Difference between Software Quality Assurance and Software Quality Control

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOFTWARE QUALITY ASSURANCE AND SOFTWARE QUALITY CONTROL

Just Imagine! You have got developed your software or an app or a website. And the next thing you want to do is to launch the product into the market. The product seems to enrich with a great user interface, functionalities etc. This situation sounds very special, right? You’re very excited for your launch.

Day of your launch came, you launch your product and thousands of users start visiting your app all at once. This is what exactly you wish for.And in a flash… you found the app crashed!

PS: All the money invested, all the zeal, all the time, everything has been failed.

And, in one flash, everything got vanished. Like the money you incorporated, the energy invested by your developers etc.

Do you think it is acceptable in real life situation? Not at all.

Most apparent reasons for app crash are:

Generation of bugs during the time of coding
Memory management issues
Incorrect execution of Software lifecycle
Lack of importance given to Software Quality & Testing
Network management issues
Scalability issues
Poor integration of the software with back-end or server.

Do you think this mishap can be avoided?

Absolutely, avoid this by understanding and incorporating the immense importance of maintaining Software Quality of the product.

Software Quality (SQ) is meeting the needs, expectation, and requirement of someone who is demanding software or an app. The whole motive of SQ is that the end product should be free from all possible defects, errors or bugs. To achieve software quality, there are specific and predefined standards which need to be followed during the development process.

A well know truth of this era –

Loss of time and cost is directly proportional to the poor quality of software.In 2016, research conducted by tricentis.com found that software failures cost the U.S. economy USD$1.1 trillion in assets. Software failures which happened at 363 companies, affected 4.4 billion customers caused more than 315 1/2 years of lost time.

“QUALITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN QUANTITY. ONE HOME RUN IS MUCH BETTER THAN TWO DOUBLES”- Steve Jobs

Software Quality is a vast subject which encompasses two important terms i.e. Software Quality Assurance (SQA) and Software Quality Control (SQC).

Usually, many people assume SQA and SQC are same and can be used interchangeably which is a common mistake. However, both are closely related and thus, it is tough to figure out the differences between the two.

So, do you think, Software Quality Assurance (SQA) = Software Quality Control (SQC)?

Not to worry! Continue reading to know the difference.

Software Quality Assurance (SQA)

SQA is a set of activities to ensure desired quality in software engineering process. It is a procedure of monitoring all the methods and activities of software development life cycle (SDLC). It acts as a supportive process that provides independent assurance related to all activities, and processes of SDLC. It focuses on preventing defects or flaws in the wholesome software development process and in addition to this, it also ensures whether all the approaches, techniques, methods, and processes are implemented correctly or not while execution of SDLC. It is done by continuous comparing of the current procedures with the appropriate and well-defined standards.

SQA executes right from pre-development stage to on-going development stage. So, it works simultaneously along with SDLC. SQA is a proactive and preventive in nature which rigorously prepares the end product during the development cycle to become as per the expectation.

Software Assurance Control (SQC)

SQC is a method of maintaining and achieving the quality standards in Software Products with the assistance of testing against the predefined, standard specification. SQC is a reactive and corrective procedure through which an undeveloped product grows into the end product. Testing is a subset of SQC.Testing is carried out to identify the bugs present in the software product. The bugs are passed to the developers, who then fix them. After debugging, the product is verified once again, in order to have the product as per the client expectations.

The set of activities that are being carried out by SQC includes tracing, identifying, removing and correcting the maximum number of possible bugs or defects in the software. SQC is not restricted to testing only. Apart from testing, SQC includes reviews and analysis of the requirement, planning, design, test cases etc.

Software Quality Assurance (SQA)	Software Quality Control (SQC)
SQA ensures quality in software engineering processes which establish and evaluate the processes that produce products.	SQC ensures quality in software products which focuses on identifying defects in the actual products produced.
It’s goal is to prevent the defect.	It’s goal is to identify and improve the defects.
It is the technique of managing the quality.	It is a method to verify the quality.
It is not an execution process.	It is an execution process.
It is prevention oriented.	It is detection oriented.
It involves verification.	It involves validation.
It is process focused.	It is product focused.
It assures you what are doing is the right things.	It assures that the end result of what you had done is exactly what you expected.
It is the process to create the desired output.	It is the process to verify the desired output.
It execute even prior and during full software development life cycle.	It execute during software testing life cycle.

Software plays an essential role in ensuring sustainability in the today’s growing market. Businesses are progressively investing in software quality, software assurance and testing as this is a way which can ultimately assure return on investment. So, to have sustainable growth of any organization, it’s imperative to have Software Quality (both SQA, SQC) right from the beginning of SDLC.

MetaDesign Solutions excels in enhancing and mastering software quality for businesses. Boasting over a decade of experience in the software industry, we specialize in software testing services that meticulously assess and improve the quality of your software. Our approach involves a deep understanding of our clients’ quality expectations, alongside a thorough evaluation of business practices and processes to identify gaps. This strategic insight allows us to deliver superior software solutions that not only meet but exceed our clients’ needs.