When it comes to testing the reliability of web applications, not only do you want to verify specific, isolated issues, but also prove performance under normal, or peak conditions. The concurrent load test execution can be useful to prove application performance under realistic conditions and find bottlenecks under peak load. Dotcom-Monitor allows you to run multiple, independent load tests simultaneously at one time.

For example, let’s say you’re planning to run an ad campaign or a sales promotion through your online store. It’s crucial for a business to ensure that website application components are capable of managing a spike in traffic without affecting the user experience on your site.

How to Run Multiple Tests Simultaneously

Upon setting up a load test, you can select the time you’d like to start the test.  The start time can be selected within a 24-hour window.

To start multiple tests at the same time, you need to select the start time of the concurrent tests (the time when all the tests will be run) and specify this time upon setup. It’s recommended to select the start time point considering the period you need to configure all the tests.

To run a load test at a specific time:

  1. Configure the test scenario.
  2. Continue with the legal agreement.
  3. Select to start the test with the Start Test Later option.
  4. Specify the start time of the test in the Start Date and Time field.
  5. Click Start Test Later.

If you have one test scheduled to start at a specific time, you can set up other load tests to be started at the same time. Note that you must have at least one test with scheduled start to configure concurrent test execution.

To run several tests concurrently, first, set up and schedule one test from the group of tests you want to run simultaneously. To set up another test to start at the same time follow the steps below:

  1. Once the start time is set for the first test, create and configure test scenario for another test you want to execute simultaneously with the first one.
  2. Continue with the legal agreement.
  3. Select to Start Test Later and select the concurrent test time in the Start Date and Time. The concurrent test time will be marked with a blue dot in the calendar.
  4. Select the Start Test Simultaneously with check box.
  5. Select a test you want the current one to run in parallel with.
  6. Click Start Test Later.

How to Cancel Scheduled Test Execution

To cancel test execution before the test begins, open the test Report or select Stop the test from the test History page. On the test report page, click Abort Test.

You can select the current test, or a group of concurrent tests to cancel, by selecting the corresponding radio button. All tests will be canceled automatically.

Video:  Running Concurrent Load Test

Watch the video to find more details on configuring a concurrent stress test for the following example:

For this example, we expect to have about 400 transactions on the landing page every hour. To test the performance goal, we set up a Goal-based Curve test with a transaction goal of 6 transactions per minute.  To test the back-end service performance in parallel, we set up a second test. The second test is configured as a Load Step Curve test with 100 users per minute accessing the web service, scheduled to run during the same period.

Running two tests simultaneously allows you to verify how complex load conditions affect the user experience.