2023/09/29 by Erblin Isaku, Isaku, Erblin, Hassan Sartaj +11 · 1 citation
Chemistry · Computer Science · #Advanced Proteomics Techniques and Applications #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Machine Learning and Data Classification #Software Engineering (cs.SE) #Software Testing and Debugging Techniques
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2309.17038
openalex publication_date 2023/09/29 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
The Cancer Registration Support System (CaReSS), built by the Cancer Registry of Norway (CRN), is a complex real-world socio-technical software system that undergoes continuous evolution in its implementation. Consequently, continuous testing of CaReSS with automated testing tools is needed such that its dependability is always ensured. Towards automated testing of a key software subsystem of CaReSS, i.e., GURI, we present a real-world application of an extension to the open-source tool EvoMaster, which automatically generates test cases with evolutionary algorithms. We named the extension EvoClass, which enhances EvoMaster with a machine learning classifier to reduce the overall testing cost. This is imperative since testing with EvoMaster involves sending many requests to GURI deployed in different environments, including the production environment, whose performance and functionality could potentially be affected by many requests. The machine learning classifier of EvoClass can predict whether a request generated by EvoMaster will be executed successfully or not; if not, the classifier filters out such requests, consequently reducing the number of requests to be executed on GURI. We evaluated EvoClass on ten GURI versions over four years in three environments: development, testing, and production. Results showed that EvoClass can significantly reduce the testing cost of evolving GURI without reducing testing effectiveness (measured as rule coverage) across all three environments, as compared to the default EvoMaster. Overall, EvoClass achieved ~31% of overall cost reduction. Finally, we report our experiences and lessons learned that are equally valuable for researchers and practitioners.