An integrated test facility (ITF) creates a fictitious entity in a
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases s ...
to process test transactions simultaneously with live input.
ITF can be used to incorporate test transactions into a normal production run of a system. Its advantage is that periodic testing does not require separate test processes. However, careful planning is necessary, and
test data
Test data is data which has been specifically identified for use in tests, typically of a computer program.
Background
Some data may be used in a confirmatory way, typically to verify that a given set of input to a given function produces some e ...
must be isolated from production data.
Moreover, ITF validates the correct operation of a transaction in an
application, but it does not ensure that a system is being operated correctly. Integrated test facility is considered a useful audit tool during an
IT audit
An information technology audit, or information systems audit, is an examination of the management controls within an Information technology (IT) infrastructure and business applications. The evaluation of evidence obtained determines if the inform ...
because it uses the same programs to compare processing using independently calculated data. This involves setting up dummy entities on an application system and processing test or production data against the entity as a means of verifying processing
accuracy
Accuracy and precision are two measures of ''observational error''.
''Accuracy'' is how close a given set of measurements ( observations or readings) are to their ''true value'', while ''precision'' is how close the measurements are to each oth ...
.
References
Databases
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