[Epic] Testing Overhaul 2025

[dereknola]

This is an epic to track all the changes for testing in 2025. Since most testing is self tested in the CI, QA for most of this is not necessary. This issue largely exists as an organizational and historical record.

Docker Tests

• Convert legacy docker tests from bash to Golang #11419
• Convert all Drone pipelines to use new Golang Docker Tests #11420
• Replace Sonobuoy usage with Hydrophone in Conformance tests #11714
• Enable Docker Tests to Restart K3s service #11625

E2E Tests

• Investigate use GHA self-hosted large runners to improve performance of k3s build job.

  • See Try running e2e on big runners #11355 for full notes, but ultimately, the lack of availability on the equinix runners (only 1 instance at a time) destroyed the benefit of faster builds (7m vs 5m)

• Investigate use of compiling go tests for increase performance

  • Performance gains were nonexistent, either margin-of-error, or worse performance. See Compiled vs Regular.

• Convert Existing E2E tests to Docker Tests #11775

• Improve logging for E2E test failures #11532

• Increase Utilization of amd64 Drone Runner #11449

Integration Tests

• Investigate use of compiling go tests for increase performance
  • Performance gains were slim, usually under ~20s difference. See Compiled vs Regular.

Unit Tests

• Overhaul old loadbalancer unit test (Completed with Rework loadbalancer server selection logic #11329)

General Testing

• Increase code coverage across K3s #11484
• Move Testing from Arm64 Drone to Github Actions #11704
• Consolidate Test Utility functions #11710