Alipay International Mini Program Development PlatformAlipay International Mini Program Development PlatformDOCS

(Optional) Conduct pilot testing

Conduct pilot testing with your internal test team to validate the mini program's performance before it goes live. This final check ensures everything works as expected within the target app. You can conduct pilot testing for both sandbox and production environments (if supported by the target app).

This guide walks you through the pilot testing process.

Note: Canceling pilot testing (by clicking Cancel Testing) cancels your mini program release. If you need to skip this phase, see Bypass pilot testing for details.

Before you begin

Ensure you meet the following prerequisites:

  • Access: You must be either:
    • Workspace admin for the workspace where the mini program was created.
    • Admin for the mini program you want to release.
  • Release status: The release status must be Pilot Testing. To achieve this status, you must have already completed the following tasks:
  • Tester list: Identify your testers and obtain their user ID for the target app and environment of this release. You might have provided this list previously in the global or release-specific configuration. You can review or update the list during the procedure.

Procedure

To conduct pilot testing, take the following steps:

Step 1: Navigate to the release progress page

  1. Log in to Mini Program Platform and navigate to the target workspace.
  2. In the left navigation panel, click Mini Programs.
  3. On the page that appears, find the target mini program in the list. You can use the search field to locate it quickly.
  4. Click the name of the mini program to open its details page.
  5. Click the Versions tab, and locate the target mini program version from the list.
  6. Click plus (1).png (the plus sign) beside the version number to see the existing releases.
  7. Locate the specific release by reviewing the Target App and Environment columns.
  8. Click Release.

Step 2: Manage test group

On the release progress page, you need to specify who participates in the test:

  1. Click Add Testers.
  2. In the dialog, review or add your test group. Fields might be pre-filled with your previous global or release-specific settings, where the release-specific one takes precedence if both are provided. Update your test group with either of the following methods:
    • Add by Manual Entry: Enter the super app user IDs directly into the input box. Enter one ID per row, with a maximum of 150 testers. Note that long user IDs might reduce the allowed count. If you encounter issues saving the list, try reducing the number of testers.
    • Add by File Upload: Upload a CSV or TXT file containing the super app user IDs. Use the template provided on the interface and ensure the file does not exceed 100 KB. For optimal performance, it is recommended to limit the number of testers to 1,000 or fewer.
  1. Click Add.

Tip: After this step, you can update the test group anytime during the pilot using Update Test Group.

Step 3: Instruct testers to validate the mini program

Provide the following instructions to the testers you added:

  1. On your mobile device, install the target app that is selected for the current mini program release.
  2. Open the target app and log in to your account (matching the specified super app user ID).
  3. Search for the mini program by name and open it.
  4. According to your team's internal test plan, test all required features and document feedback.

Step 4: Complete or cancel pilot testing

Once testing is finished, return to the release progress page to proceed. Take either of the following actions based on your test team's feedback.

If issues are found

If the mini program version contains issues that need to be addressed immediately, follow these steps to cancel the release:

  1. Click Cancel Testing.
  2. In the confirmation dialog, click Cancel Testing.

This action terminates both the pilot testing and the release process, changing the release status to Canceled. To release the mini program again, improve your mini program to address the issues, create a new version, and release the new version. For release instructions, see Release a mini program.

If testing passes

If the mini program passes all validation, follow these steps to proceed with the release:

  1. Click Complete Testing.
  2. In the confirmation dialog, click Complete.

This action moves the mini program to the next phase. Depending on your release environment:

  • For sandbox releases: The mini program version goes live immediately. No further action is needed.
  • For production releases: Manually release your mini program version to the target users. Follow the instructions in Go live to proceed.

Bypass pilot testing

If your mini program is in the pilot testing phase but you want to skip it (not recommended), follow this shortcut:

  1. Complete Steps 1-2. In Step 2, enter any placeholder text (for example, test) in the input field and click Add.
  2. Click Complete Testing and confirm in the dialog to proceed directly to the next phase.

For details on what happens next, refer to If testing passes.