“Regression testing” and “test automation” get used almost interchangeably in Dynamics 365 conversations, but they describe two different things — and mixing them up leads to the wrong plan.

Regression testing is a goal

Regression testing means confirming that existing functionality still works correctly after a change — an update, a customisation, a new integration. It’s not optional in a live D365 environment; it’s simply what has to happen before you trust a release.

Test automation is a method

Automation is one way of doing regression testing — using a tool to repeat a recorded process instead of a person clicking through it manually. It’s not the only way to regression test, but for an environment that changes as often as Dynamics 365, it’s the only way that scales.

Why the distinction matters

Teams that treat “we do regression testing” and “we have test automation” as the same statement often discover the gap the hard way — usually right after a Product Quality Update, when the manual testing that was supposed to happen didn’t, or wasn’t documented well enough to prove it did.

Getting this right isn’t about buying a tool. It’s about deciding which of your regression tests are worth automating, in what order, and how they fit your existing release process — which is exactly the planning work that should happen before any automation is switched on.