Test Case Generation for Web Application Based on Markov Reward Process

Abstract Web applications often face continuous updating due to functional change or UI renew, while it remains a challenge to guarantee their correctness. The goal of software testing is to find defects in a limited time range whereas exhaustive testing is an ideal yet time-consuming process. In this research, we propose an approach to generating test cases automatically based on the Markov reward process which innovatively contains a reward function for test results to guide the generation of test cases. By using the N-step algorithm, this approach can generate the test flow with the highest risk priority which can capture software defects as quickly as possible. The experiment on an e-commerce system shows that there is significant improvement on the defect detection capability of test cases generated through Markov reward process.