# Getting Started

#### Execute the Smallest Subset of Tests – Without Compromising Quality

SeaLights Test Optimization revolutionizes your testing strategy by identifying the essential tests needed to validate your code changes. This intelligent approach significantly slashes testing timelines by **50% to 90%** and reduces resource expenses by **up to 70%**, enhancing the efficiency of both automated and manual testing efforts.

By analyzing the delta between your previous and current code versions, SeaLights identifies exactly which tests are impacted by code changes. Instead of running a full regression suite for every minor update, Test Optimization allows you to execute only the necessary subset of tests required to ensure complete coverage of the modified areas. This data-driven approach moves away from "blind" testing and toward "smart" testing, where the test execution is dynamically tailored to the code actually written.

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/OsZomeTkmzY?si=xXvnCJ7qpPUTQAUi>" %}

### Why It Is Useful

Traditional testing cycles are often the biggest bottleneck in the DevOps pipeline. Test Optimization solves this by:

* **Slashing Execution Time:** Reduce testing timelines by $50\\%$ to $90\\%$ by skipping irrelevant tests and focusing on impacted areas.
* **Optimizing Resource Usage:** Decrease infrastructure and cloud resource costs by up to $70\\%$, significantly lowering the overhead of CI/CD.
* **Accelerating Time-to-Market:** Faster feedback loops mean developers can merge and deploy code significantly quicker.
* **Improving Developer Experience:** Engineers receive validation on their specific changes in minutes rather than hours, maintaining their focus and momentum.

### Detailed Functionality

SeaLights provides specialized optimization workflows for different testing scenarios:

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Automated Test Optimization" %}
For your CI/CD pipelines, SeaLights integrates directly with your test runners (e.g., JUnit, Selenium, Cucumber, PyTest).

* **How it works:** The SeaLights agent analyzes the code changes and the historical mapping of tests to code. It then provides the test runner with a dynamic list of "Required Tests".
* **Key Benefit:** It eliminates the need to manually partition test suites or maintain complex tagging systems for "smoke" vs "regression" tests.
  {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Manual Test Optimization" %}
Optimization isn't just for machines. SeaLights provides a **Manual Test Planner** for QA teams handling human-led testing efforts.

* **How it works:** When a new deployment is ready, SeaLights generates a prioritized list of manual test cases that cover the modified code. This allows QA engineers to focus their limited time on the areas with the highest risk of regression.
* **Key Benefit:** Ensures that manual testing effort is always aligned with the most recent development work, preventing wasted effort on stable code.
  {% endtab %}

{% tab title="Pull Request (PR) Optimization" %}
SeaLights enables "Shift-Left" testing by bringing optimization into the code review stage.

* **How it works:** As soon as a developer opens a PR, SeaLights calculates the minimum tests needed to validate that specific branch. This subset can be triggered automatically before the code is even merged into the main branch.
* **Key Benefit:** Identifies bugs at the earliest possible stage, before they impact the main codebase or other developers.
  {% endtab %}
  {% endtabs %}

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-cover data-type="image">Cover image</th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>How It Works?</strong></td><td>Explore the underlying technology of Test Optimization. Understand how SeaLights maps your application's code structure to your test suites, identifies code changes and generates test recommendations.</td><td><a href="https://1255034336-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FxSagdStwf6CJ9cI6lA68%2Fuploads%2F67dcGfdR5FemjDayX00j%2FRoyal%20Pink.png?alt=media&#x26;token=7a3d44bc-8317-4d21-9fd4-d0bf637df659">Royal Pink.png</a></td><td><a href="how-it-works">how-it-works</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Optimization Strategy</strong></td><td>Learn how to best select your testing strategy. Master the different options to balance maximum speed with absolute quality, and discover how the various advanced options to customize test optimization to your needs.</td><td><a href="https://1255034336-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FxSagdStwf6CJ9cI6lA68%2Fuploads%2FUezRzKcY0vBabAFyJX0L%2FElectric%20Lime.png?alt=media&#x26;token=9f787ac8-cbd0-4060-9a24-f77652ead3e9">Electric Lime.png</a></td><td><a href="test-optimization-strategy">test-optimization-strategy</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Optimization Savings</strong></td><td>Dive into the SeaLights monthly savings reports to track your ROI. Monitor key metrics such as <strong>Testing Time Saved</strong> and <strong>Saved Test Count</strong>, and learn how to use these insights to further refine your testing efficiency.</td><td><a href="https://1255034336-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FxSagdStwf6CJ9cI6lA68%2Fuploads%2Ft2M9Fx0raSOm29MpHN9z%2FOcean%20Deep.png?alt=media&#x26;token=6126fba6-7ff7-43dc-99ec-6df641ab319e">Ocean Deep.png</a></td><td><a href="monthly-savings-report">monthly-savings-report</a></td></tr></tbody></table>