Debugging
Debugging is the activity of identifying, analyzing, and correcting the cause of a defect after it has been discovered.
“The process of finding, analyzing and removing the causes of failures in a component or system.”
(Definition reproduced from the ISTQB Glossary. Copyright belongs to ISTQB.)
View the complete ISTQB GlossaryWhat is Debugging?
Unlike testing, which detects failures, debugging investigates the underlying cause of a defect and modifies the code to eliminate it.
Root cause analysis: Developers trace the source of the defect before making changes.
Correction: The faulty code is modified and verified after the fix.
Relationship to testing: Testing finds defects, while debugging fixes them.
Real World Example
A regulated product team is preparing a release where Debugging appears in reviews, test design conversations, or defect triage rather than as an isolated glossary word.
The risk is that the team treats Debugging as interchangeable with nearby ISTQB terms. That makes test scope blurry and can lead to weak evidence for the release decision.
The tester anchors the discussion in the official definition, asks where the concept appears in the product, and designs examples that show the difference between Debugging and similar ideas.
The page becomes useful in practice because Debugging is connected to a specific testing decision, not memorized as a detached definition.
Practice Questions
Question 1
Which statement BEST describes Debugging in the context of ISTQB terminology?
Question 2
A tester needs to explain Debugging to a non‑technical stakeholder. Which approach is MOST appropriate?
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