Load Testing Blog
REST/Web Services and API Load Testing
In this post, I’ll discuss why API testing is important, a typical situation that a tester might experience, and how to perform API testing with Web Performance Tester.
How to Change Recorded Hostnames/Edit Recorded URLs
Web Performance Tester offers several tools for changing recorded hostnames. Below, I describe common situations users may experience, and the appropriate method of changing datasources for each.
OSX Load Tester 6 Beta Known Bugs and Workarounds
As a long time Apple/Mac user I’m gratified to see our OSX download numbers creep up to 20%! Unfortunately with fewer people using the OSX version the first couple of releases had less outside bug reports than the Windows version, so thanks to all of the OSX users who’ve taken the time to send in bug reports so I can fix the issues.
Web Performance Tester 6.5 release
If you’ve been following the quick pace of development of our real-browser features, we know you’ll be excited about these new features:
Extract values
Data in the browser can now be extracted into a user state variable for use later in the testcase. Read more…
Organize testcase steps
The steps in real-browser testcases can now be organized into hierarchical groups for better readability and easier maintenance. Read more…
Improved selection from choice boxes
Drop-down choices now support selection by position in the list (i.e. index) and by the option value (a hidden attribute in the HTML). Continue reading »
Cookie Debugging From the Testcase Editor in Web Performance Tester 6.5
Load Tester 6.5 adds a quick and easy option for inspecting cookies in your testcase, and reviewing how they are used in a replay. Starting with Load Tester 6.5, the testcase editor adds two new columns: Cookies Sent (by the browser, to the server), and Cookies Received (by the browser, from the server). To enable these columns, simply select Options -> Columns.
The columns will display the number of cookies present in a transaction. In the case of a web page, it will identify the number of unique cookies sent or received. Simply hover over for a tool-tip, which will … Continue reading »
Automated Choice configuration in Web Performance Tester 6.4
When building a testcase to simulate your users, at some point, you’ll want to ask how much variation you can add to your testcase. Real users may be doing searches, but there’s a good chance that your users are using different search terms. Likewise, users may be entering records, but most likely not every record should be entered identically. Every version of Load Tester & QA Tester support the use of datasets, to make it easy to create a list of terms, which can be supplied back as a virtual user traverses their workflow. However, for drop-downs or radio buttons, … Continue reading »
Best Practices for Recording a Testcase to Work the First Time
Sometimes, HTTP testcase don’t work immediately after being recorded. Your application may require special configuration, or your workflow may need some special data entry in order to work in a repeatable fashion. However, sometimes the problem can be compounded by easily avoidable conditions.
Recommendation 1: Close unnecessary applications while recording
During recording, Load Tester will capture HTTP and HTTPS network traffic from your workstation as you record. This allows Load Tester to observe your recorded browser window, and child windows that may be spawned from it. If you have other browser windows open, e-mail clients, etc, these can all interfere with the … Continue reading »
Load Tester RB Upgrade Policy
If you’re an existing Web Performance Load Tester™ customer you may be wondering if the real browser capability will be included in Load Tester 6.0. Because the real browser technology is so different, Load Tester 6.0 is being released in two different editions: Load Tester PRO™ for virtual browsers, and Load Tester RB™ for real browsers.
Load Tester PRO 6.0 Upgrades
If you currently own a license for Load Tester PRO™ you’ll be receiving a free upgrade to the 6.0 release, but that release will not include real browser load testing functionality. If you’re interested in trying out real browsers, Load … Continue reading »
Load Tester 6.0 RB Released!
Load Tester RB™ introduces an exciting new capability: generating load with real browsers using Selenium/WebDriver. Instead of simulated browsers hitting your website, WebDriver controls actual browsers, each one behaving as if an actual user was sitting there clicking and typing. There is no more accurate way to do web testing, and you have absolute confidence that your website is being hit with the most realistic web traffic, and thus are getting the most accurate pictures of your website’s performance.
Our beta customers have reported being able to more quickly develop test cases for complicated websites, drastically cutting the amount of time it … Continue reading »
Load Tester 5.4: Now on OSX!
Note: This blog post rates high in Google searches, but is a couple of years out of date. Please read this for the latest on our OSX load testing software.
Hi, I’m Michael Czeiszperger, the original author of the Load Tester 1.0 and 2.0. Although Load Tester originally ran on OSX, 10 years ago the future of that platform was very much up for grabs, and with 99% of our sales on Windows, the OSX version was dropped. Fast forward to 2013, and I decided that 10 years of running Load Tester on my OSX machine through an emulator was 10 … Continue reading »