Smoke testing and sanity testing are both types of software testing, but they serve different purposes and are performed at different stages of the development process.
Smoke Testing:
- Smoke testing is an initial, basic test executed to ensure that the software build is stable enough for further testing.
- It aims to verify whether the key functionalities of the software are working after a new build or changes have been made.
- The focus is on identifying major issues that would prevent further testing or development.
Sanity Testing:
- Sanity testing is performed after more comprehensive testing phases, like regression testing or functional testing, have been completed.
- It aims to verify whether specific changes or fixes in the software have been successfully implemented and to ensure that the reported issues have been resolved.
- Unlike smoke testing, sanity testing is narrower in scope and often focuses on specific areas of the application.
In essence, smoke testing is a preliminary test to see if a build is stable, while sanity testing is conducted to verify that specific issues or changes have been addressed properly.