What is Verification in Software Testing? What is the Importance of Software Verification?

Verification of the software makes sure that the product is designed to deliver all the mentioned and required functionalities to the customer. To understand the concept of software verification better, consider the following points

  • Verification is done at the starting of the software development process. It includes reviews, meetings, walkthroughs, inspections, etc. in order to evaluate documents, plans, code, requirements and specifications of the software being developed
  • Verification is a very important part of software development. For an example, consider you are crafting a table. Here, it is important to verify all the parts of the table, i.e. to check whether all the four legs are made of correct size or not or if there is something else that needs to be fixed. However, if in this case, one leg of the table is not of the right size it will imbalance the table, ultimately affecting the quality of the end product. Similarly, in case of developing software product, if any feature of the software is not up to the mark or if there is a defect found in the software, then it will result into failure, ultimately affecting the end product. Hence, verification of the software is very important
  • Software verification and validation can be understood better through a flow chart diagram given below

  • Verification also gives the clarity whether the software is being developed in the right way or not
  • It also tells whether the data is being accessed right or not
  • Verification is a low level activity
  • It is generally performed during the development of key artefacts like walkthroughs, reviews, inspections, mentor feedback, training, checklists and standards
  • Verification also ensures demonstration of consistency, completeness and correctness of the software at each stage and also between each stage of the software development life cycle.

According to the Capability Maturity Model (CMM), verification can also be defined as “the process of evaluating software to determine whether the product of a given development phase satisfy the conditions imposed at the start of that phase.”

Advantages of Software Verification

There are plenty of advantages of software verification. Some of the important ones are given below

  • Verification greatly helps in lowering the number of potential defects during the later stages of software development life cycle
  • Verifying the product at an early phase of the development life cycle can greatly help in understanding the software product in a better way
  • It reduces the chances of failures occurring in the software application
  • It helps in building the product as per the requirements and specifications needed for the customers and end users