This document discusses agile defect management, distinguishing between functional defects found during testing of a specific user story, and regression defects found during broader testing. Functional defects are fixed immediately or approved as open, and a user story cannot be completed until its defects are addressed. Regression defects are prioritized in the product backlog. The goal is to finish user stories' functionality first before addressing other defects based on priority.

1. Agile Defect management
Functional defects vs Regression defects
Shirly Ronen-Harel
Oct 2010
shirly@agilesparks.com
http://il.linkedin.com/pub/shirly-ronen-harel/0/653/249

2. An example of an agile bug management by
an agile team/s

3. Life cycle principles
• Defects management is one of Highly
important process to manage efficiently
and effectively.
• Managing and resolving defects in a
timely and efficient manner.
• Outstanding defects can hold up the
release of functionality to the business.
• Defect should be related to functionality
– not to a module.
• Finding Defects Early.
• Quality in – fixing and testing early.

4. Identify two types of defects
Functional Defect :
• Related to a specific user story and found during testing a specific user
story .
– A fault (Defect) will be traced to this user story .
– In this case the fault (Defect) at the moment detected, is already in
the iteration backlog , waiting for a decision.
Regression defect :
• Regression fault : a fault that was found during regression tests with no
specific user story related or when a specific user story related is
already delivered and close.
– In this case it will be an independent regression fault (regression
defect)
– In this case fault (regression defect) will be added to the backlog as
an item with priority and decision , unless it was fixed on the spot when
detected.

5. Functional Defect
• Development process:
– A defect is a user story child.
– It is born from a task testing or user
story acceptance, regression, sanity testing

6. User story
Task
Task in Defect
testing
Defect Epic
User story
User story
User story
Acceptance tests - scenarios
Defect
Defect

7. Managing functional defects
During the iteration :
• Peering testers with developers; functional Defects are fixed
immediately.
• For every functional defect detected there should be a decision on fix
or approved as open.
• In case of ‘check-in’ to a branch fails – defect should be immediately
fixed.
• No additional code is integrated in cases of failed integration into a
branch till the defects are fixed.
• Defects fix are high priority against continue to code for a new
functionality.
• After the team creates a build the team performs sanity tests : Sanity
defects – should be fixed immediately.
• Code integrated Defects should not be left to the hardening phase.
• End of iteration target – zero functional defects (either fixed or
approved as open by PO for example : minor bugs).
• As a result of acceptance tests, all defects decisions should be closed.

8. User story
Task
Fix immediately
Task in Defect
Test again before
testing commit/integration
Defect

9. What is done:
User story
PO decides:
Defect Approve as open
Fix before done
Fix immediately
A user story cannot be 'Done' unless all of its bugs are fixed or
approved as open.

10. • Functional defects are fixed according to User story priority.
• And not according to the defects priority between themselves.
• Our goal is to finish user stories functionality first.
User story User story User story
priority 1 priority 2 priority 3
Defect Defect Defect
Priority 1 Priority 1 Priority 1
First fixed
Defect
Defect
approve as
Priority 2
open

11. Managing Regression defects
Should be added to the sprint/ product backlog and
prioritized as part of a backlog item.
User story 1
User story 2
Regression defect 3
Regression defect 4
User story 5
Regression defect 6
User story 7
User story 8

12. Defects work flow – regression & customer related:
Regression defect
detected at customer Reproduced in our site
site priority
Product/
Regression defect not
release
reproduced or reproduced backlog
as requirements Iteration
backlog
Regression
defect during
Customer lab iteration
Version release development
Production