E2E CI Test

E2E CI Test#

This document explains how to trigger specific E2E tests against your PR code via a comment command, without running the full E2E test suite.

Background#

The E2E-Full workflow (pr_test_full.yaml) normally runs the complete E2E test suite when a PR has both ready and ready-for-test labels. This is expensive in CI resources and time.

Authorized users can trigger only the specific test files they care about by posting a /e2e comment on the PR, then adding the ready label.

How to Trigger#

1. Post a comment#

First, post a comment on the PR specifying which test paths to run:

/e2e [test-path-1] [test-path-2] ...

  • Each path must be a valid pytest path relative to the repository root.

  • Multiple paths can be listed in a single comment, separated by spaces.

  • A specific test case can be targeted using :: notation.

Comment format

Effect

/e2e tests/e2e/singlecard/test_foo.py

Run one test file on singlecard

/e2e tests/e2e/multicard/2-cards/test_bar.py

Run one test file on 2-card

/e2e path1 path2 path3

Run multiple files, routed by path pattern

/e2e tests/e2e/singlecard/test_foo.py::test_case

Run a specific test case

2. Add the label#

After posting the comment, add the ready label to your PR. Adding the label is what actually triggers the workflow — at that point the workflow reads the existing comments to find the /e2e command.

Note

Only repository Contributors (Triage role) and Maintainers (Write role) can add labels. If you do not have this permission, ask a maintainer to add the label for you. You can find the list of maintainers and contributors by checking the CODEOWNERS file.

Important

The comment must be posted before the label is added. If you add the label first, the workflow will find no /e2e comment and will not trigger any per-test runs.

Note

Additionally, only the PR author or collaborators with write or admin repository access can trigger tests via comment. The workflow validates the commenter’s permission before proceeding.

3. Wait for results#

GitHub Actions will trigger the E2E-Full workflow. Only the hardware jobs matching the provided test paths will run, which saves CI resources.

Path Routing Rules#

The workflow automatically routes each test path to the correct hardware runner based on path patterns:

Path pattern

Hardware

Runner

multicard/2-cards in path

2-card A3 NPU

linux-aarch64-a3-2

multicard/4-cards in path

4-card A3 NPU

linux-aarch64-a3-4

310p in path

Ascend 310P

linux-aarch64-310p-*

All other paths

Singlecard A2 NPU

linux-aarch64-a2b3-1

When paths from multiple categories are listed in a single comment, each category’s tests run on its respective hardware in parallel.

Test Path Reference#

The tests/e2e/ directory is organized by hardware category:

tests/e2e/
├── singlecard/          # Single A2 card tests → singlecard runner
├── multicard/
│   ├── 2-cards/         # 2-card tests → 2-card runner
│   └── 4-cards/         # 4-card tests → 4-card runner
└── 310p/                # Ascend 310P tests → 310P runner
    ├── singlecard/
    └── multicard/

Comparison with Full E2E Suite#

Aspect

Full E2E suite

Per-test comment trigger

Trigger

ready + ready-for-test labels

/e2e comment + ready label

Scope

All E2E tests

Only specified test paths

Who can trigger

Anyone who can add labels

PR author or write/admin collaborator

Use case

Pre-merge validation

Iterative debugging of specific tests

Examples#

Run a single singlecard test:

/e2e tests/e2e/singlecard/test_offline_inference.py

Run a 2-card test:

/e2e tests/e2e/multicard/2-cards/test_data_parallel.py

Run tests across multiple hardware categories in one comment:

/e2e tests/e2e/singlecard/test_offline_inference.py tests/e2e/multicard/2-cards/test_data_parallel.py

Re-trigger after fixing an issue: just push a new commit. The synchronize event re-runs the workflow and picks up the existing /e2e comment automatically — no need to post a new comment.

Troubleshooting#

The workflow did not start after I added the label.

  • Make sure the /e2e comment was posted before the label was added. If the label was added first, remove it and re-add it after posting the comment.

  • Check that the comment starts exactly with /e2e followed by at least one path, with no leading spaces or extra characters before the slash.

  • To re-trigger after fixing an issue, simply push a new commit — the workflow will reuse the existing /e2e comment automatically.

Tests ran on the wrong hardware.

  • Check that the path includes the expected directory segment (2-cards, 4-cards, or 310p). Paths that do not match any of these patterns are routed to the singlecard runner by default.

The parse-comment job skipped with a permission error.

  • Only the PR author or write/admin collaborators can use the comment trigger. Ask a maintainer to post the /e2e comment instead.