Free tool available for exporting your test cases to excel in a nicely formatted fashion.
Click to download here
You connect to Team Foundation Server by clicking the Connect TFS button.
Pick the Team Project you want to work with as shown below.
The test plans and test suites associated to the team project you selected display.
Pick a test plan and test suite then specify where you want to save the excel file to on your system and a name for the excel file.
Click Export.
Here is an example of test cases export to excel. The Actual Results, Pass/Fail and Comments are not populated from Test Manager. These would be fields your tester’s would enter as they are testing! Or you could remove them and add your own columns using this for test case reviews or any other type of reporting required.
Testa 
I am seeing people talking about having a test case with up to 50 and even 100 steps. I might be mad but isn’t that a lot of steps in one test case? When I talk to test teams my recommendation is no more then 10 steps per test case.
Make usage of Shared Steps that can be used to navigate through an application. Make usage of other test cases that will get your test case to the right spot in the application. Use the MTM ordered test feature to organize test cases to run in a specific sequence when needed.
I like to tell testers about the KISS principle of design.
Keep it simple and straightforward.
Keep it simple and short.
The KISS principle states that simplicity should be a key goal in design, and that unnecessary complexity should be avoided. This applies to code design as well.
Test Cases you’ve kissed will be easy to understand, maintain and report on.
Testa 
If you have never been to Toronto here is your chance plus while here you can learn about Microsoft Test Manager, Coded UI testing, Web & Load testing, the new Bug, Fast Forwarded Manual Testing, and all you need to know about TFS2010 the communicator. Here is your chance. Check out our 3 day course offering being held March 9th to 11th and get 10% off.
Contact: trainging@newhorizon.ca
Tell them Testa send you …
I’ve been asked about the managing of test configurations. In the sample below I have two test configurations set up as I add test cases they are automatically assigned both test configurations.
You can have multiple test configurations set to be the default. Which means all test cases are assigned these default configurations.
When I click on a Test Case then the icon Configurations I can override the default and remove one or both configurations from the selected test case.
You can select all your test cases in a test suite (using the std Microsoft selection hotkey) and then click Configurations to update a bunch at once.
I just added a new configuration named My Added Configuration. When I select the test case and click Configurations the Select Test Configurations opens. I then have to click All configurations and my view looks like display below:
If you do not click All configurations you will not see the newly added configuration(s). It’s a trick I know why not just show them all. Hey, were tester’s we should be enjoying the challenge!
Hope this help ..
Testa 
Duplication of tests for configurations does have a flow that you need to be aware of …
- Test Configurations have to be set to active and selected in the Test Plan properties.
- Test Configurations set up prior to creating test cases are automatically duplicated for each configuration assigned to the test plan.
- Note: you have no ability to indicate which configurations affect which test cases. Therefore you will have to use the test case run status of “blocked”. If you leave “active” a tester would be able to run.
-
Adding a new test configurations to an existing Test Plan will not affect any existing Test Suites. ( I believe this is a bug and have reported it to Microsoft) However, if I add a new test suite and associate existing or new test cases to that suite all the Test Plan test configurations are used.
When I get an answer on whether this the correct behaviour or if there is a work around will post it.
Testa
The MTM Tests Suites are how you organize your test cases. There are three test suites to select from they are, Requirement query-based, the query-based, or the static based. The two query based test suites will automatically add new test cases to a suite if they meet the query criteria.
When would we use the different test suites?
1. Requirement query-based is pretty straight forward. For each requirement you have at least one if not more test cases.
2. Query-based has to include a test case category condition which guarantees only test cases are added then you can query by any field in the work item.
- Area Path of requirement work item
- Project Iterations
- By work item ranking or priority
- 3. Static test suites are multi functional. You either add test cases to the suite manually or you add query based test suites to the static test suite. This gives you additional options for organizing the test effort. Examples:
- Iteration One (static test suite)
- Requirements based query – Requirement 1
- Requirements based query – Requirement 2
- etc…..
Work Item Categories is new in VS2010 and as you see are used in MTM for query-based test suites. Work Items up till now had one name for example the Bug. In VS2010 the out of the box work item bug can be renamed. In MTM work item categories are used to restrict the type of work item to show in a given list. The categories are:
I am sure there are lots of different ideas as to how to use Test Suites. I would love to hear them. please add comments with your Test Suite ideas.
Microsoft Test Manager 2010 is now available, thank you Microsoft. MTM like Visual Studio connects to Team Foundation Server where all artefacts are stored. Like the bug, test cases are work items. What else does MTM have, lots. Lets look at the concept of a test plan first. You can have one test plan to many for a project. It is totally up to you the test team how you set up your testing effort on a project.
The Test Plan documents the test effort thru:
- Properties: test environment, settings, configurations, assigned build, and details like state.
Test Suites: organize test cases. There are three types of test suites; one is based on a requirement, another is a query of work item fields and the third is static. The possibilities are endless.
Microsoft has taken the test plan document to the next level. You can update a test plan as test efforts change. You can copy it as a starting point for the next project. You can if needed extract the information into a word document using an add on tool. If your printing for management or auditor put it on the network and direct people to it – save the tree’s. Plus, I bet most people do not even read them.
Look out world the Test Plan has evolved. :-)