Random Repros

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Adi Oltean continues a great series of blogs about supportability, with this one about Random Repros.  Stop reading this.  Go read that.  And reply in his comments, if you have any ideas nearly as good as his.

There are a couple of reason tough bugs are hard.  The most common reason is the repro is too elusive.  If  you've ever dismissed a bug as 'No repro', think about the fact that someone did repro the problem at one point.  Are you resolving 'No repro' because you think it doesn't exist now?  Do you think the bug report was a mistake?  Or are you saying 'No repro' because you cannot make progress without a repro?  Next time you resolve 'No repro' make sure you are clear why.  Then ask yourself: If there really is a bug here what could help track down a consistent repro?

I'm not claiming that chasing every red herring is a worthwhile exercise.  Testing, and development are human processes and sometimes errors occur.  Don't suspend good judgement.  However, as a developer, it is better to be clear that you think a bug is a mistake then to whimp out with an unclarified 'No repro'.  As a tester, if you get a resolution of 'No repro' it is worthwhile to ask the developer if they think the bug was a mistake, already fixed, or simply elusive. If the bug is simply hiding effectively, then it is everyone's job to help flush it out.

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