Automatic fuzz testing and tuning tools for software blueprints

The increasingly popular no- or low-code paradigm is based on functional blocks connected on a graphical interface that is accessible to many stakeholders in an application. Areas such as machine learning, DevOps, digital twins, simulations, and video games use this technique to facilitate communication between stakeholders regarding the business logic. However, the testing methods for such interfaces that connect blocks of code through visual programming are not well studied. In this paper, we address this research gap by taking an example from a niche domain that nevertheless allows for full generalization to other types of applications.

Our open-source tool and proposed methods are reusing existing software testing techniques, mainly those based on fuzzing methods, and show how they can be applied to test applications defined as visual interaction blocks. Specifically for simulation applications, but not limited to them, the automated fuzz testing processes can serve two main purposes: (a) automatically generate tests triggered by new stakeholder changes and (b) support tuning of different parameters with shorter processing times. We present a comprehensive motivation plan and high-level methods that could help industry reduce the cost of testing, designing, and tuning parameters, as well as a preliminary evaluation.