What is the purpose of a code review?

A code review primarily serves to identify mistakes or defects in the code that may have been overlooked during the initial development process. This practice is vital for ensuring high-quality software, as it enhances the code's reliability and maintainability by allowing peers or more experienced developers to examine the code for errors, inconsistencies, or deviations from established coding standards.

In addition to spotting mistakes, a code review promotes knowledge sharing among team members, helps catch potential security vulnerabilities, and facilitates adherence to best practices in programming. By engaging in this collaborative process, developers can improve not only the specific piece of code under review but also learn from each other, ultimately fostering a culture of continuous improvement and accountability within the team.

While the other choices touch upon relevant areas of software development, they do not align with the primary focus of code reviews. Approving a final software product typically occurs at a different stage after thorough testing and integration, testing user interfaces is a separate process that focuses on usability rather than code quality, and evaluating performance pertains to assessing how well the software runs under various conditions, which is outside the scope of what a code review aims to achieve.