Getting to an agile testing model is (or should be) the ultimate goal for all testing teams. Agile testing streamlines testing, removes inefficiencies, and saves on resources. There are a variety of ways of adopting agile testing — mock services, synthetic test data, and rapidly created test environments to name a few.
But one of the best and easiest ways to adopt agile testing is to implement flexibility into your testing process. That comes from an open source tool for testing like BlazeMeter. BlazeMeter allows testers to leverage their favorite open source plugins integrated with a powerful one-stop-shop continuous testing platform.
In this blog, we will discuss what an open source tool is, the benefits of open source plugins, and why BlazeMeter unlocks the flexibility of open source plugins and is your best option in the market for taking your testing ability further than ever before.
What is An Open Source Tool?
An open source tool is software that is freely available to use, modify, and distribute, as its source code is accessible and can be viewed, modified, and shared by the public.
Open source software is created with collaboration in mind. That means it relies heavily on peer review and community contribution. It is often cheaper, offers more flexibility and lasts longer than other proprietary software options without becoming obsolete. The major benefit of an open source tool and open source software is that it is created by a group rather than a single author or company.
What Are Open Source Plugins?
Open source plugins are highly flexible and customizable tools that can be “plugged in” to your software development process. Their power lies in users of the software being able to do whatever they want with the source code — even redistributing it after altering it and essentially creating a new product.
The ability to alter open source software to best suit developer needs goes a long way in enabling agile testing within your testing strategy. Rather than being held back by monolithic, proprietary software, teams can now move faster based on priorities and objectives.
Benefits of an Open Source Tool & Open Source Plugins
Flexibility is not the only benefit of adopting open source plugins on your journey to achieving agile testing.
Reliable Quality
With open source plugins, you get to dictate the quality of the plugin. Changing and altering the code means teams have the ability to make it however best suits your needs. You do not need to rely on tools that do not fit your requirements exactly or do not operate precisely the way you want them to — quality is in your hands.
Secure
Because the code and software are malleable to your visions, objectives, and priorities, they are not subject to a vendor’s requirements and timetables. This is also where the communal aspect of open source plugins comes into play; you can rely on a wealth of skilled developers whose motivation is simply to help each other out. That means bugs and issues are discovered more frequently so they can be addressed sooner.
Cost-Effective
Open source plugins are most frequently reasonably priced or free altogether. This is one of the primary appeals of an open source tool. Saving on financial resources while also generating flexibility throughout your delivery process is a no-brainer.
Popular Open Source Plugins
There are thousands of open source plugins out there at your disposal, so if you are unfamiliar with them, it can be daunting to know where to start. Here are a few critical open source plugins, as well as ones made especially for the BlazeMeter open source tool:
JP@GC
JMeter Plugins at Google Code (JP@GC) are third-party plugins that are popular for their use with JMeter by extending its functionality. By adding this plugin to the original JMeter package, you enable advanced analysis features, new load delivery controllers, and more. These are critical for getting the most out of JMeter.
CSV Randomizer
Great for leveling up the use of test data within your tests, CSV Randomizer reads CSV rows from a file and puts them into JMeter variables in a random order.
BlazeMeter Open Model Thread Group
Among all thread group plugins, this one takes the cake. Normally when you are writing tests in JMeter, the test plan will be looped by a single set of threads. What this plugin does is enable testers to create customized thread schedules and simulate major traffic spikes. It is essential to creating a realistic load configuration.
BlazeMeter SAP Test Data Management
Here you can use SAP browser-based tools and APIs to better access SAP data. This allows testers to better manage data masking, data extraction, and data generation. It also helps tremendously with streamlining efforts across the team and reducing unnecessary overheads.
BlazeMeter Mainframe Application Testing
BlazeMeter offers a solution that allows teams to test apps that live on the mainframe — including both functional and performance tests. This unlocks greater agility (hello, agile testing!), higher quality, and savings on mainframe resources.
BlazeMeter Auto Correlation
The Auto Correlation plugin empowers testers to accelerate performance testing thanks to streamlining how they deal with mismatched or broken HTTP requests. The plugin automatically identifies the dynamic elements of performance tests and correlates them for you. Traditionally, this practice was done manually. Now that it is automated, teams can reduce costs while boosting efficiency.
Bottom Line
The journey to adopting an agile testing strategy can be a long one. Luckily, there are a wide variety of tools to help you along. In addition to mock services, synthetic test data, and API testing and monitoring, an open source tool like BlazeMeter creates crucial flexibility that opens up testing opportunities that had not been there before.
BlazeMeter was made by developers and engineers for developers and engineers — specifically those who are passionate about open source. BlazeMeter is 100% compatible with all your favorite open source plugins, which means you can continue working with what you know as well as revolutionizing your entire testing platform. The flexibility that BlazeMeter empowers testers with is unmatched — and you can start leveraging that flexibility for free today.