Bug Life Cycle and Defect Management

A bug goes through several states from the moment it is found until it is fixed and verified. Understanding the bug life cycle and defect management helps you report clearly, track progress, and work smoothly with developers.

Typical bug states

• New: Bug reported; not yet triaged.
• Open / Assigned: Accepted and assigned to a developer.
• In progress: Developer is working on the fix.
• Fixed: Code changed; ready for verification.
• Verified / Closed: QA (or reporter) confirmed the fix.
• Deferred / Won't fix: Decided to handle later or not at all.
• Duplicate / Not reproducible: Merged with another report or could not be reproduced.

Exact names and transitions depend on your tool (Jira, GitHub Issues, etc.).

Writing a good bug report

Include: title, steps to reproduce, expected vs actual result, environment (OS, browser, version), screenshots or logs, and severity/priority if your process uses them. Clear, reproducible reports get fixed faster.

Defect management in practice

• Triage regularly: assign, defer, or close.
• Use severity (impact) and priority (when to fix) to order work.
• Re-test fixed bugs and close only when verified.
• Track trends (e.g. open count, escape rate) for process improvement.

Summary

• Bugs move through states such as New → Open → Fixed → Verified/Closed.
• Good bug reports are clear, reproducible, and include environment and impact.
• Defect management includes triage, prioritization, verification, and simple metrics.