Coverage on the Map
2 min read
Coverage answers a question a folder tree cannot: which parts of the product do tests actually reach, and how did those tests do?
Every node carries a health state, and results roll up the tree — so an area is coloured by everything beneath it.
The Six Health States
Section titled “The Six Health States”| State | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Unmapped | Nothing is linked here yet — not a gap, just a heading |
| Uncovered | Something is linked and no test case reaches it |
| Failing | A test reached it and did not pass |
| Not yet passed | Covered, ran, and nothing has passed yet |
| Stale | Passing, but not for 90 days — true then, unverified since |
| Healthy | Passing, recently |
Selecting a node shows the same verdict as a sentence, with its numbers: tests, passed, failed or blocked, not run, and open defects.
How Roll-Up Works
Section titled “How Roll-Up Works”A node’s coverage includes everything linked to it and everything linked beneath it.
Test cases are counted as a set, not a sum. A test case linked under two different children counts once in their shared parent — adding the children’s counts would double it and make an area look better covered than it is.
Coverage health comes from the same function the traceability matrix uses, so the two surfaces cannot tell different stories about the same requirement.
Recompute Coverage
Section titled “Recompute Coverage”Coverage reflects execution results at the time it was computed. Select Recompute coverage in the action rail after a run finishes to bring the map up to date.
Scope to One Execution
Section titled “Scope to One Execution”Coverage can be narrowed to a single execution. Instead of “what has ever passed”, the map then shows “how did this run do” — which is the view you want during a release cycle.
Combined with journeys, this is the fastest read on release readiness the map can give: scope to the release’s execution and look at your critical journeys.
Reading the Map for Gaps
Section titled “Reading the Map for Gaps”The most useful pass over a fresh map:
- Look for Uncovered. Real gaps: something is specified or filed here and no test reaches it.
- Look for Unmapped areas that should not be. A screen with nothing linked usually means nobody has connected its tests, not that it has none.
- Look for Stale on anything critical. Passing 90 days ago and untouched since is a quiet risk.
- Check journey health, which is weakest-link and will surface a break the tree view averages away.