Test Plans & Cycles

Introduction

What is the Test Plans screen?

The Test Plans screen is where you organize the test cases you have already written into deliberate, named collections and then run them. A plan answers the question “which tests belong to this release or feature?”; a cycle answers “which round of running those tests is this?”; and a run (execution) is the act of actually checking one test case and marking the result.

Think of it like a school exam. The plan is the syllabus — the fixed list of topics that will be tested. A cycle is one sitting of the exam — “Midterm,” “Re-sit,” “Final” — each covering the same syllabus but on a different date with its own score sheet. An execution (run) is grading one single question on that sheet: pass, fail, blocked, or skipped.

Note

In one sentence: a Test Plan is a saved list of test cases, a Test Cycle is one timed execution round over that list, and an execution is the recorded result of a single test case within a cycle.

It is important to keep the three levels straight because they nest:

• Plan -> contains a set of test cases (added from your catalog) plus zero or more cycles.
• Cycle -> contains one execution per test case in the plan, captured at the moment the cycle was created.
• Execution -> contains one status (pass/fail/blocked/skipped/etc.), plus optional step-by-step results, evidence files, and a linked defect.

Who this guide is for

• Test leads / QA managers who build a plan for a release or sprint, decide which test cases go in, and create cycles for each test round.
• Manual testers who open a cycle, walk through each test case step by step, and record what passed and what failed.
• Automation engineers whose mapped scripts can be launched directly from a cycle, individually or all at once.
• Anyone tracking progress — leads and stakeholders who watch the progress bars, pass rate, and completion percentage to know how a test round is going. No coding is required to use any part of this screen. Running automated scripts simply triggers tests that engineers mapped elsewhere; the buttons here just start them and collect the results.

Key terms

Term	What it means on this screen
Test Plan	A named collection of test cases, optionally tagged with a Release, Sprint, and Status (Draft / Active / Completed / Archived).
Test Cycle	One execution round over a plan. Has its own name, optional assignee, start date and end date. Creating a cycle generates one execution per test case in the plan.
Execution	The result record for one test case within one cycle. Carries a status, optional duration, who ran it, step results, evidence, and a possible linked defect.
Status (execution)	One of Not Run, In Progress, Passed, Failed, Blocked, or Skipped.
Status (plan/cycle)	One of Draft, Active, Completed, or Archived.
Step Result	The pass/fail/blocked/skipped outcome of a single step inside a test case, recorded on the manual step-execution screen.
Pass Rate	Passed executions divided by total executions, as a percentage.
Completion	Executions that are no longer Not Run, divided by total, as a percentage.
Evidence	Files (screenshots, logs, exports) attached to a single execution as proof of what happened during the run.
Defect	A bug record created from a failed or blocked execution, capturing the failed step details.
Re-run Failed	Creates a brand-new cycle containing only the failed test cases from an existing cycle, so you can retest just the failures.
Mapped script	An automation script that an engineer has linked to a test case; cycles show a bot icon for these and let you run them.

How it relates to Test Cases & Results

Test Plans sits downstream of the Test Cases catalog and upstream of execution history:

• Test Cases are authored elsewhere (the Test Management / Test Cases screen). Test Plans only references them — adding a case to a plan does not copy or modify the case, and removing it from a plan never deletes it from the catalog.
• When you build the Add Test Cases dialog you can filter by the same attributes as the Test Cases screen (priority, type, status, automation, tags, source) so the same mental model carries over.
• Executing a cycle produces the results and history for those cases — pass rates, durations, evidence, and linked defects — which feed the analytics shown on this screen and the wider reporting elsewhere in Testver.

Note

Editing a test case’s steps in the catalog does not retroactively change executions already recorded in a past cycle. Each execution captures the steps as they were when the cycle was created.

Getting Started

Opening Test Plans

1. From the left navigation, open Test Plans (route /test-plans).
2. The screen opens on the Plans List — the default view, showing every plan as a card in a grid.
3. If you have no plans yet, you see an empty state with a Create Plan button. Otherwise, the most recent plans appear as cards. The screen has four nested views. You move into them by clicking and back out using the breadcrumb trail at the top of each inner view:

View	How you reach it	What it shows
Plans List	Default landing view	All plans as cards, with search and a status filter.
Plan Detail	Click Open Plan on a card	One plan’s info, plus two tabs: Test Cases and Cycles.
Cycle Execution	Click Execute on a cycle	The execution list for one cycle: per-case status, stats, analytics, automation, JIRA publish.
Step Execution	Click Steps on an execution row	The step-by-step run sheet for one test case, plus evidence and defect actions.

The screen layout

Area	Location	Purpose
Title bar	Top	Target icon, the heading Test Plans, the subtitle “Manage test plans, cycles, and execution,” and a New Plan button on the right.
Search box	Below title bar, left	Free-text Search plans… — filters cards by plan name or description as you type.
Status filter	Below title bar, right	Pill buttons: All, Draft, Active, Completed, Archived.
Plans grid	Main area	Plan cards, two per row on wide screens, one per row on narrow screens.
Plan card	Within grid	Name, description, ID/Release/Sprint/Status badges, test-case count, a colored progress bar, pass/fail/remaining counts, created date, and Open Plan.

At a glance

• Every plan card is self-summarizing: a single progress bar shows green (passed), red (failed), and amber (executed-but-other) segments at a glance.
• The search box and status filter combine — searching narrows whatever the status filter currently shows.
• All destructive or long-running actions (delete a plan/cycle, remove a test case, run automation) pop a themed confirmation dialog before anything happens.
• Create/Edit dialogs open as centered modal overlays; clicking the dark backdrop or the X closes them without saving.

The Plans List

The Plans List is the home of the screen. Each plan is a card; the cards are arranged in a responsive grid.

Reading a plan card

Element	Meaning
Plan name	The title; hovering reveals the full name if truncated. Clicking it opens the plan.
Description	Up to two lines of the plan’s description (clamped), shown only if one exists.
ID badge	The plan’s identifier, in monospace — useful for referencing the plan elsewhere.
Release badge	The release tag (blue), shown only if set, e.g. v2.5.
Sprint badge	The sprint tag (indigo), shown only if set, e.g. Sprint 14.
Status badge	Draft (gray), Active (blue), Completed (green), or Archived (slate).
Test-case count	”N test cases” with a document icon.
Executed count	”executed / total (percent%)” — how far the plan has been run across its cycles.
Progress bar	Green = passed, red = failed, amber = executed-but-neither, on a gray track.
Counts line	Shown once anything is executed: green “N passed,” red “N failed,” gray “N remaining.”
Created date	When the plan was created, with a calendar icon.
Open Plan button	Opens the Plan Detail view.

Searching & filtering plans

1. Type in the Search plans… box to filter cards by name or description (case-insensitive, matches partial text).
2. Click a status pill — All, Draft, Active, Completed, or Archived — to show only plans in that status.
3. Combine both: the search filters within whatever the status pill currently shows.

Note

The status filter is applied on the server (the plan list is re-fetched per status), while the search text is applied locally to the returned cards.

Editing & deleting a plan

Hover over a card to reveal the Edit (pencil) and Delete (trash) icons in the top-right corner. They stay hidden until hover to keep the cards clean.

Action	How	Result
Open	Click the name or Open Plan	Goes to Plan Detail.
Edit	Hover, click the pencil	Opens the Edit Plan modal pre-filled with the plan’s values.
Delete	Hover, click the trash	Opens a confirmation dialog; on confirm the plan and all its cycles and execution history are permanently removed.
Create new	Click New Plan in the title bar	Opens the empty New Test Plan modal.

Caution

Deleting a plan permanently removes the plan together with every cycle under it and all execution history. This cannot be undone. The test cases themselves remain in the catalog.

Creating & Editing a Plan

Opening the plan form

1. Click New Plan (title bar) to create, or the pencil icon on a card / Edit in Plan Detail to edit an existing plan.
2. A centered modal appears titled New Test Plan or Edit Plan.
3. Fill in the fields below, then click Create Plan / Update Plan.
4. Click Cancel, the X, or the dark backdrop to close without saving.

Plan fields

Field	Required	Notes
Plan Name	Yes	The plan’s title, e.g. “Release 2.5 Regression.” The Create/Update button stays disabled until this is filled.
Description	No	Free-text summary, up to a few lines. Placeholder: “Brief description…”
Release	No	Short release tag, e.g. v2.5. Shown as a blue badge on cards.
Sprint	No	Short sprint tag, e.g. Sprint 14. Shown as an indigo badge on cards.
Status	No (defaults to Draft)	Dropdown: Draft, Active, Completed, Archived.

Tip

If you put a JIRA-style key in the plan name (for example, “PROJ-123: Login Regression”), the Publish Results to JIRA panel inside cycles will auto-detect that key and pre-fill it for you.

Adding test cases to the plan

A new plan starts empty. You add test cases from the Test Cases tab of Plan Detail.

1. Open the plan, stay on (or switch to) the Test Cases tab.
2. Click Add Test Cases. A large picker dialog opens titled Add Test Cases to Plan.
3. Use the Search test cases… box and the filter row to narrow the list.
4. Click a row to toggle its checkbox, or use Select All to toggle every currently-listed case.
5. Click Add N Test Cases to add the selected cases to the plan.
6. Cases already in the plan are automatically excluded from the picker so you cannot add duplicates. The picker’s filter row mirrors the Test Cases screen so the same controls behave the same way:

Filter	Options
Priority	Critical, High, Medium, Low
Type	Web, UI, API, Mobile, Database, Integration, E2E, Security, Performance, Usability, Accessibility, Compatibility, Localization
Status	Draft, Active, Deprecated, Archived
Automation	Manual, Automated, Needs Update
Tags	Multi-select of your defined tags
Source	Single-select of a source that has test cases

Each row in the picker shows the test case’s ID (monospace), title, and small badges for its folder, status, priority, and type. A counter at the top-right shows how many are selected; a Clear (N) link appears when any attribute filters are active.

Note

When attribute filters are active, the picker fetches a larger page of matching cases (up to several hundred) so filtering rarely truncates results.

The Test Cases tab

The Test Cases tab lists the cases currently in the plan in a table:

Column	Shows
Title	Test case ID (monospace) + title, with the optional code beneath.
Priority	Colored priority badge.
Type	Colored type badge.
Automation	Automated (green), Needs Update (amber), or Manual (gray).
Remove (X)	Removes the case from this plan.

Caution

Removing a test case from a plan also clears any executions for that case in every cycle of this plan. The case itself stays in the catalog. A confirmation dialog warns you before this happens.

Creating a cycle

Cycles are how you actually run a plan. Each cycle is a dated round with an optional owner. Create one from the Cycles tab.

1. Open the plan and switch to the Cycles tab.
2. Click New Cycle (or Create Cycle in the empty state).
3. Fill the cycle fields and click Create Cycle.

Cycle field	Required	Notes
Cycle Name	Yes	e.g. “Cycle 1 - Smoke Tests.” Save stays disabled until filled.
Assigned To	No	Free-text owner, e.g. an email. Shown with a people icon on the cycle card and header.
Start Date	No	Date picker.
End Date	No	Date picker. Drives the time-remaining / Overdue badge on the cycle card.

Note

Creating a cycle snapshots the plan: it generates one execution (initially Not Run) for each test case currently in the plan. Cases added to the plan after a cycle exists are not retroactively added to that cycle.

Executing a Plan / Cycle

The cycle card

1. On the Cycles tab, find the cycle card. It shows the cycle name, ID, status, assignee, a mini progress bar, an executed/total line, and a time-remaining or Overdue badge.
2. Click Execute to open the Cycle Execution view.
3. If the cycle has failures, a Re-run Failed button also appears on the card (see 5.7).

The Cycle Execution summary

At the top of the Cycle Execution view, a summary header shows the cycle name, assignee, ID, and status, a full-width status distribution bar colored by execution outcome, and a stats grid:

Stat	Meaning
Total	Number of executions (test cases) in the cycle.
Passed	Executions marked Passed.
Failed	Executions marked Failed.
Blocked	Executions marked Blocked.
Skipped	Executions marked Skipped.
Not Run	Executions not yet executed.
Pass Rate	Passed / Total as a percentage.
Completion	(Total - Not Run) / Total as a percentage.

The analytics panel

Below the summary, a four-tile analytics panel summarizes the cycle:

Tile	Meaning
Total Duration	Sum of execution durations, formatted as hours/minutes/seconds.
Pass Rate	Percentage of executed tests that passed.
Completion	Percentage of tests that are no longer Not Run.
Failed	Count of failed executions.

The execution list

The execution list is a table with one row per test case. Each row carries the test case’s automation indicator (a bot icon for automated, an “M” for manual), ID + title, priority, status, quick-action buttons, duration, and who executed it. There are two ways to set a status:

• Status dropdown — pick any status directly from the colored select in the Status column.
• Quick Actions — click one of four icon buttons to set Pass, Fail, Block, or Skip in one click.

Status	Icon / color	When to use it
Passed	Green check	The test case behaved exactly as expected.
Failed	Red X	The test produced a wrong result or an error.
Blocked	Orange warning triangle	The test could not be run — a dependency, environment, or earlier failure stops it.
Skipped	Gray minus circle	The test was intentionally not run this cycle (out of scope, deferred).
In Progress	Blue	Set automatically/while a run is underway; indicates work started but not finished.
Not Run	Slate	The default starting state before anyone touches the test case.

Note

Setting a status from this list records you (your display name or username) as the executor. The progress bars, stats, analytics, and plan cards all update from these statuses.

Running steps manually

For a thorough manual run, click Steps on an execution row to open the Step Execution view for that one test case.

The header shows the test case title, its priority and type badges, and any Preconditions. Below it is the steps table:

Column	What you do
#	Step number (read-only).
Action	The instruction to perform (read-only).
Expected Result	What should happen (read-only).
Status	Click Pass / Fail / Block / Skip for this single step.
Actual Result	Type what actually happened; saved when you click away (on blur).
Comment	Type a note for this step; saved on blur.

Each row tints to match its status (faint green/red/orange/gray). At the bottom a counter reads “N of M steps passed.” Helpful shortcuts and actions on this screen:

Button	Effect
Pass All Steps	Marks every step in this execution as Passed at once.
Create Defect (N failed)	Appears when there are failed steps and no defect yet; opens a bug capturing all failed step details. Once created, a colored defect ID + status badge replaces the button.
Back to Cycle	Returns to the Cycle Execution list.

Tip

Status, Actual Result, and Comment each save independently and immediately, so you can grade steps in any order and your typed notes persist as soon as you click out of the field.

Attaching evidence

Below the steps table, the Evidence section lets you attach proof for this specific run.

1. Click Attach Files and choose one or more files (screenshots, logs, exports).
2. Each file is uploaded and listed with its name, size, who uploaded it, and the timestamp.
3. Use the Download icon to retrieve a file, or the Trash icon (with a confirmation) to remove it.

Note

Each file is capped at 25 MB; larger files are skipped with a warning. Evidence is attached to one execution, not the whole cycle.

Defects can also be raised from the cycle list itself: any execution that is Failed or Blocked shows a red Defect button in its Quick Actions column. Clicking it creates a bug from that execution. Once a defect exists, the row shows a colored badge with the defect ID and its status (Open / In Progress / Resolved / Closed / Rejected) instead of the button.

Running automated tests

Test cases that have a mapped automation script show a cyan bot icon. When at least one mapped case exists, an automation bar appears above the list reading “N of M test cases have automation scripts” with a Run All Automated (N) button.

Control	Effect
Run (per row)	Runs that one mapped script; the button shows a spinner and “Running” while active, then the status updates with the result.
Run All Automated (N)	Runs every mapped script in the cycle sequentially; manual cases are skipped. Confirmed by a dialog first.

Note

Both single and bulk runs ask for confirmation before starting, since automation can be long-running. The screen auto-refreshes execution data, stats, and analytics as runs complete.

Filtering executions by status

A row of filter tabs above the list — All, Not Run, In Progress, Passed, Failed, Blocked, Skipped — narrows the table to executions in that status, which is handy for working through just the failures or just the not-yet-run cases.

Re-running failed tests

When a cycle has failures, its card shows a Re-run Failed button.

1. On the Cycles tab, click Re-run Failed on a cycle that has failures.
2. A dialog asks for a New Cycle Name (pre-filled as “<cycle name> - Rerun”).
3. Click Re-run. A new cycle is created containing only the failed test cases, ready to retest.

Results & Reports

How results roll up

Results roll up automatically through the three levels, so you never have to total anything by hand:

• Execution -> a single status (and optional step-level pass/fail).
• Cycle -> the summary header stats, the status distribution bar, and the analytics tiles (Total Duration, Pass Rate, Completion, Failed).
• Plan -> each plan card’s progress bar and “executed / total” line aggregate across all of the plan’s cycles.

Publishing results to JIRA

If a JIRA connector is configured, a Publish Results to JIRA panel appears inside the Cycle Execution view. It posts a formatted summary comment onto a JIRA ticket.

1. Confirm or type the JIRA issue key (e.g. PROJ-123). If the plan name contains a key, it is auto-detected and pre-filled.
2. Click Publish.
3. A comment is posted containing an overall PASSED/FAILED line, plan and cycle names, the date, a passed/failed/skipped/blocked summary, the pass rate, and a per-test-case list with status emoji.
4. On success the button switches to a green Published state.

Note

The JIRA panel only appears when a connector is configured. You can publish partial results even while some cases are still Not Run.

About exports & reporting

This screen does not provide a separate downloadable PDF/CSV report button or a standalone exports tab. Reporting here is the in-place roll-up (cards, header stats, analytics tiles) plus the JIRA comment publish. Linked defects created from failed/blocked executions carry the detailed failure record into your defect tracking.

Common Tasks (How Do I…?)

I want to…	Do this
Create a new plan	Click New Plan, enter a name (other fields optional), Create Plan.
Add test cases to a plan	Open the plan -> Test Cases tab -> Add Test Cases -> filter, select, Add N Test Cases.
Remove a test case from a plan	Plan Test Cases tab -> click the X on the row -> confirm.
Start a test round	Plan -> Cycles tab -> New Cycle -> name it -> Create Cycle -> Execute.
Mark a test passed/failed quickly	In the cycle list, click the green check / red X (or pick from the Status dropdown).
Run a test step by step	Click Steps on the execution row, then grade each step.
Pass an entire test case at once	On the Step Execution screen, click Pass All Steps.
Attach a screenshot as proof	Step Execution -> Evidence -> Attach Files.
Log a bug for a failure	Cycle list: click Defect on a failed/blocked row, or Create Defect on the step screen.
Retest only the failures	Cycle card -> Re-run Failed -> name the new cycle -> Re-run.
Run automated tests	In the cycle, click Run on a row or Run All Automated in the automation bar.
See only failed tests	Cycle view -> click the Failed filter tab.
Post results to JIRA	Cycle view -> Publish Results to JIRA -> enter key -> Publish.
Find a plan	Use the Search plans… box and/or the status filter on the Plans List.
Go back a level	Use the breadcrumb trail at the top of any inner view.

Tips & Best Practices

• Name plans by release or feature. Putting a JIRA key in the plan name unlocks JIRA auto-detection when publishing results.
• Add all cases before creating the cycle. A cycle snapshots the plan at creation time; cases added later do not flow into existing cycles.
• Use cycles, not new plans, for repeated rounds. Keep one plan and create a fresh cycle (Smoke, Regression, Re-sit) for each run so history stays together.
• Set end dates. They drive the time-remaining and Overdue badges, giving the team an at-a-glance deadline view.
• Capture evidence as you go. Attach screenshots/logs at the moment of failure while context is fresh; evidence is per-execution.
• Grade steps for important cases. The step view gives precise pass/fail per step and feeds a richer defect when something breaks.
• Use the status filter tabs to divide work. Filter to Not Run to see what’s left, or Failed to focus a retest.
• Re-run Failed instead of editing. It creates a clean cycle with just the failures so your original results stay intact as a record.
• Lean on Pass All Steps for cases that clearly passed end-to-end, then spot-check rather than clicking every step individually.

Troubleshooting & FAQ

Problem / Question	Answer
A test case I added to the plan isn’t in my cycle	Cycles snapshot the plan when created. Add the case first, then create a new cycle (or re-run) to include it.
I can’t click Create / Update	The Plan Name (or Cycle Name) field is empty. Names are required; fill it in and the button enables.
A case is missing from the Add Test Cases picker	It is probably already in the plan (duplicates are excluded), or it’s filtered out — check the search box and filter row, then Clear the filters.
Removing a case wiped its results	Expected. Removing a case from a plan clears its executions in every cycle of that plan. The case stays in the catalog. The confirm dialog warns about this.
I deleted a plan by mistake	Deletion is permanent and removes all cycles and history; there is no undo. Recreate the plan and re-add the cases.
The Run / Run All button isn’t showing	Only test cases with a mapped automation script can be run here (cyan bot icon). Manual cases show an “M” and are run via Steps.
The Publish to JIRA panel is missing	It only appears when a JIRA connector is configured for your workspace.
My typed Actual Result / Comment didn’t save	These save on blur — click out of the field (or move to another) and the value is stored.
My evidence file was skipped	Files over 25 MB are skipped with a warning. Compress or split the file under the limit.
Status changed but stats didn’t move	Stats and analytics refresh from execution status; for automated runs they auto-refresh as runs complete. If needed, leave and re-open the cycle.
What does Blocked vs Skipped mean?	Blocked = couldn’t run due to an obstacle (dependency/environment). Skipped = intentionally not run this round.
A cycle says Overdue	Its End Date has passed. Edit the cycle to extend the date, or finish/close it out.

Related

• Test Cases — what plans contain.
• Defects — file defects from failed executions.
• Runner — runs the automated parts of a cycle.
• Results — full automation results.