An improved method of selecting regression tests for C++ programs
Yoon Kyu Jang, Malcolm Munro, Y. R. Kwon · Journal of Software Maintenance and Evolution Research and Practice · 2001
Abstract This paper describes an impact analysis technique that identifies which parts should be retested after a system written in C++ is modified. We are interested in identifying the impacts of changes at the class member level by using dependency relations between class members. We try to find out which member functions need unit‐level retesting and which interactions between them need integration‐level retesting. To get precise analysis results, we adopt a technique that classifies types of changes and analyze the impact for each type. Primitive changes, changes which are associated with C++ features, are first defined and their ripple effects are computed in order to construct a firewall for each type of change systematically. We have applied our prototype tool to a real system with small size. This case study shows some evidence that our approach gives reasonable efficiency and precision as well as being practical for analyzing change impacts of C++ programs. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.