erigon-test-hive

name	erigon-test-hive
description	Run Erigon Hive simulator tests locally or via GitHub Actions. Tests EL/CL protocol interoperability (engine API, RPC compat, EEST fixtures). Requires Docker and either `act` (for CI simulation) or direct hive invocation.

Erigon Hive Tests

Runs Hive simulator tests for EL/CL protocol interoperability. Two modes:

1. make test-hive — uses act (nektos) to simulate the GitHub Actions workflow locally
2. make hive-local — builds hive and runs suites directly (no act needed)
3. make eest-devnet — runs the BAL/Amsterdam-specific EEST fixtures

Prerequisites

• Docker running
• GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable set (for make test-hive via act)
• act installed (for make test-hive): https://nektosact.com/installation/index.html

Docker Resource Warning

Hive creates many Docker containers and images per test run. Without cleanup, these accumulate and exhaust disk space and memory. Always run the cleanup steps below — even after a clean run.

Hive spawns per test:

• One container per EL client instance (erigon)
• One container per simulator (e.g., ethereum/engine, eels/consume-engine)
• Intermediate build images for each client Dockerfile

The CI workflow always runs docker system prune -af --volumes on exit (even on failure). Replicate this locally.

Commands

Via act (mirrors CI exactly)

export GITHUB_TOKEN=<your-token>

# Run standard hive suite (engine API, RPC compat, EEST)
make test-hive

# Run EEST-only suite
SUITE=eest make test-hive

Direct hive run (no act required)

# Build erigon Docker image and run engine/rpc-compat suites
make hive-local

BAL/Amsterdam-specific (EIP-7928 fixtures)

# Runs eels/consume-engine with amsterdam fixtures
make eest-devnet

Cleanup (ALWAYS run after hive tests)

Hive leaves behind stopped containers, dangling images, and build caches. Run this after every hive test run, including after failures or ctrl+c:

# Stop all running hive-related containers
docker ps --filter "name=hive" -q | xargs -r docker stop

# Full prune: removes all stopped containers, unused images, build cache, volumes
docker system prune -af --volumes

Automated cleanup with trap (recommended for direct hive invocations)

Wrap hive invocations in a script with a trap so cleanup runs on exit/ctrl+c:

cleanup() {
  echo "Cleaning up Docker resources..."
  docker ps --filter "name=hive" -q | xargs -r docker stop 2>/dev/null || true
  docker system prune -af --volumes
  echo "Docker cleanup complete"
}
trap cleanup EXIT INT TERM

cd temp/<hive-dir>/hive
./hive --sim ethereum/engine --sim.limit=".*cancun.*" --client erigon

Check what's accumulated

# Show disk usage by Docker
docker system df

# List dangling images
docker images --filter dangling=true

# List stopped containers from hive
docker ps -a --filter "name=hive" --format "table {{.Names}}\t{{.Status}}\t{{.Size}}"

When a Suite Fails — Drill Down

Hive outputs test results to temp/*/hive/workspace/logs/. View results in the hiveview browser:

# hiveview serves results at http://localhost:3000
cd temp/<hive-dir>/hive
./hiveview --serve --logdir ./workspace/logs

Re-run a single suite by specifying the simulator and limit:

cd temp/<hive-dir>/hive

# Run only the failing simulator
./hive --sim ethereum/engine --sim.limit=exchange-capabilities --client erigon

# Run with a specific test pattern
./hive --sim ethereum/engine --sim.limit=".*cancun.*" --sim.parallelism=4 --client erigon

# Run EEST engine simulator (URL pinned in test-fixtures.json)
./hive --sim ethereum/eels/consume-engine --sim.limit="" --client erigon \
  --sim.buildarg fixtures=$(jq -r '."eest_stable".url' test-fixtures.json)

Suites Covered

Suite	Description
engine/exchange-capabilities	Engine API capability negotiation
engine/withdrawals	Withdrawals support
engine/cancun	Cancun/EIP-4844 blob txs
engine/api	Engine API conformance
engine/auth	JWT authentication
rpc-compat	RPC compatibility with reference
eels/consume-engine	EEST execution spec tests
eels/consume-engine (amsterdam)	EIP-7928 BAL Amsterdam fixtures

Related Skill

For an interactive, ephemeral hive workflow (handles versioned EEST fixtures, Dockerfile setup, BAL workarounds, per-suite parallelism), use the /hive-test skill instead:

/hive-test eest-devnet       # run devnet (BAL/glamsterdam) tests
/hive-test engine rpc-compat # run engine + rpc suites
/hive-test all               # run everything

The /hive-test skill also covers detailed cleanup via ./hive --cleanup + docker image prune -f.

This skill (erigon-test-hive) documents the Makefile targets for reference — use /hive-test when you need a full guided run.

CI Equivalent

Local command	CI workflow	File
make test-hive	Test Hive	test-hive.yml

To dispatch remotely on a branch:

gh workflow run "Test Hive" --ref <branch>

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
act command not found	Install from https://nektosact.com/installation/index.html
GITHUB_TOKEN not set	export GITHUB_TOKEN=$(gh auth token)
Docker build fails	Ensure make erigon succeeded first (builds binary used in Docker image)
Hive clone fails	Check network; hive is cloned fresh each run into temp/
EEST fixtures 404	Check the URL pinned in test-fixtures.json; the version must match a released tag
Disk full / OOM	Run docker system prune -af --volumes — previous hive runs left dangling images/containers
Containers stuck running	docker ps --filter "name=hive" -q | xargs -r docker stop