Bats Shell Testing Patterns
wshobson/agents
Writes unit tests for shell scripts with Bats: error-condition tests, fixtures and mocks, cross-shell checks, parallel runs, helper files and CI integration.
Writes unit tests (for lib/.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage.
Install Testing Bash Scripts
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a claude-codeProject install by default; add -g for ~/.claude/skills/.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scripts --agent claude-codeProject scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .claude/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .claude/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.claude/skills/ instead of .claude/skills for a personal install. The folder must contain SKILL.md.
Claude Code skills documentation · loads skills from .claude/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .claude/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.Claude Code copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$skill-installer install https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scriptsType this inside Codex. $skill-installer <name> installs a curated skill from openai/skills. The installer writes to $CODEX_HOME/skills (default ~/.codex/skills). Restart Codex if the skill does not show up.
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a codexProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.codex/skills/.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scripts --agent codexProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .agents/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .agents/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.agents/skills/ instead of .agents/skills for a personal install.
Codex skills documentation · loads skills from .agents/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .agents/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.Codex copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a cursorProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.cursor/skills/.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scripts --agent cursorProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .cursor/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .cursor/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.cursor/skills/ instead of .cursor/skills for a personal install.
Cursor skills documentation · loads skills from .cursor/skills/, .agents/skills/, .claude/skills/, .codex/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .cursor/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.Cursor copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gemini skills install https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git --path .agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts--scope user (default) or --scope workspace; --path is the subfolder of the repo that holds the skill; --consent skips the security confirmation prompt.
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a gemini-cliProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.gemini/skills/.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scripts --agent gemini-cliProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .gemini/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .gemini/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.gemini/skills/ instead of .gemini/skills for a personal install, then run /skills reload.
Gemini CLI skills documentation · loads skills from .gemini/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .gemini/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.Gemini CLI copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scriptsInstalls for Copilot at project scope by default; add --scope user for a personal install. Preview a skill first with gh skill preview. Needs GitHub CLI 2.90.0 or later (public preview).
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a github-copilotProject install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.copilot/skills/.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .github/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .github/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.copilot/skills/ instead of .github/skills for a personal install. Commit .github/skills so cloud agent and code review can use it.
GitHub Copilot skills documentation · loads skills from .github/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .github/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.GitHub Copilot copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
$ npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a opencodeOpenCode documents no install command of its own. Project install goes to .agents/skills/; add -g for ~/.config/opencode/skills/.
$ gh skill install agntcy/coffeeAgntcy testing-bash-scripts --agent opencodeProject scope by default (.agents/skills/); add --scope user for a personal install.
$ git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.git skills-src && mkdir -p .opencode/skills && cp -r skills-src/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts .opencode/skills/testing-bash-scripts && rm -rf skills-srcUse ~/.config/opencode/skills/ instead of .opencode/skills for a personal install.
OpenCode skills documentation · loads skills from .opencode/skills/, .claude/skills/, .agents/skills/
Install the "testing-bash-scripts" agent skill from https://github.com/agntcy/coffeeAgntcy/tree/main/.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts into .opencode/skills/testing-bash-scripts/ in this project. Copy the whole folder (SKILL.md and every file beside it), keep the folder name "testing-bash-scripts", then confirm the skill loads.OpenCode copies the folder itself, the same result as the manual copy. Check what it changed before you commit it.
Facts
- Skill name
testing-bash-scripts- GitHub stars
- 112
- Token cost
- ~1.1k tokens
- SKILL.md length
- 359 words
- Files
- 1
- Skills in repo
- 16
- Repo updated
- First seen
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
At a glance
Writes unit tests (for lib/.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage.
- Adding a new bash script anywhere in the repository
- SKILL.md covers What this skill does, Workflow and Notes
- Instructions only: no scripts, shell commands, URLs or credentials in SKILL.md
- Audit test coverage for one
What it does
Testing Bash Scripts is an agent skill from agntcy/coffeeAgntcy. Writes unit tests (for lib/.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage. Use whenever adding a new bash script anywhere in the repository, or when asked to test, mock, or audit test coverage for one.
Its SKILL.md is about 1.1k tokens, which your agent loads only when the skill is triggered. It is a single SKILL.md file with no bundled scripts.
It sits in Testing & QA, covering Shell scripting, Unit testing and Test coverage. It works with Bash. The repository describes itself as: End-to-end reference application for AGNTCY Components. The licence is Apache-2.0.
When your agent uses it
- Adding a new bash script anywhere in the repository
- Audit test coverage for one
Example prompts
- “Use the testing-bash-scripts skill to write unit tests (for lib/.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats…”
- “/testing-bash-scripts”
Requirements
- Docker
What it can do on your machine
Read from SKILL.md and the folder at commit 36f1923. It shows what the files ask for, not the result of running them.
Tool permissions
Pre-approves nothing: there is no allowed-tools line, so your agent's usual permission prompts apply.
From allowed-tools in the SKILL.md frontmatter.
Runs code
No scripts in the folder and no shell commands in SKILL.md.
From the folder's file list and the shell code blocks in SKILL.md.
Network
No URLs in SKILL.md.
From URLs in SKILL.md, links to its own repository left out.
Credentials
Names no API keys, tokens, secrets or passwords.
From names ending in _API_KEY, _TOKEN, _SECRET, _KEY or _PASSWORD in SKILL.md.
Context cost
Testing Bash Scripts loads about 1.1k tokens when it runs. Until then it costs about 75 tokens; SKILL.md has 359 words of instructions outside code blocks.
Estimates: characters ÷ 4, the usual rule of thumb; real counts depend on the model's tokenizer. Scripts and assets cost tokens only if the agent reads them.
Safety
Auto-check passed
The automated check found no risky patterns in SKILL.md.
Automated static check — not a guarantee. Review scripts before installing. It scans the text of SKILL.md for risky patterns (piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files, hidden Unicode, destructive commands); files beside SKILL.md are not scanned.
SKILL.md
The full file from agntcy/coffeeAgntcy at commit 36f1923, republished under its Apache-2.0 licence (© agntcy). 359 words, ~1,077 tokens.
Download SKILL.mdSave it as
.claude/skills/testing-bash-scripts/SKILL.md (or your agent's skills folder).- name
- testing-bash-scripts
- description
- Writes unit tests (for lib/*.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage. Use whenever adding a new bash script anywhere in the repository, or when asked to test, mock, or audit test coverage for one.
Testing bash scripts
What this skill does
Writes a .bats test for a new bash script anywhere in the repository, using bats
(bootstrapped by task setup) and this repo's shared mocking helper
(scripts/lib/testing.sh), then runs
task tests:bash (the whole suite) and
task tests:coverage (the audit that a test
exists at all). Both run as part of task check:all in
checks.yaml. See
.agents/rules/quality/bash-script-testing.md
for the underlying rule.
Workflow
- [ ] 1. Decide which shape applies: a shared helper under a lib/*.sh-style directory
gets unit tests (source it, call its functions directly); an
executable script anywhere else gets a mocked end-to-end test
(run it as a subprocess with `run`).
- [ ] 2. Create <the script's own directory>/tests/<name>.bats.
- [ ] 3. At the top: `load '<relative path>/lib/testing.sh'` for
mock_setup/mock_command/mock_teardown, plus (unit tests only)
`load '<relative path>/<the file being tested>.sh'`.
- [ ] 4. For each external command the code under test invokes (gh,
docker, uname, git, ...), call `mock_command <name> '<stub body>'`
in the test that needs it, instead of letting the real binary
run.
- [ ] 5. Write one @test per meaningful behavior - the happy path, every
real branch, and every error path - not just one smoke test.
- [ ] 6. Run: task tests:bash (or `bats path/to/the.bats` directly while
iterating, for a faster loop).
- [ ] 7. Run: task tests:coverage - confirms the new script is no longer
flagged as untested. There's no exceptions list: every script,
with no exceptions, needs one.Notes
- Unit vs. mocked end-to-end is decided by what kind of file it is, not
by choice:
scripts/lib/*.shfiles are already alwayssourced, never executed directly, so they're naturally unit-testable with zero code change; executable scripts are already invoked as their own subprocess by a Taskfile task or CI, so they're naturally end-to-end-testable withrunand zero code change either. Neither needs amain()guard or any other restructuring first. mock_command <name> '<body>'writes an executable stub named<name>ahead of the real command onPATHfor the rest of that one test - the body runs as a real shell script, with$@/$1/etc. bound to whatever arguments the real command would have received, so a stub can branch on its arguments when a test needs different responses for different calls.- A passing end-to-end test that quietly depended on a real installed tool or a real network call isn't actually mocked - if a test would fail differently (or not run at all) on a machine without that tool installed or without network access, something wasn't mocked that should have been.
- See scripts/lib/tests/platform.bats
for a worked unit-test example (mocking
unameto exercise every OS/arch branch) and scripts/ci-gate/tests/wait-for-sibling-runs.bats for a worked mocked end-to-end example (mockinggh). - If
task tests:coverageflags a script, write it a test - there's no exceptions list to add it to instead. - For a test that needs a real command to be genuinely absent (not just
hopefully-shadowed by pointing
PATHat a directory guessed not to contain it - that guess can fail across OSes, e.g. Debian/Ubuntu's merged-usr layout makes bare/binreach everything/usr/binhas), usemock_isolate_path <tool> ...(also inscripts/lib/testing.sh): it symlinks each named tool from the realPATHinto the mock bin directory, then restrictsPATHto only that directory.
© agntcy, Apache-2.0. Rendered from Markdown: HTML in the file is shown as text, images as links, and headings moved down two levels. Raw file
Files
Just SKILL.md in .agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts of agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.
Open the folder on GitHubat commit 36f1923
Compare with similar skills
Testing Bash Scripts next to the 5 skills that share the most tags, products or categories with it. Stars are the repository's; “used in” counts other GitHub owners with a copy.
| Skill | Stars | Used in | Tokens | Auto-check | Licence | Repo updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Testing Bash Scripts this skillagntcy/coffeeAgntcy | 112 | — | ~1.1k | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| Bats Shell Testing Patternswshobson/agents | 40k | 11 repos | ~1.3k | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Test Writing WorkflowiOfficeAI/AionUi | 33k | 1 repos | ~1.2k | Automated safety check: Pass | Apache-2.0 | |
| OpenROAD Module Test AdderThe-OpenROAD-Project/OpenROAD | 3.2k | — | ~1.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | BSD-3-Clause | |
| CI FixFastLED/FastLED | 7.5k | — | ~897 | Automated safety check: Pass | MIT | |
| Testing iOS Codebitwarden/ios | 694 | — | ~1.8k | Automated safety check: Pass | GPL-3.0 |
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Related
Works with
Categories
Questions about Testing Bash Scripts
What does Testing Bash Scripts do?
Writes unit tests (for lib/.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage. Testing Bash Scripts is an agent skill from agntcy/coffeeAgntcy.sh-style helpers) or mocked end-to-end tests (for executable scripts) using bats, and runs task tests:bash/tests:coverage.
When should I use Testing Bash Scripts?
Testing Bash Scripts fits situations like: adding a new bash script anywhere in the repository; audit test coverage for one.
How do I install Testing Bash Scripts in Claude Code?
Run `npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a claude-code`. Or copy the skill folder (.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts in agntcy/coffeeAgntcy) into .claude/skills/testing-bash-scripts in your project. Claude Code loads it when a task matches its description.
How do I install Testing Bash Scripts in Codex?
Run `npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a codex`. Or copy the skill folder (.agents/skills/quality-checks/testing-bash-scripts in agntcy/coffeeAgntcy) into .agents/skills/testing-bash-scripts in your project. Codex loads it when a task matches its description.
Can I use Testing Bash Scripts in Cursor, Gemini CLI or GitHub Copilot?
Cursor, Gemini CLI, GitHub Copilot and OpenCode also load SKILL.md folders. With the skills CLI, run `npx skills add agntcy/coffeeAgntcy --skill testing-bash-scripts -a cursor` (or -a gemini-cli, github-copilot or opencode for the others). To copy it by hand, put the folder in .cursor/skills/testing-bash-scripts, .gemini/skills/testing-bash-scripts, .github/skills/testing-bash-scripts and .opencode/skills/testing-bash-scripts in your project.
What does Testing Bash Scripts need to run?
SKILL.md names no scripts, command-line tools or credentials: Testing Bash Scripts is instructions for the agent only. Our summary lists: Docker.
Does Testing Bash Scripts access the network?
SKILL.md contains no URLs. Any network use would come from the scripts or tools the agent runs. This is read from the text; nothing was executed.
Is Testing Bash Scripts safe to install?
Our automated static check of SKILL.md found no risky patterns, such as piping downloads into a shell, reading credential files or hidden Unicode. It is not a guarantee. Review the folder before installing.
What licence does Testing Bash Scripts use?
Testing Bash Scripts is published under the Apache-2.0 licence (the repository's licence). It allows redistribution, so the full SKILL.md is shown on this page.
How many tokens does Testing Bash Scripts use?
About 1.1k tokens (SKILL.md is roughly 4.3k characters). Agents keep only the skill's name and description in context until a task matches; then they load SKILL.md in full.
What are the alternatives to Testing Bash Scripts?
Skills that share tags, products or a category with Testing Bash Scripts: Bats Shell Testing Patterns (wshobson/agents, 40k stars), Test Writing Workflow (iOfficeAI/AionUi, 33k stars), OpenROAD Module Test Adder (The-OpenROAD-Project/OpenROAD, 3.2k stars) and CI Fix (FastLED/FastLED, 7.5k stars). The comparison table on this page puts their stars, adoption, token cost, safety result and licence side by side.
Who maintains Testing Bash Scripts?
agntcy (a GitHub organization) maintains it in agntcy/coffeeAgntcy, which has 112 GitHub stars. The repository holds 16 skills in this directory. The repository was last updated on October 6, 2026.
Source: agntcy/coffeeAgntcy on GitHub. Facts on this page come from the repository at the commit we read; the author's words are quoted as theirs.