What is Service Virtualization and Why Should You Care?

What is Service Virtualization and Why Should You Care?

What-is-Service-Virtualization-and-Why-Should-You-Care

Have you ever worked with a vendor and thought to yourself, “This product looks great but I just need to see it in action”? Service Virtualization is the answer for those types of situations.

If you do not know what service virtualization is, don’t worry! This post will give you a brief overview of what service virtualization is and how it can help make your life easier.

What is Service Virtualization?

Service virtualization is a technique for simulating the behavior of dependencies in a system. This allows tests to be run against the system, without having to rely on external services being available.

Service virtualization can be used to simulate the behavior of any dependency, including databases, web services, third-party applications, and even hardware devices. By using service virtualization, testers can have complete control over the environment in which they are testing, which makes it possible to test the system, rather than just individual components.

Service virtualization can be used in conjunction with other testing techniques, such as unit testing and integration testing. When used together, these techniques can provide comprehensive coverage of a system under test.

The Benefits of Service Virtualization

  1. By providing a virtualized version of a service, It can enable development and testing to continue even when the real service is unavailable.
  2. It can also be used to simulate the behavior of services that do not yet exist. This can be useful when developing new features that depend on services that have not been developed yet. By providing a virtualized version of the new service, development can proceed without waiting for the actual service to be built.
  3. It Reduced dependencies on external services. When dependent services are unavailable, development and testing can still proceed using service virtualization. This reduces the impact of dependent services being unavailable and helps to ensure that deadlines are met.
  4. Service virtualization allows you to quickly create different versions of a service for different purposes (e.g., development, testing, staging). This makes it easier to test new features or configurations without affecting live systems.
  5. It can help improve test coverage by allowing you to test scenarios that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to test (e.g., testing how your system responds to a service being unavailable).
  6. Greater control over the testing environment. When using service virtualization, you have complete control over the simulated environment. This allows you to easily recreate specific conditions for

How to use Service Virtualization Tools

Service virtualization tools are used to create a virtual environment that simulates the behavior of a real system. This allows developers to test their code without depending on the actual system is available.

There are many services and virtualization tools available, each with its own features and capabilities. Some of the more popular ones include CA LISA, HP Service Virtualization, IBM Rational Test Virtualization Server, and Parasoft Virtualize.

To use a service virtualization tool, you first need to install it on your machine. Once it is installed, you can then create a new virtual environment or import an existing one from a file.

Once the environment is set up, you can then start adding services to it. Each service will have its own settings that you can configure. For example, you can specify the hostname and port number for the service, as well as the type of protocol it uses (HTTP, HTTPS, etc.).

Once all the services are added, you can then start testing your code against them. This will allow you to find any bugs or issues that may occur when the actual system is unavailable.

Global Spend on Service Virtualization Solutions

Global spend on service virtualization solutions is expected to reach $2.9 billion by 2022, according to MarketsandMarkets research. This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.5% from 2017 to 2022.

The growing adoption of DevOps and continuous delivery practices is one of the major factors driving the growth of the service virtualization market. These practices require frequent code changes and deployments, which can be difficult to achieve without service virtualization.

Other factors driving market growth include the need for reduced testing time and costs, improved test coverage, and increased agility and flexibility in the face of rapidly changing business requirements.

The Future of Service Virtualization

As the demand for faster software delivery increases, so does the need for service virtualization. Service virtualization allows teams to work in parallel by providing an environment that simulates the behavior of dependent systems, such as databases, web services, and third-party applications. This reduces the time it takes to deliver software, since teams no longer have to wait for these dependencies to be available.

Service virtualization is also a critical tool for DevOps, as it allows teams to release code early and often without waiting for dependencies. By automating the provisioning and configuration of test environments, service virtualization can help reduce the time it takes to get new features and fixes into production.

The future of service virtualization is bright, as more and more organizations are adopting DevOps practices and technologies. Service virtualization will continue to play a vital role in enabling organizations to deliver software faster and more efficiently.

At Cogniwize, we bring new ideas and fresh perspectives to our testing services. We offer high-quality testing with an Agile and DevOps approach to development. See how we will help you get the virtual assets you need for your projects with Service Virtualization and other testing solutions. Contact us today!