Software testing is hard enough; firmware testing against multiple hardware configs is another level of difficulty!

Storage area network systems have many configurable pieces: multiple hardware platforms, installed memory; cache cards; FC vs. iSCSI vs SAS front-end connectivity to different server operating systems; drive enclosure chains; HDDs vs. SSDs; drive sizes and speeds; self-encrypting drives; replication between systems (each with its own configuration); more?!? Our goal was to run enough tests on multiple configurations to hopefully avoid customer outages after an upgrade. Definitely a tough ask, not one we always succeeded.

Join me to hear of a journey from a hands-on, totally manual test execution to an end-to-end testing process - from scheduling to reporting and ticket creation - that dramatically improved test coverage and ultimately the quality of our product.

Real world experience improving the testing of a storage area network solution which required testing a common firmware against multiple hardware configurations. The final process allowed people to focus on evaluating test results instead of focusing on executing the tests.