By name: debugging-failed-tests description: "Debug failed tests using Buildkite Test Engine. Use when tests have failed in CI and you need to find which tests failed, get backtraces, and diagnose the issue."
Debugging Failed Tests
Find and diagnose test failures from Buildkite Test Engine.
Load skills: using-buildkite
Workflow
1. Find Test Runs
Given a build number and pipeline, list all test engine runs for that build:
ruby scripts/list_runs.rb <org/pipeline> <build_number>
This uses the Builds API with include_test_engine=true to find all test engine runs associated with the build, then fetches details (pass/fail counts) for each run.
To browse recent runs for a specific suite instead:
ruby scripts/list_runs.rb <org/suite> --recent
2. Get Failed Tests
ruby scripts/failed_tests.rb <org/suite> <run_id>
3. Get Full Details
Use --expanded for full backtraces and error details:
ruby scripts/failed_tests.rb <org/suite> <run_id> --expanded
4. Diagnose
Read the failing test files and the code under test to understand what went wrong. Look for:
- Recent changes that could have caused the failure
- Flaky test patterns (intermittent failures, timing issues)
- Environment or dependency issues