Scenario Matrix Template

About

A Scenario Matrix Template for Reliability Testing is used to plan and document test cases that verify the system’s ability to perform consistently and without failure over a specified period in a given environment. The focus is on stability, fault tolerance, and recovery mechanisms, ensuring the system can operate under normal and stressful conditions without unacceptable downtime or data loss.

This matrix ensures:

• The system meets Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) targets

• Failure handling, error recovery, and data integrity are validated

• The application can resume operations quickly after unexpected disruptions

• Long-running operations are stable and predictable

Reliability testing scenarios often include continuous operation, fault injection, redundancy validation, and recovery time measurement.

Template

Scenario ID	Scenario Description	Preconditions	Test Data / Inputs	Steps to Execute	Expected Result	Priority	Remarks
REL-01	Continuous operation stability	Application running in test env	Standard workload	Run system continuously for extended period	No crashes or unplanned downtime	High	Baseline stability check
REL-02	Redundancy failover test	Redundant systems in place	Simulate component failure	Trigger failover scenario	Failover occurs without data loss	High	Validates high availability
REL-03	Recovery time objective (RTO) test	Recovery plan defined	Simulate system crash	Measure time to recover	Recovery within defined RTO	High	Confirms disaster readiness
REL-04	Recovery point objective (RPO) test	Backup and replication active	Cause data loss scenario	Restore from backup	Data loss within acceptable RPO	High	Ensures data recovery limits
REL-05	Fault injection under load	Fault injection tools ready	High load scenario	Inject faults (network, DB, API failures)	System continues to function or recovers	Medium	Verifies fault tolerance
REL-06	Long-term batch processing reliability	Batch jobs scheduled	Large data sets	Run jobs continuously over days	Jobs complete without failure	Medium	Validates processing stability
REL-07	Memory and resource leak detection	Monitoring enabled	Sustained operations	Observe resource trends over time	No abnormal increase in usage	Medium	Detects leaks before production
REL-08	Multi-service reliability check	Microservices deployed	Interdependent service calls	Test workflows over extended time	All services remain available	Medium	Validates service-level stability
REL-09	Network disruption handling	Controlled network outage	Simulate intermittent connectivity	Perform critical operations	Operations complete after reconnection	Low	Real-world failure simulation
REL-10	System reboot recovery test	System operational	Restart application servers	Measure recovery and data integrity	System returns to stable state	Medium	Confirms resilience to reboots