Lesson 5 of 5
Testing in Activate
8 min
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Testing in SAP Activate is not a phase. It is a workstream that runs through every phase, with different work in each. Knowing where each kind of test belongs helps the PMO plan, helps the test lead set entry and exit criteria, and helps process owners know when they will be asked to sign.
- PrepareGet ready to testAgree the testing approach at a high level; set up test management in SAP Cloud ALM; identify test roles.
- ExplorePlan the testingWrite the test strategy: objectives, scope, test levels, environments, tools, defect process, high-level timeline.
- RealizeTest the buildUnit and string tests as configuration completes; business role, integration, data migration and end-to-end tests; user acceptance testing.
- DeployProve readinessReadiness checks and dress rehearsals for cutover; production verification after go-live; hypercare support.
- RunKeep it workingRegression testing for each upgrade, feature pack and change.
Explore: the test strategy
SAP's learning content places the test strategy in Explore, as the output of the test planning task. It sets the objectives and scope (what is in and out), the test levels, the high-level timeline, the approach and tooling, the roles, and the defect process. Fit-to-Standard results feed it directly: every process in scope needs test coverage, and every requirement needs a test that proves it.
Realize: the test levels
| Test level | What it proves | Who runs it | Formality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unit test | One piece of a process works as configured | Consultant | Informal |
| String test | Several units work together in sequence | Consultant | Informal |
| Business role test | Users can do what their role allows and nothing more | Consultant with security team | Formal |
| Integration and end-to-end test | Full processes work across modules and interfaces with migrated data | Project team | Formal, documented in Cloud ALM |
| Data migration test | Migrated data is complete, correct and usable | Data team with business | Formal |
| User acceptance test | The business accepts the solution for its processes | Key users | Formal, documented in Cloud ALM |
Implementation and acceptance tests in Realize, following SAP's learning content.
For SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private Edition, SAP's guidance is that UAT is run by customer business experts, ideally the same people who attended Fit-to-Standard, and that issues are resolved and results documented before moving to Deploy. Regression testing belongs mainly to Run, when upgrades change the software under a working configuration, and after go-live the customer owns it.
Deploy and Run
Deploy proves that the move to production will work: cutover rehearsals with timings, data load validation, and checks after go-live that the processes run in production. At Contoso, Luis runs two dress rehearsals and Priya's team validates the results with reconciliation checks. In Run, the same Cloud ALM test cases are reused in regression plans for each update, which is why process-based test cases built in Realize pay off for years.
Responsibilities under RISE with SAP
Contoso's contract is RISE with SAP. It moves infrastructure, technical operations and the technical execution of upgrades to SAP, but it does not move the job of proving that Contoso's business processes work. SAP's roles and responsibilities document for Private Edition treats functional and regression testing as customer tasks, available from SAP only as separately purchased services. Write that split into the test strategy in Explore, so nobody discovers it during the first upgrade.
| Area | SAP under RISE with SAP | Contoso as the customer |
|---|---|---|
| Infrastructure and technical operations | Provides and runs them | Consumes the service |
| Technical execution of upgrades | Performs the upgrade | Schedules it and approves the dates |
| Functional and regression testing | Only as separately purchased services | Owns it: plans, runs and signs the results |
| Test management | Provides SAP Cloud ALM | Builds and maintains test cases and plans in it |
| Regression automation | Offers options | Decides in Explore or Realize whether and what to automate |
The same applies to testing tools. SAP Cloud ALM is included for test management. Automating regression is a separate decision the program makes in Explore or Realize, based on how many processes will be regressed and how often. Whatever the choice, the test cases and plans built in Cloud ALM during Realize are the foundation for it.
- Test casesThe process owner's processes, each with expected results
- Run resultsExecuted runs with evidence attached in Cloud ALM
- Open defectsSeverity, workaround and owner for each
- Postponed itemsWhat is deferred, why, and by when
- SignatureDan or Maria accepts UAT with the evidence in hand
What would you do?
Contoso's partner proposes skipping formal integration testing because "every unit and string test passed in Realize sprints". Priya disagrees. What is the strongest argument?
- Testing is a workstream across all phases, not a phase of its own.
- Test strategy in Explore; unit, string, role, integration, data and acceptance tests in Realize.
- Deploy proves readiness through rehearsals and production checks; Run repeats regression for each update.
- Formal tests are documented in SAP Cloud ALM, and process owners sign with evidence in hand.
Check your understanding · not graded
Lesson check
1. In which phase is the test strategy written?
2. Which test level chains several unit tests together?
3. Who should ideally run UAT, according to SAP's learning content?
4. When does regression testing mainly occur?