qa-exploratory

name	qa-exploratory
description	Exploratory QA to find edge cases and unexpected bugs. Tests boundary conditions, error states, and unusual user flows.

qa-exploratory - Exploratory Testing

Performs exploratory testing to discover edge cases, boundary conditions, and unexpected bugs that structured tests miss.

Input Schema

{
  "project_dir": "/path/to/project",
  "ticket_id": "TICKET-XXX",
  "url": "http://localhost:8080",
  "focus_areas": ["forms", "navigation", "data_display", "error_states"],
  "time_budget": 60
}

Instructions

1. Identify Test Targets

From ticket acceptance_criteria, identify:

• User-facing components
• Data entry points
• State transitions
• External integrations

2. Boundary Testing

// Test input boundaries
const boundaryTests = {
  // Empty inputs
  emptyString: '',

  // Max length
  longString: 'a'.repeat(10000),

  // Special characters
  specialChars: '<script>alert(1)</script>',
  unicode: '日本語テスト🎉',

  // Numbers
  zero: 0,
  negative: -1,
  maxInt: Number.MAX_SAFE_INTEGER,

  // Dates
  farPast: '1900-01-01',
  farFuture: '2100-12-31'
};

3. Error State Testing

// Force error conditions
const errorTests = [
  'Network offline',
  'API returns 500',
  'Empty data response',
  'Malformed JSON',
  'Timeout after 30s'
];

4. Unusual Flow Testing

// Test unexpected user behaviors
const flowTests = [
  'Double-click submit',
  'Back button during form submission',
  'Rapid navigation between pages',
  'Open in multiple tabs',
  'Refresh during async operation'
];

5. Visual Edge Cases

// Test visual boundaries
const visualTests = [
  'Very long text content',
  'Missing images (404)',
  'Slow image loading',
  'Extreme viewport sizes (320px, 4K)',
  'High contrast mode',
  'Zoom at 200%'
];

Output Format

{
  "skill": "qa-exploratory",
  "status": "pass|issues_found",
  "time_spent": 45,
  "tests_performed": 23,
  "findings": [
    {
      "id": "EXP-001",
      "severity": "MEDIUM",
      "category": "boundary",
      "title": "Form accepts 10000+ character input without validation",
      "description": "Email field accepts extremely long strings, may cause DB issues",
      "steps_to_reproduce": [
        "Navigate to contact form",
        "Paste 10000 characters into email field",
        "Submit form",
        "Observe: form submits successfully"
      ],
      "expected": "Validation error for max length",
      "actual": "Form submitted, possible truncation",
      "screenshot": "screenshots/exp-001-long-email.png"
    }
  ],
  "areas_tested": {
    "forms": {"tests": 8, "issues": 1},
    "navigation": {"tests": 5, "issues": 0},
    "data_display": {"tests": 6, "issues": 2},
    "error_states": {"tests": 4, "issues": 0}
  },
  "suggestions": [
    "Add client-side max length validation",
    "Test with network throttling enabled"
  ],
  "next_action": "proceed|fix|review"
}

Focus Areas

Area	What to Test
forms	Validation, submission, reset
navigation	Links, routes, back/forward
data_display	Empty states, overflow, formatting
error_states	404, 500, network errors
accessibility	Keyboard, screen reader, contrast
performance	Large datasets, slow connections
concurrency	Multiple tabs, rapid actions

Decision Logic

Any HIGH severity findings?
    YES → status: "issues_found", next_action: "fix"

Any MEDIUM severity findings?
    YES → status: "issues_found", next_action: "review"

Only LOW or no findings?
    YES → status: "pass", next_action: "proceed"

Usage Examples

Full exploratory session:

{
  "project_dir": "/projects/oxygen_site",
  "ticket_id": "TICKET-OXY-003",
  "url": "http://localhost:8080",
  "focus_areas": ["forms", "navigation", "data_display", "error_states"],
  "time_budget": 120
}

Quick boundary check:

{
  "project_dir": "/projects/oxygen_site",
  "ticket_id": "TICKET-OXY-003",
  "url": "http://localhost:8080",
  "focus_areas": ["forms"],
  "time_budget": 30
}

Token Efficiency

• Heuristic-based test selection
• Parallel browser sessions
• ~30-120 second execution
• Returns reproducible steps