What does acceptance testing help to ensure?

Acceptance testing is a critical phase in the software development lifecycle that helps ensure that the system meets specified requirements and is ready for deployment. This type of testing is typically conducted by end-users or QA teams to confirm that the software behaves as expected in a production environment. By certifying system readiness for production, acceptance testing verifies that the final product aligns with the needs and expectations of the stakeholders.

In this context, acceptance testing serves as a final check that ensures the system is not only functional but also satisfactory, validating that it can handle real-world scenarios and user interactions. It assesses usability, performance, and compliance with business requirements, thus providing confidence that the system can be released for actual use.

Other options mention related testing processes but do not encapsulate the primary objective of acceptance testing. Preparations for trials pertain to planning and setup, testing modules together focuses on integration testing rather than acceptance, and testing each program separately relates more to unit testing, which occurs earlier in the development process. Acceptance testing is distinctively aimed at confirming that the overall system is ready for live operation.