Thorough, consistent, and extensible testing of systems remains one of the biggest challenges in creating and maintaining software systems.

The Spec Explorer tool released today on DevLabs tackles that problem using Model-Based Testing techniques.

What Is It?

Spec Explorer, is a tool for modeling software behavior and generating test suites from those models. 

Models can be viewed as graphical renderings to understand and analyze the expected system behavior and communicate it to others.  Model size can be scoped with regular expressions.  The generated test suites can be run standalone in the Visual Studio test framework or other unit test frameworks.

Why Use It?

Several Microsoft projects of various sizes have already used Spec Explorer as part of their development process.  Using Spec Explorer has helped those teams create test cases more quickly, ensure predictability of requirement coverage, and support the projects’ lifecycle management and software updates.

Spec Explorer’s unique features make it easier to learn than other Model-Based Testing tools. Engin