Definition: A rolling installation is a long-running test installation where tests continuously import new data and archive old data, keeping the system at a steady capacity. It mirrors a realistic data lifecycle and stays running across many software versions.
So what? A rolling installation removes the lead time of building up a large data set for every iteration. Because it has run through many upgrades, it also exposes version compatibility problems that a fresh installation would miss.
Examples: A test archive that imports a day's worth of data each night and removes the oldest day. Upgrading the same long-running installation with every release to check older data still works.
