What is the difference between a tabletop exercise and a full-scale test?

A tabletop exercise is a discussion-based walkthrough where team members review the incident response or continuity plan by discussing their roles and actions in a hypothetical scenario without actually performing recovery procedures. It is low-cost, low-risk, and identifies gaps in plans and communication. A full-scale test, also called a full interruption test, actually simulates a disaster by shutting down primary systems and activating recovery procedures, validating that failover sites, backups, and procedures work in practice.