diff --git a/.github/workflows/integration.yml b/.github/workflows/integration.yml
index 3c12948..e5f8ebe 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/integration.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/integration.yml
@@ -17,8 +17,8 @@ jobs:
         with:
           go-version-file: go.mod
 
-      - name: Build harness CLI
-        run: make cli
+      - name: Install bats
+        run: sudo apt-get install -y bats
 
       - name: Install openshell
         run: curl -LsSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NVIDIA/OpenShell/main/install.sh | sh
@@ -31,8 +31,8 @@ jobs:
           done
           openshell gateway list
 
-      - name: Run integration tests (ci mode — no credentials)
-        run: ./test/test-flow.sh local --ci
+      - name: Run CI local
+        run: make ci-local
 
       - name: Export gateway logs
         if: always()
@@ -56,8 +56,8 @@ jobs:
         with:
           go-version-file: go.mod
 
-      - name: Build harness CLI
-        run: make cli
+      - name: Install bats
+        run: sudo apt-get install -y bats
 
       - name: Install openshell
         run: curl -LsSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NVIDIA/OpenShell/main/install.sh | sh
@@ -69,11 +69,8 @@ jobs:
       - name: Install helm
         uses: azure/setup-helm@v4
 
-      - name: Deploy gateway to kind
-        run: ./harness deploy kind
-
-      - name: Run integration tests (ci mode — no credentials)
-        run: ./test/test-flow.sh kind --ci
+      - name: Run CI kind
+        run: make ci-kind
 
       - name: Export logs
         if: always()
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index b9692c8..a5d4a55 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,11 +1,19 @@
 ## OpenShell Harness — build, push, and test
 ##
-## Usage:
-##   make sandbox        # build + push sandbox image (multi-arch)
-##   make launcher       # build + push launcher image
-##   make test           # build images + run full tests on both platforms
-##   make test-podman    # build + test podman only
-##   make test-ocp       # build + test OCP only
+## CI targets (no credentials, GHA-safe):
+##   make ci               # unit + bats + lint (~2min)
+##   make ci-local          # ci + local gateway integration
+##   make ci-kind           # ci + kind (self-contained cluster)
+##
+## Developer targets (credentials available):
+##   make dev-test-local    # pre-commit: unit + bats + local full + ci
+##   make dev-test-kind     # kind: self-contained lifecycle
+##   make dev-test-remote   # OCP: needs KUBECONFIG
+##   make dev-test-all      # all of the above
+##
+## Images:
+##   make sandbox           # build + push sandbox (multi-arch)
+##   make launcher          # build + push launcher
 
 REGISTRY      ?= ghcr.io/robbycochran/harness-openshell
 DEV_REGISTRY  ?= quay.io/rcochran/openshell
@@ -18,10 +26,9 @@ DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE  := $(DEV_REGISTRY):$(DEV_TAG)-sandbox
 DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE := $(DEV_REGISTRY):$(DEV_TAG)-launcher
 
 .PHONY: cli sandbox push-sandbox cli-launcher launcher push-launcher \
-        vet lint test-unit test test-local test-kind test-ocp test-all validate \
-        validate-local validate-local-ci validate-kind validate-kind-ci \
-        validate-ocp validate-ocp-ci \
-        dev-sandbox dev-launcher validate-dev clean help
+        vet lint ci ci-local ci-kind \
+        dev-test-local dev-test-kind dev-test-remote dev-test-all \
+        dev-sandbox dev-launcher clean help
 
 ## ── CLI ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -70,155 +77,69 @@ lint:
 		$(MAKE) vet; \
 	fi
 
-## ── Test targets ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+## ── CI targets (no credentials, GHA-safe) ────────────────────────────
 
-## Unit tests only (no live gateway, fast)
-test-unit:
+## Unit tests + bats + lint (fast, ~2min, no gateway needed)
+ci: vet
 	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
 	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
 	bats test/preflight.bats
 
-## Both platforms (full lifecycle, rebuilds images)
-test: cli sandbox push-launcher
-	./test/test-flow.sh all --full
-
-## Local gateway (full lifecycle)
-test-local: cli
-	./test/test-flow.sh local --full
-
-## kind cluster (full lifecycle — requires: kind create cluster --name openshell)
-test-kind: cli
-	./test/test-flow.sh kind --full
+## CI + local gateway integration (ci mode, no credentials)
+ci-local: cli ci
+	./test/test-flow.sh local --ci
 
-## OCP only (full lifecycle)
-test-ocp: cli sandbox push-launcher
-	./test/test-flow.sh ocp --full
+## CI + kind gateway integration (self-contained, isolated kubeconfig)
+ci-kind: cli ci
+	./test/kind-lifecycle.sh --ci
 
-## All combinations: local + kind + ocp
-test-all: cli sandbox push-launcher
-	./test/test-flow.sh all --full
+## ── Developer targets (credentials available) ────────────────────────
 
-## Full validation: unit tests + bats + integration (local + OCP)
-## Run this before every commit.
-validate: cli sandbox push-launcher
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
+## Pre-commit local: unit + bats + local full + local CI
+## Requires: openshell gateway running locally, provider credentials.
+dev-test-local: cli ci
 	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Bats ==="
-	bats test/preflight.bats
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local ==="
+	@echo "=== Integration: local (full) ==="
 	./test/test-flow.sh local --full
 	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: OCP ==="
-	./test/test-flow.sh ocp --full
-
-## Dev validation: unit tests + bats + build images + full integration matrix.
-## Builds sandbox + launcher to DEV_REGISTRY (quay.io/rcochran/openshell), runs every flow.
-## Requires: openshell gateway running locally, OCP cluster via KUBECONFIG.
-dev-sandbox:
-	docker buildx build --platform linux/amd64,linux/arm64 -t $(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) sandbox/ --push
-	@echo "Built and pushed: $(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE)"
-
-dev-launcher: cli-launcher
-	docker build --platform $(PLATFORM) -t $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) sandbox/launcher/
-	docker push $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE)
-	@echo "Built and pushed: $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE)"
+	@echo "=== Integration: local (ci) ==="
+	./test/test-flow.sh local --ci
 
-validate-dev: cli dev-sandbox dev-launcher
-	@echo "=== Images ==="
-	@echo "  SANDBOX_IMAGE:  $(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE)"
-	@echo "  LAUNCHER_IMAGE: $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE)"
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
+## Kind: unit + bats + kind full (self-contained lifecycle)
+## Creates/destroys its own kind cluster. Never touches your OCP kubectl context.
+## Builds dev sandbox image to quay.io (kind can't pull private ghcr.io).
+## Use KEEP=1 to keep the cluster after tests (for debugging).
+dev-test-kind: cli ci dev-sandbox
 	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Bats ==="
-	bats test/preflight.bats
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local (quick) ==="
-	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh local
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local (full) ==="
-	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh local --full
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local CI profile (no providers) ==="
-	./test/test-flow.sh local --full --no-providers --profile=ci
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: OCP (quick) ==="
-	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) LAUNCHER_IMAGE=$(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh ocp
+	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) SANDBOX_PULL_SECRET=quay-pull ./test/kind-lifecycle.sh $(if $(KEEP),--keep)
+
+## Remote (OCP): unit + bats + OCP full + OCP CI
+## Requires: KUBECONFIG set, provider credentials.
+## Builds dev images to quay.io (OCP can't pull private ghcr.io).
+dev-test-remote: cli ci dev-sandbox dev-launcher
+	@test -n "$${KUBECONFIG}" || { echo "ERROR: Set KUBECONFIG for OCP (e.g. export KUBECONFIG=infracluster/kubeconfig)"; exit 1; }
 	@echo ""
 	@echo "=== Integration: OCP (full) ==="
 	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) LAUNCHER_IMAGE=$(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh ocp --full
-
-## Default validation: unit tests + bats + full integration with user credentials.
-## Requires: openshell gateway running locally (brew services start openshell),
-## JIRA_API_TOKEN, gcloud ADC, gws auth login.
-validate-local: cli
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Bats ==="
-	bats test/preflight.bats
 	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local gateway, default mode ==="
-	./test/test-flow.sh local --full
+	@echo "=== Integration: OCP (ci) ==="
+	LAUNCHER_IMAGE=$(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh ocp --ci
 
-## CI validation: unit tests + integration without credentials (local gateway).
-## Requires: openshell gateway running locally only.
-validate-local-ci: cli
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: local gateway, ci mode ==="
-	./test/test-flow.sh local --ci
+## All: local + kind + remote
+dev-test-all: dev-test-local dev-test-kind dev-test-remote
 
-## Default validation on kind: unit tests + full integration with user credentials.
-## Requires: kind create cluster --name openshell. Builds dev sandbox image to quay.io/rcochran.
-validate-kind: cli dev-sandbox
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: kind gateway, default mode ==="
-	@kubectl create namespace openshell --dry-run=client -o yaml 2>/dev/null | kubectl apply -f - 2>/dev/null || true
-	@kubectl create secret docker-registry quay-pull \
-	  --docker-server=quay.io --docker-username=rcochran \
-	  --docker-password="$$(python3 -c "import json,base64,pathlib; d=json.loads(pathlib.Path('$$HOME/.docker/config.json').read_text()); print(base64.b64decode(d['auths']['quay.io']['auth']).decode().split(':',1)[1])")" \
-	  -n openshell --dry-run=client -o yaml 2>/dev/null | kubectl apply -f - 2>/dev/null || true
-	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) SANDBOX_PULL_SECRET=quay-pull ./test/test-flow.sh kind --full
-
-## CI validation on kind: unit tests + integration without credentials.
-## Requires: kind create cluster --name openshell
-validate-kind-ci: cli
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: kind gateway, ci mode ==="
-	./test/test-flow.sh kind --ci
+## ── Dev image builds ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
-## OCP validation with credentials (default mode). Requires: KUBECONFIG, all provider creds.
-validate-ocp: cli dev-launcher dev-sandbox
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: OCP gateway, default mode ==="
-	SANDBOX_IMAGE=$(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) LAUNCHER_IMAGE=$(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh ocp --full
+## Build dev sandbox image to quay.io (multi-arch)
+dev-sandbox:
+	docker buildx build --platform linux/amd64,linux/arm64 -t $(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE) sandbox/ --push
+	@echo "Built and pushed: $(DEV_SANDBOX_IMAGE)"
 
-## OCP validation without credentials (ci mode). Requires: KUBECONFIG, launcher image pushed.
-validate-ocp-ci: cli dev-launcher
-	@echo "=== Unit tests ==="
-	CGO_ENABLED=0 go test ./...
-	cd sandbox/launcher && go test ./...
-	@echo ""
-	@echo "=== Integration: OCP gateway, ci mode ==="
-	LAUNCHER_IMAGE=$(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) ./test/test-flow.sh ocp --ci --full
+## Build dev launcher image to quay.io
+dev-launcher: cli-launcher
+	docker build --platform $(PLATFORM) -t $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE) sandbox/launcher/
+	docker push $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE)
+	@echo "Built and pushed: $(DEV_LAUNCHER_IMAGE)"
 
 ## ── Convenience targets ───────────────────────────────────────────────
 
diff --git a/agents/ci.yaml b/agents/ci.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8908fb3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agents/ci.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+# CI integration test profile.
+#
+# Minimal sandbox with no providers and no credentials.
+# Uses the public community base image (no registry auth needed).
+
+name: ci-test
+image: ghcr.io/nvidia/openshell-community/sandboxes/base:latest
+entrypoint: bash
+providers: []
diff --git a/agents/default.yaml b/agents/default.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0a21ab5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/agents/default.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,26 @@
+# Default agent configuration.
+#
+# Usage:
+#   harness up                         # uses agents/default.yaml
+#   harness up --agent research        # uses agents/research.yaml
+
+name: agent
+image: ghcr.io/robbycochran/harness-openshell:sandbox
+entrypoint: claude --bare
+tty: true
+
+providers:
+  - type: github
+  - type: vertex-local
+  - type: atlassian
+    config:
+      JIRA_URL: ${JIRA_URL}
+      JIRA_USERNAME: ${JIRA_USERNAME}
+  - type: gws
+
+# Non-secret env vars injected into sandbox.
+# Proxy config: gateway routes inference through its local proxy.
+env:
+  ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: https://inference.local
+  ANTHROPIC_API_KEY: sk-ant-openshell-proxy-managed
+  CLAUDE_CODE_DISABLE_EXPERIMENTAL_BETAS: "1"
diff --git a/internal/agent/agent.go b/internal/agent/agent.go
index e047d62..6baf5bf 100644
--- a/internal/agent/agent.go
+++ b/internal/agent/agent.go
@@ -16,14 +16,15 @@ type ProviderRef struct {
 }
 
 type AgentConfig struct {
-	Name       string        `yaml:"name"`
-	Providers  []ProviderRef `yaml:"providers"`
-	Task       string        `yaml:"task,omitempty"`
-	Entrypoint string        `yaml:"entrypoint,omitempty"`
-	TTY        *bool         `yaml:"tty,omitempty"`
-	Policy     string        `yaml:"policy,omitempty"`
-	Image      string        `yaml:"image,omitempty"`
-	Include    []string      `yaml:"include,omitempty"`
+	Name       string            `yaml:"name"`
+	Providers  []ProviderRef     `yaml:"providers"`
+	Env        map[string]string `yaml:"env,omitempty"`
+	Task       string            `yaml:"task,omitempty"`
+	Entrypoint string            `yaml:"entrypoint,omitempty"`
+	TTY        *bool             `yaml:"tty,omitempty"`
+	Policy     string            `yaml:"policy,omitempty"`
+	Image      string            `yaml:"image,omitempty"`
+	Include    []string          `yaml:"include,omitempty"`
 }
 
 func (c *AgentConfig) NoTTY() bool {
@@ -74,6 +75,9 @@ func Parse(data []byte) (*AgentConfig, error) {
 
 func (c *AgentConfig) BuildEnvSh() string {
 	env := make(map[string]string)
+	for k, v := range c.Env {
+		env[k] = v
+	}
 	for _, p := range c.Providers {
 		for k, v := range p.Config {
 			env[k] = v
diff --git a/internal/agent/agent_test.go b/internal/agent/agent_test.go
index f3844cd..01666a9 100644
--- a/internal/agent/agent_test.go
+++ b/internal/agent/agent_test.go
@@ -169,6 +169,70 @@ func TestBuildEnvSh_Empty(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
+func TestBuildEnvSh_TopLevelEnv(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := &AgentConfig{
+		Env: map[string]string{
+			"ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL": "https://inference.local",
+			"ANTHROPIC_API_KEY":  "sk-proxy",
+		},
+		Providers: []ProviderRef{
+			{Type: "atlassian", Config: map[string]string{"JIRA_URL": "https://jira.example.com"}},
+		},
+	}
+	env := cfg.BuildEnvSh()
+	if !strings.Contains(env, `export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL="https://inference.local"`) {
+		t.Errorf("missing top-level env var in:\n%s", env)
+	}
+	if !strings.Contains(env, `export JIRA_URL="https://jira.example.com"`) {
+		t.Errorf("missing provider config var in:\n%s", env)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestBuildEnvSh_ProviderOverridesTopLevel(t *testing.T) {
+	cfg := &AgentConfig{
+		Env:       map[string]string{"FOO": "from-top"},
+		Providers: []ProviderRef{{Type: "test", Config: map[string]string{"FOO": "from-provider"}}},
+	}
+	env := cfg.BuildEnvSh()
+	if !strings.Contains(env, `"from-provider"`) {
+		t.Errorf("provider config should override top-level env:\n%s", env)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestParseFile_AgentYAML(t *testing.T) {
+	dir := t.TempDir()
+	yamlContent := `name: test-agent
+image: ghcr.io/test:latest
+entrypoint: claude --bare
+tty: true
+providers:
+  - type: github
+  - type: atlassian
+    config:
+      JIRA_URL: https://jira.example.com
+env:
+  ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL: https://inference.local
+`
+	os.WriteFile(filepath.Join(dir, "agent.yaml"), []byte(yamlContent), 0o644)
+
+	cfg, err := ParseFile(filepath.Join(dir, "agent.yaml"))
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("ParseFile: %v", err)
+	}
+	if cfg.Name != "test-agent" {
+		t.Errorf("Name = %q", cfg.Name)
+	}
+	if cfg.Image != "ghcr.io/test:latest" {
+		t.Errorf("Image = %q", cfg.Image)
+	}
+	if cfg.Env["ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL"] != "https://inference.local" {
+		t.Errorf("Env ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL = %q", cfg.Env["ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL"])
+	}
+	if len(cfg.Providers) != 2 {
+		t.Errorf("Providers = %d, want 2", len(cfg.Providers))
+	}
+}
+
 func TestBuildEnvSh_Sorted(t *testing.T) {
 	cfg := &AgentConfig{
 		Providers: []ProviderRef{
diff --git a/test/kind-lifecycle.sh b/test/kind-lifecycle.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..791d6c7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/kind-lifecycle.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Self-contained kind cluster lifecycle for integration testing.
+#
+# Creates a kind cluster with an isolated kubeconfig (never touches your
+# OCP/cloud kubectl context), runs the test flow, then tears down.
+#
+# Usage:
+#   ./test/kind-lifecycle.sh              # default mode (full, with creds)
+#   ./test/kind-lifecycle.sh --ci         # ci mode (no creds)
+#   ./test/kind-lifecycle.sh --keep       # don't delete cluster after tests
+#
+# Works alongside any existing KUBECONFIG. The cluster gets its own temp
+# kubeconfig file that is cleaned up on exit.
+set -uo pipefail
+
+SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")/.." && pwd)"
+CLUSTER_NAME="openshell-test"
+KIND_KUBECONFIG=""
+KEEP_CLUSTER=false
+TEST_ARGS=("kind" "--full")
+
+for arg in "$@"; do
+  case "$arg" in
+    --ci)    TEST_ARGS+=("--ci") ;;
+    --keep)  KEEP_CLUSTER=true ;;
+    *)       TEST_ARGS+=("$arg") ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+cleanup() {
+  local rc=$?
+  if $KEEP_CLUSTER; then
+    echo ""
+    echo "Cluster kept: $CLUSTER_NAME"
+    echo "  KUBECONFIG=$KIND_KUBECONFIG kubectl get nodes"
+    echo "  kind delete cluster --name $CLUSTER_NAME"
+  else
+    echo ""
+    echo "=== Deleting kind cluster ==="
+    kind delete cluster --name "$CLUSTER_NAME" 2>/dev/null || true
+    rm -f "$KIND_KUBECONFIG"
+  fi
+  exit $rc
+}
+trap cleanup EXIT
+
+# ── Create cluster with isolated kubeconfig ─────────────────────────
+
+KIND_KUBECONFIG=$(mktemp /tmp/kind-${CLUSTER_NAME}-XXXXXX.kubeconfig)
+export KUBECONFIG="$KIND_KUBECONFIG"
+
+echo "=== kind cluster lifecycle ==="
+echo "  Cluster:    $CLUSTER_NAME"
+echo "  KUBECONFIG: $KIND_KUBECONFIG"
+echo ""
+
+if kind get clusters 2>/dev/null | grep -q "^${CLUSTER_NAME}$"; then
+  echo "=== Reusing existing cluster ==="
+  kind export kubeconfig --name "$CLUSTER_NAME" --kubeconfig "$KIND_KUBECONFIG"
+else
+  echo "=== Creating kind cluster ==="
+  kind create cluster --name "$CLUSTER_NAME" --kubeconfig "$KIND_KUBECONFIG"
+fi
+echo ""
+
+# ── Pre-test setup ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+kubectl create namespace openshell --dry-run=client -o yaml | kubectl apply -f - 2>/dev/null || true
+
+# Set up pull secret for dev images if docker credentials exist
+if [[ -f "$HOME/.docker/config.json" ]]; then
+  QUAY_PASS=$(python3 -c "
+import json, base64, pathlib, sys
+try:
+    d = json.loads(pathlib.Path('$HOME/.docker/config.json').read_text())
+    print(base64.b64decode(d['auths']['quay.io']['auth']).decode().split(':',1)[1])
+except Exception:
+    sys.exit(1)
+" 2>/dev/null) || true
+
+  if [[ -n "${QUAY_PASS:-}" ]]; then
+    kubectl create secret docker-registry quay-pull \
+      --docker-server=quay.io --docker-username=rcochran \
+      --docker-password="$QUAY_PASS" \
+      -n openshell --dry-run=client -o yaml | kubectl apply -f - 2>/dev/null || true
+  fi
+fi
+
+# ── Run tests ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+echo "=== Running: test-flow.sh ${TEST_ARGS[*]} ==="
+echo ""
+"$SCRIPT_DIR/test/test-flow.sh" "${TEST_ARGS[@]}"
diff --git a/test/preflight.bats b/test/preflight.bats
index 7c481f2..0453724 100644
--- a/test/preflight.bats
+++ b/test/preflight.bats
@@ -493,6 +493,10 @@ EOF
 # ── CLI detection tests ──────────────────────────────────────────────
 
 @test "cli: missing openshell shows error" {
+  # Skip if openshell is installed at a system path we can't exclude
+  if [ -x /usr/bin/openshell ] || [ -x /usr/local/bin/openshell ]; then
+    skip "openshell installed at system path -- can't simulate missing CLI"
+  fi
   write_providers_toml <<'EOF'
 [[providers]]
 name = "test"
diff --git a/test/test-flow.sh b/test/test-flow.sh
index 192120a..52b28b2 100755
--- a/test/test-flow.sh
+++ b/test/test-flow.sh
@@ -121,8 +121,9 @@ check_providers() {
 
 sandbox_wait() {
   # Poll for sandbox Ready, failing fast on k8s bad states (ImagePullBackOff, etc.)
+  # 60 iterations * 2s = 120s timeout (kind needs extra time for cold image pulls)
   local name="$1"
-  for i in $(seq 1 30); do
+  for i in $(seq 1 60); do
     local phase
     phase=$("$CLI" sandbox list 2>/dev/null | strip_ansi | awk -v n="$name" '$1==n {print $NF}')
     [[ "$phase" == "Ready" ]] && return 0