Generating Quality Data
The problem with test data is that it can become stale very quickly. This is either through its use from testing or from the fact that it is naturally aging in the test environments.
This is not just an issue for performance testing, although the volumes of data sometimes required for performance testing do make it harder. This also affects functional testing as well as batch testing and business acceptance testing amongst others.
Now we have previously written posts on how after completion of performance testing you leave data created by the execution of your tests which may be of use to other members of your test or development community. And we have also discussed how you can use existing data in your performance testing environment in your tests in the most effective manner.
But in both cases, this is during or after your performance testing takes place, for performance test to be executed you need quality data in your test environments. This is also true for functional, batch and user acceptance testing, really its true for any type of activity that wants to use data in the test environments.