Component Testing:
Component Testing is a type of software testing in which usability of each individual component is tested. Along with the usability test, behavioral evaluation is also done for each individual component. To perform this type of testing, each component needs to be in independent state and also should be in controllable state. Each component of the software should be user comprehensible.
Unit Testing:
Unit Testing is a type of software testing in which individual units of software i.e. group of computer program modules, usage procedures and operating procedures are tested to determine whether they are suitable for use or not. It is a testing method using which every independent modules are tested to determine if there are any issue by the developer himself. It is correlated with functional correctness of the independent modules.
Difference between Component and Unit Testing:
| S. No. | Component Testing | Unit Testing |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Component Testing involves testing each object or part of the software separately. | Unit Testing involves testing individual programs or modules for program execution. |
| 2. | It is performed by the testing team. | It is performed by the development team. |
| 3. | Component testing is black box testing. | Unit testing is white box testing. |
| 4. | The tester doesn’t know the internal architecture of the software. | The tester knows the internal design of the software. |
| 5. | Component testing is performed once the unit testing is performed. | Unit testing is performed before the component testing. |
| 6. | Detection of defects is a little difficult as compared to unit testing. | detection of defects is easy in unit testing. |
| 7. | Once the whole software is developed then only component testing is performed. | Unit testing is performed after every development step. |
| 8. | It validates test requirements. | It validates design documents. |
| 9. | The execution level of component testing is at the application level. | The execution level of unit testing is at the method level i.e. granular based. |
| 10. | Component testing validates the use cases and test specifications. | Unit testing is evaluated using the design documents. |
| 11. | Component testing is appropriate for small applications. | Unit testing is appropriate for large-scale applications because of its flexibility and ease to use. |
| 12. | Component tests provide a more comprehensive picture of the application. | Because of granularity results of unit tests may not accurately reflect an application’s actual behavior in practice. |
| 13. | Isolated test assertions in unit test leads to independent execution. | When developing component tests, we must ensure the functioning of entire application as a whole, and the interaction between different components also needs to be taken care. |
| 14. | Component tests can only validate the functionality of primary code path and cannot verify about the non-existence of alternate execution paths. | Unit tests will be able to capture the circumstances that component tests miss. |
