons — With Antwan Maddox and Greg Burdick

Automation Explanation

Welcome to another episode of Automation Explanation, an Agile Thought Podcast, where you will learn about quality through automated testing and its place in modern software development.

This week, your hosts, Antwan Maddox and Greg Burdick are exploring the topic of API testing, they are talking about its meaning and purpose, as well as about the benefits and challenges of using API Testing.

Key Takeaways

• What is API testing?
• • API stands for Application Programming Interfaces; there is a collection of functions and procedures which allows communication with applications or libraries and increases the connection between two services.
• API’s architecture:
• • There are three layers: the communication layer where the UI is, a business logic layer where components reside, and a storage data layer.
• Why do we need API testing in the first place?
• • API testing is there to ensure it is the best version of the product and that all functions are working as intended.
• The importance of REST protocol and alternatives in API Testing:
• • It is a common method that is used to build API.
  • REST enables users to connect to, manage and interact with cloud services freely in a distributed environment.
• What are some of the myths related to API testing?
• • “Only UI testing counts.” The UI is going to change most of the time with the business requirements, which are going to help in building the app. UI testing only does exactly what you tell it to do.
  • “API validations are irrelevant if GUI Testing is not.” GUI Testing does not cover all aspects of API; you might not be testing the business logic, all you do is test navigational aspects.
  • “It is simpler to use GUI Testers than API.” With GUI you are not going to test the interconnection points through the UI
  • “If a testing API has not changed, the app will continue to function the same exact way.” This is false; an application changes and evolves with time. API has to be revalidated, continuously testing for API integrity, and ensuring its best function.
• Benefits of using API testing:
• • It is faster and more scalable than UI testing
  • API testing is generally less complex and less fragile than UI testing.
  • API isolates business logic from display logic.
  • API testing allows security testing that is not covered by security scans.
  • API infrastructure is generally more stable and that is why those tests require less maintenance.
• What are the challenges of API testing?
• • One challenge is to try to chain or sequence a series of API calls to achieve fully integrated testing.
  • Another challenge is the validation of parameters. Changes in applications can cause failures.
  • Three reasons why API testing might fail:
  • • The test itself and how it was designed,
    • True application failures, and
    • Communication failure
• Benefits of Contract Testing.
• • Contract testing is a quick, lightweight form of API testing that verifies the content and format of API requests and replies. Complete API contract testing has to validate both the API producer (server side) and the API consumer (client side) to detect and diagnose when a contract is violated by either side.

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