diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/package.json b/packages/agent-gateway/package.json
index e88403d3a..8a9860d9c 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/package.json
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/package.json
@@ -22,6 +22,7 @@
     "build": "tsdown",
     "typecheck": "tsc -p tsconfig.json --noEmit",
     "test": "vitest run",
+    "test:bench": "vitest run --config vitest.bench.config.ts",
     "clean": "rm -rf dist"
   },
   "dependencies": {
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/apiSurface.snapshot.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/apiSurface.snapshot.test.ts
index 2ba4a6575..ba684eb0a 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/apiSurface.snapshot.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/apiSurface.snapshot.test.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { mkdtempSync, rmSync } from 'node:fs';
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 
-import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
 import { startServer, type RunningServer } from '../src';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -25,7 +25,20 @@ describe('API surface snapshot', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let server: RunningServer | undefined;
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
+    home = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-api-surface-'));
+    server = await startServer({
+      hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
+      host: '127.0.0.1',
+      port: 0,
+      homeDir: home,
+      logLevel: 'silent',
+      debugEndpoints: true,
+      env: { PYTHINKER_CODE_EXPERIMENTAL_MCP_MANAGEMENT: '1' },
+    });
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       try {
         await server.close();
@@ -40,21 +53,9 @@ describe('API surface snapshot', () => {
   });
 
   it('matches the documented v2 route table and meta endpoints', async () => {
-    home = mkdtempSync(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-api-surface-'));
-
-    server = await startServer({
-      hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
-      host: '127.0.0.1',
-      port: 0,
-      homeDir: home,
-      logLevel: 'silent',
-      debugEndpoints: true,
-      env: { PYTHINKER_CODE_EXPERIMENTAL_MCP_MANAGEMENT: '1' },
-    });
-
-    const base = `http://${server.host}:${server.port}`;
+    const base = `http://${server!.host}:${server!.port}`;
 
-    const openApiRes = await fetch(`${base}/openapi.json`, { headers: authHeaders(server) } as never);
+    const openApiRes = await fetch(`${base}/openapi.json`, { headers: authHeaders(server as RunningServer) } as never);
     expect(openApiRes.status).toBe(200);
     const openApi = (await openApiRes.json()) as {
       paths?: Record<string, Record<string, unknown>>;
@@ -74,7 +75,7 @@ describe('API surface snapshot', () => {
 
     const meta: Array<[string, string, number]> = [];
     for (const endpoint of META_ENDPOINTS) {
-      const res = await fetch(`${base}${endpoint}`, { headers: authHeaders(server) } as never);
+      const res = await fetch(`${base}${endpoint}`, { headers: authHeaders(server as RunningServer) } as never);
       meta.push(['GET', endpoint, res.status]);
     }
     meta.sort((a, b) => a[0].localeCompare(b[0]) || a[1].localeCompare(b[1]) || a[2] - b[2]);
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/approvals.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/approvals.test.ts
index 833d129f2..d30b9f718 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/approvals.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/approvals.test.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 
 import { ISessionApprovalService, ensureMainAgent, getLiveSessionById } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/approvals', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-approvals-'));
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/approvals', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -174,7 +174,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/approvals', () => {
     expect(first).not.toBe(second);
 
     const { body } = await getJson<ListWire>(`/api/v1/sessions/${sid}/approvals?status=pending`);
-    expect(body.data.items.map((i) => i.approval_id).sort()).toEqual([first, second].sort());
+    expect(body.data.items.map((i) => i.approval_id).toSorted()).toEqual([first, second].toSorted());
     expect(body.data.items.every((i) => i.tool_call_id === 'Bash_0')).toBe(true);
 
     for (const aid of [first, second]) {
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/capabilities.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/capabilities.test.ts
index 6bd988ad2..b0f0a89b9 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/capabilities.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/capabilities.test.ts
@@ -1,13 +1,7 @@
-import { mkdtemp, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
-import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
-import { join } from 'node:path';
-
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
 import { listCapabilitiesResponseSchema } from '../src/protocol/rest-capability';
-import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
-import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
-import { authHeaders } from './helpers/auth';
+import { sharedAuthHeaders, sharedServer } from './helpers/sharedServer';
 
 interface Envelope<T> {
   code: number;
@@ -17,44 +11,17 @@ interface Envelope<T> {
 }
 
 describe('server-v2 /api/v1 capabilities', () => {
-  let server: RunningServer | undefined;
-  let home: string | undefined;
-  let base: string;
-
-  beforeEach(async () => {
-    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-capabilities-'));
-    server = await startServer({
-      hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
-      host: '127.0.0.1',
-      port: 0,
-      homeDir: home,
-      logLevel: 'silent',
-    });
-    base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
-  });
-
-  afterEach(async () => {
-    if (server !== undefined) {
-      await server.close();
-      server = undefined;
-    }
-    if (home !== undefined) {
-      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 3, retryDelay: 25 } as never);
-      home = undefined;
-    }
-  });
-
   async function getJson<T>(path: string): Promise<{ status: number; body: Envelope<T> }> {
-    const res = await fetch(`${base}${path}`, {
-      headers: authHeaders(server as RunningServer),
+    const res = await fetch(`${sharedServer().base}${path}`, {
+      headers: sharedAuthHeaders(),
     } as never);
     return { status: res.status, body: (await res.json()) as Envelope<T> };
   }
 
   async function postJson<T>(path: string): Promise<{ status: number; body: Envelope<T> }> {
-    const res = await fetch(`${base}${path}`, {
+    const res = await fetch(`${sharedServer().base}${path}`, {
       method: 'POST',
-      headers: authHeaders(server as RunningServer, { 'content-type': 'application/json' }),
+      headers: sharedAuthHeaders({ 'content-type': 'application/json' }),
       body: '{}',
     } as never);
     return { status: res.status, body: (await res.json()) as Envelope<T> };
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/connections.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/connections.test.ts
index 59cf32911..ac43c3e87 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/connections.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/connections.test.ts
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 
 import { connectionsListResponseSchema } from '../src/protocol/rest-connection';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 import { WebSocket } from 'ws';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
@@ -23,14 +23,14 @@ describe('server-v2 GET /api/v1/connections', () => {
   let base: string;
   let wsUrl: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-connections-'));
     server = await startServer({ hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY, host: '127.0.0.1', port: 0, homeDir: home, logLevel: 'silent' });
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
     wsUrl = `ws://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/api/v1/ws`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/fs.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/fs.test.ts
index 7b5d227c7..75547c804 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/fs.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/fs.test.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import { chmod, mkdir, mkdtemp, rm, symlink, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { chmod, mkdir, mkdtemp, realpath, rm, symlink, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join, sep } from 'node:path';
 
@@ -6,11 +6,12 @@ import { IModelCatalog, IWorkspaceInstanceManager } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2
 import { HostFileSystem } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2/os/backends/node-local/hostFsService';
 import { FakeRuntime } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2/runtime/fakeRuntime';
 import { ErrorCode } from '../src/protocol/error-codes';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeAll, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
 import { authHeaders } from './helpers/auth';
+import { fakeModelCatalog } from './helpers/fakeModelCatalog';
 
 interface Envelope<T> {
   code: number;
@@ -36,45 +37,31 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1 fs routes', () => {
   let work: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-fs-home-'));
-    work = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-fs-work-'));
-    const modelCatalog: IModelCatalog = {
-      _serviceBrand: undefined,
-      get: () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.get not exercised in this test');
-      },
-      getRequester: () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.getRequester not exercised in this test');
-      },
-      inspect: () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.inspect not exercised in this test');
-      },
-      ping: () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.ping not exercised in this test');
-      },
-      findByName: () => [],
-      listModels: async () => [],
-      listProviders: async () => [],
-      getProvider: async () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.getProvider not exercised in this test');
-      },
-      setDefaultModel: async () => {
-        throw new Error('modelCatalog.setDefaultModel not exercised in this test');
-      },
-    };
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
       host: '127.0.0.1',
       port: 0,
       homeDir: home,
       logLevel: 'silent',
-      seeds: [[IModelCatalog, modelCatalog]],
+      seeds: [[IModelCatalog, fakeModelCatalog()]],
     });
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
+  beforeEach(async () => {
+    work = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-fs-work-'));
+  });
+
   afterEach(async () => {
+    if (work !== undefined) {
+      await rm(work, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 5, retryDelay: 50 });
+      work = undefined;
+    }
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -83,10 +70,6 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1 fs routes', () => {
       await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 5, retryDelay: 50 });
       home = undefined;
     }
-    if (work !== undefined) {
-      await rm(work, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 5, retryDelay: 50 });
-      work = undefined;
-    }
   });
 
   async function createSession(): Promise<string> {
@@ -701,15 +684,21 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1 fs routes', () => {
     expect(body.code).toBe(0);
     expect(body.data.items.map((i) => i.path)).toContain('kappa.ts');
 
-    expect(await listWorkspaces()).toEqual([]);
-    expect(server!.core.accessor.get(IWorkspaceInstanceManager).list()).toEqual([]);
+    const workAliases = new Set([work!, await realpath(work!)]);
+    expect((await listWorkspaces()).some((w) => workAliases.has(w.root))).toBe(false);
+    expect(
+      server!.core.accessor
+        .get(IWorkspaceInstanceManager)
+        .list()
+        .some((w) => workAliases.has(w.root)),
+    ).toBe(false);
 
     const again = await postRootSuggest<{ items: SuggestItemWire[] }>({
       roots: [work],
       query: 'kappa',
     });
     expect(again.code).toBe(0);
-    expect(await listWorkspaces()).toEqual([]);
+    expect((await listWorkspaces()).some((w) => workAliases.has(w.root))).toBe(false);
   });
 
   it('fs:suggest matches the workspace route for the same single root', async () => {
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/globalSetup.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/globalSetup.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b7b4f5368
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/globalSetup.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+import { mkdtemp, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+import { join } from 'node:path';
+
+import { IModelCatalog } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
+import type { TestProject } from 'vitest/node';
+
+import { startServer } from '../src/start';
+import { fakeModelCatalog } from './helpers/fakeModelCatalog';
+import { fixedTokenAuth } from './helpers/fixedAuth';
+import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
+
+export const SHARED_SERVER_TOKEN = 'test-token';
+
+export default async function globalSetup(project: TestProject): Promise<() => Promise<void>> {
+  process.env['PYTHINKER_CODE_SEARCH_WORKER'] = 'false';
+  process.env['PYTHINKER_CODE_PERSISTENCE_MINIDB_READMODEL'] = 'false';
+  const home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-agent-gateway-shared-home-'));
+  const server = await startServer({
+    hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
+    host: '127.0.0.1',
+    port: 0,
+    homeDir: home,
+    logLevel: 'silent',
+    authTokenService: fixedTokenAuth(SHARED_SERVER_TOKEN),
+    seeds: [[IModelCatalog, fakeModelCatalog()]],
+  });
+  project.provide('sharedServer', {
+    base: `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`,
+    token: SHARED_SERVER_TOKEN,
+  });
+  return async () => {
+    await server.close();
+    await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 5, retryDelay: 50 });
+  };
+}
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/fakeModelCatalog.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/fakeModelCatalog.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a4af806a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/fakeModelCatalog.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+import { IModelCatalog } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
+
+export function fakeModelCatalog(): IModelCatalog {
+  return {
+    _serviceBrand: undefined,
+    get: () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.get not exercised in this test');
+    },
+    getRequester: () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.getRequester not exercised in this test');
+    },
+    inspect: () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.inspect not exercised in this test');
+    },
+    ping: () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.ping not exercised in this test');
+    },
+    findByName: () => [],
+    listModels: async () => [],
+    listProviders: async () => [],
+    getProvider: async () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.getProvider not exercised in this test');
+    },
+    setDefaultModel: async () => {
+      throw new Error('modelCatalog.setDefaultModel not exercised in this test');
+    },
+  };
+}
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/sharedServer.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/sharedServer.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..941bd6fe7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/helpers/sharedServer.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+import { inject } from 'vitest';
+
+export interface SharedServerContext {
+  readonly base: string;
+  readonly token: string;
+}
+
+declare module 'vitest' {
+  interface ProvidedContext {
+    readonly sharedServer: SharedServerContext;
+  }
+}
+
+export function sharedServer(): SharedServerContext {
+  return inject('sharedServer');
+}
+
+export function sharedAuthHeaders(extra: Record<string, string> = {}): Record<string, string> {
+  return { ...extra, authorization: `Bearer ${sharedServer().token}` };
+}
+
+interface SharedFetchOptions {
+  readonly method?: string;
+  readonly headers?: Record<string, string>;
+  readonly body?: string;
+  readonly signal?: AbortSignal;
+}
+
+export async function sharedAuthedFetch(path: string, init: SharedFetchOptions = {}): Promise<Response> {
+  return fetch(`${sharedServer().base}${path}`, {
+    ...init,
+    headers: sharedAuthHeaders(init.headers),
+  } as never);
+}
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/openapi.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/openapi.test.ts
index f9df03ef1..bd1b1cd86 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/openapi.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/openapi.test.ts
@@ -2,45 +2,46 @@ import { mkdtemp, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 
-import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
-import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
+import { startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
 import { authHeaders } from './helpers/auth';
+import { sharedAuthHeaders, sharedServer } from './helpers/sharedServer';
 
 describe('server-v2 OpenAPI', () => {
-  let server: RunningServer | undefined;
-  let home: string | undefined;
-
-  afterEach(async () => {
-    if (server !== undefined) {
-      await server.close();
-      server = undefined;
-    }
-    if (home !== undefined) {
-      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
-      home = undefined;
+  async function fetchOpenApi(mcpManagement = false): Promise<Record<string, unknown>> {
+    if (!mcpManagement) {
+      const res = await fetch(`${sharedServer().base}/openapi.json`, {
+        headers: sharedAuthHeaders(),
+      } as never);
+      expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+      expect(res.headers.get('content-type')).toContain('application/json');
+      return (await res.json()) as Record<string, unknown>;
     }
-  });
 
-  async function fetchOpenApi(mcpManagement = false): Promise<Record<string, unknown>> {
-    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-openapi-'));
-    server = await startServer({
+    const home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-openapi-'));
+    const server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
       host: '127.0.0.1',
       port: 0,
       homeDir: home,
       logLevel: 'silent',
       env: {
-        PYTHINKER_CODE_EXPERIMENTAL_MCP_MANAGEMENT: mcpManagement ? '1' : '0',
+        PYTHINKER_CODE_EXPERIMENTAL_MCP_MANAGEMENT: '1',
       },
     });
-    const res = await fetch(`http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/openapi.json`, {
-      headers: authHeaders(server),
-    } as never);
-    expect(res.status).toBe(200);
-    expect(res.headers.get('content-type')).toContain('application/json');
-    return (await res.json()) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    try {
+      const res = await fetch(`http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/openapi.json`, {
+        headers: authHeaders(server),
+      } as never);
+      expect(res.status).toBe(200);
+      expect(res.headers.get('content-type')).toContain('application/json');
+      return (await res.json()) as Record<string, unknown>;
+    } finally {
+      await server.close();
+      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
+    }
   }
 
   it('returns a valid OpenAPI 3 document', async () => {
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/questions.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/questions.test.ts
index a6a27f9fd..4be55396a 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/questions.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/questions.test.ts
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import {
   type QuestionRequest,
   type QuestionResult,
 } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/questions', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-questions-'));
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/questions', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/rpc.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/rpc.test.ts
index 3ab1eac3f..8cbc2e40f 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/rpc.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/rpc.test.ts
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ import type {
   WorkspaceInstanceSnapshot,
 } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
 import { FakeRuntime } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2/runtime/fakeRuntime';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -70,13 +70,13 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/debug RPC', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-rpc-'));
     server = await startServer({ hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY, host: '127.0.0.1', port: 0, homeDir: home, logLevel: 'silent', debugEndpoints: true });
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -730,7 +730,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/debug RPC auth', () => {
   let base: string;
   const token = 'test-secret-token';
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-rpc-auth-'));
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
@@ -743,7 +743,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/debug RPC auth', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -798,7 +798,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/debug RPC (dev-only, whitelist-free)', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-debug-rpc-'));
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
@@ -811,7 +811,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/debug RPC (dev-only, whitelist-free)', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchRoute.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchRoute.test.ts
index a6af48d99..f6fdec66b 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchRoute.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchRoute.test.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import { join } from 'node:path';
 process.env['PYTHINKER_CODE_SEARCH_WORKER'] = '1';
 
 import { ISessionIndex, type SessionSummary } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeAll, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from '../helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -63,7 +63,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/search', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-search-'));
     const sessionDir = join(home, 'sessions', WS, 's1', 'agents', 'main');
     await mkdir(sessionDir, { recursive: true });
@@ -117,7 +117,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/search', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.bench.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.bench.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fe3f5cf1c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.bench.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,236 @@
+import { mkdir, mkdtemp, rm, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+import { join } from 'node:path';
+import { monitorEventLoopDelay, performance, type IntervalHistogram } from 'node:perf_hooks';
+
+import type {
+  IBootstrapService,
+  IConfigService,
+  ILogService,
+  ISessionIndex,
+  SessionSummary,
+} from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
+import { DATABASE_SECTION } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
+import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+
+import {
+  GlobalSearchService,
+  drainGlobalSearchDisposals,
+} from '../../src/search/searchService';
+
+const WS = 'ws_test';
+
+const T1 = 1_700_000_000_000;
+
+function summary(id: string, title: string, updatedAt = T1): SessionSummary {
+  return { id, workspaceId: WS, title, createdAt: updatedAt, updatedAt, archived: false };
+}
+
+function makeBootstrap(home: string): IBootstrapService {
+  return {
+    homeDir: home,
+    scope: (name: string) => name,
+  } as unknown as IBootstrapService;
+}
+
+function makeSessionIndex(list: ISessionIndex['listRecent']): ISessionIndex {
+  return {
+    _serviceBrand: undefined,
+    prepare: async () => ({ state: 'uninitialized', degradedCount: 0 }),
+    status: () => ({ state: 'uninitialized', degradedCount: 0 }),
+    listRecent: list,
+    get: async () => undefined,
+    count: async () => 0,
+    remove: async () => {},
+  };
+}
+
+function staticIndex(summaries: SessionSummary[]): ISessionIndex {
+  return makeSessionIndex(async () => ({ items: summaries, nextCursor: undefined }));
+}
+
+function userLine(text: string, time: number, origin?: unknown): string {
+  return JSON.stringify({
+    type: 'context.append_message',
+    time,
+    message: {
+      role: 'user',
+      content: [{ type: 'text', text }],
+      origin: origin ?? { kind: 'user' },
+    },
+  });
+}
+
+function assistantLine(text: string, time: number): string {
+  return JSON.stringify({
+    type: 'context.append_loop_event',
+    time,
+    event: { type: 'content.part', part: { type: 'text', text } },
+  });
+}
+
+async function writeWire(
+  home: string,
+  sessionId: string,
+  agentId: string,
+  lines: string[],
+): Promise<string> {
+  const dir = join(home, 'sessions', WS, sessionId, 'agents', agentId);
+  await mkdir(dir, { recursive: true });
+  const file = join(dir, 'wire.jsonl');
+  await writeFile(file, lines.map((l) => `${l}\n`).join(''), 'utf8');
+  return file;
+}
+
+const noopLog = {
+  error: () => {},
+  warn: () => {},
+  info: () => {},
+  debug: () => {},
+} as unknown as ILogService;
+
+function makeConfig(searchEnabled: boolean): IConfigService {
+  return {
+    ready: Promise.resolve(),
+    get: (domain: string) => (domain === DATABASE_SECTION ? { search: searchEnabled } : undefined),
+  } as unknown as IConfigService;
+}
+
+function makeService(home: string, index: ISessionIndex): GlobalSearchService {
+  const service = new GlobalSearchService(index, makeBootstrap(home), noopLog, makeConfig(true));
+  service.syncDebounceMs = 0;
+  return service;
+}
+
+describe('baseline: synthetic corpus', () => {
+  let home: string | undefined;
+  const services: GlobalSearchService[] = [];
+
+  beforeEach(async () => {
+    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-kap-search-baseline-'));
+  });
+
+  afterEach(async () => {
+    for (const service of services.splice(0)) service.dispose();
+    await drainGlobalSearchDisposals();
+    if (home !== undefined) {
+      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
+      home = undefined;
+    }
+  });
+
+  const TOPICS = ['compaction', 'walrus', 'snapshot', 'recovery', '\u7D22\u5F15', '\u6301\u4E45\u5316'];
+
+  async function writeCorpus(from: number, to: number): Promise<SessionSummary[]> {
+    const summaries: SessionSummary[] = [];
+    for (let i = from; i < to; i++) {
+      const id = `s${i}`;
+      summaries.push(summary(id, `session ${i} \u7D22\u5F15\u8BA8\u8BBA`, T1 + i));
+      const lines: string[] = [];
+      for (let j = 0; j < 8; j++) {
+        lines.push(userLine(`session ${i} message ${j} about ${TOPICS[(i + j) % TOPICS.length]!}`, T1 + i * 100 + j));
+        lines.push(assistantLine(`reply ${j} covering ${TOPICS[(i + 2 * j) % TOPICS.length]!}`, T1 + i * 100 + j + 1));
+      }
+      await writeWire(home!, id, 'main', lines);
+    }
+    return summaries;
+  }
+
+  async function medianMs(fn: () => Promise<unknown>, runs = 5): Promise<number> {
+    const times: number[] = [];
+    for (let r = 0; r < runs; r++) {
+      const t0 = performance.now();
+      await fn();
+      times.push(performance.now() - t0);
+    }
+    times.sort((a, b) => a - b);
+    return times[(times.length / 2) | 0]!;
+  }
+
+  it('indexing and search latency scale within a linear budget from 100 to 400 sessions', async () => {
+    const all: SessionSummary[] = [];
+    const service = makeService(home!, staticIndex(all));
+    services.push(service);
+
+    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(0, 100)));
+    const t0 = performance.now();
+    await service.reindex();
+    const index100 = performance.now() - t0;
+    const terms100 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'compaction' }));
+    const literal100 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }));
+
+    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(100, 400)));
+    const t1 = performance.now();
+    await service.reindex();
+    const index400 = performance.now() - t1;
+    const terms400 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'compaction' }));
+    const literal400 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }));
+
+    const hits = await service.search({ query: 'compaction' });
+    expect(hits.items.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+    expect((await service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' })).items.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
+
+    console.log(
+      `[baseline] searchService ${JSON.stringify({
+        sessions: [100, 400],
+        reindexMs: [index100, index400],
+        termsMedianMs: [terms100, terms400],
+        literalMedianMs: [literal100, literal400],
+      })}`,
+    );
+    expect(index400).toBeLessThan(index100 * 10 + 2000);
+    expect(terms400).toBeLessThan(terms100 * 10 + 100);
+    expect(literal400).toBeLessThan(literal100 * 10 + 100);
+  }, 120_000);
+
+  it('stage-4: deep keyset pages cost like the first page, with a bounded event-loop pause', async () => {
+    const all: SessionSummary[] = [];
+    const service = makeService(home!, staticIndex(all));
+    services.push(service);
+    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(0, 400)));
+    await service.reindex();
+
+    const eld: IntervalHistogram = monitorEventLoopDelay();
+    eld.enable();
+    try {
+      const tokens: (string | undefined)[] = [undefined];
+      let page = await service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20 });
+      for (let p = 1; p < 10; p++) {
+        tokens.push(page.pageToken);
+        page = await service.search({
+          query: 'message',
+          sort: 'time_desc',
+          pageSize: 20,
+          pageToken: page.pageToken,
+        });
+      }
+      expect(page.items.length).toBe(20);
+
+      const page1Ms = await medianMs(() =>
+        service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20 }),
+      );
+      const page10Ms = await medianMs(() =>
+        service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20, pageToken: tokens[9] }),
+      );
+      const literalMs = await medianMs(() =>
+        service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }),
+      );
+
+      const eldMaxMs = eld.max / 1e6;
+      const eldP99Ms = eld.percentile(99) / 1e6;
+      console.log(
+        `[baseline] stage4 ${JSON.stringify({
+          sessions: 400,
+          page1MedianMs: page1Ms,
+          page10MedianMs: page10Ms,
+          literalMedianMs: literalMs,
+          eventLoopDelayMs: { p99: eldP99Ms, max: eldMaxMs },
+        })}`,
+      );
+      expect(page10Ms).toBeLessThan(page1Ms * 5 + 50);
+      expect(eldMaxMs).toBeLessThan(500);
+    } finally {
+      eld.disable();
+    }
+  }, 120_000);
+});
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.test.ts
index f1480c7d2..798e0ba30 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/search/searchService.test.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { createHash } from 'node:crypto';
 import { appendFile, mkdir, mkdtemp, readFile, rm, stat, writeFile } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
-import { monitorEventLoopDelay, performance, type IntervalHistogram } from 'node:perf_hooks';
+import { monitorEventLoopDelay, performance } from 'node:perf_hooks';
 import { Worker } from 'node:worker_threads';
 
 import type {
@@ -2973,136 +2973,3 @@ describe('search lifecycle diagnostics (stage 5)', () => {
     expect(status.degraded).toContain('worker');
   });
 });
-
-describe('baseline: synthetic corpus', () => {
-  let home: string | undefined;
-  const services: GlobalSearchService[] = [];
-
-  beforeEach(async () => {
-    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-kap-search-baseline-'));
-  });
-
-  afterEach(async () => {
-    for (const service of services.splice(0)) service.dispose();
-    await drainGlobalSearchDisposals();
-    if (home !== undefined) {
-      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
-      home = undefined;
-    }
-  });
-
-  const TOPICS = ['compaction', 'walrus', 'snapshot', 'recovery', '\u7D22\u5F15', '\u6301\u4E45\u5316'];
-
-  async function writeCorpus(from: number, to: number): Promise<SessionSummary[]> {
-    const summaries: SessionSummary[] = [];
-    for (let i = from; i < to; i++) {
-      const id = `s${i}`;
-      summaries.push(summary(id, `session ${i} \u7D22\u5F15\u8BA8\u8BBA`, T1 + i));
-      const lines: string[] = [];
-      for (let j = 0; j < 8; j++) {
-        lines.push(userLine(`session ${i} message ${j} about ${TOPICS[(i + j) % TOPICS.length]!}`, T1 + i * 100 + j));
-        lines.push(assistantLine(`reply ${j} covering ${TOPICS[(i + 2 * j) % TOPICS.length]!}`, T1 + i * 100 + j + 1));
-      }
-      await writeWire(home!, id, 'main', lines);
-    }
-    return summaries;
-  }
-
-  async function medianMs(fn: () => Promise<unknown>, runs = 5): Promise<number> {
-    const times: number[] = [];
-    for (let r = 0; r < runs; r++) {
-      const t0 = performance.now();
-      await fn();
-      times.push(performance.now() - t0);
-    }
-    times.sort((a, b) => a - b);
-    return times[(times.length / 2) | 0]!;
-  }
-
-  it('indexing and search latency scale within a linear budget from 100 to 400 sessions', async () => {
-    const all: SessionSummary[] = [];
-    const service = makeService(home!, staticIndex(all));
-    services.push(service);
-
-    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(0, 100)));
-    const t0 = performance.now();
-    await service.reindex();
-    const index100 = performance.now() - t0;
-    const terms100 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'compaction' }));
-    const literal100 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }));
-
-    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(100, 400)));
-    const t1 = performance.now();
-    await service.reindex();
-    const index400 = performance.now() - t1;
-    const terms400 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'compaction' }));
-    const literal400 = await medianMs(() => service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }));
-
-    const hits = await service.search({ query: 'compaction' });
-    expect(hits.items.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-    expect((await service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' })).items.length).toBeGreaterThan(0);
-
-    console.log(
-      `[baseline] searchService ${JSON.stringify({
-        sessions: [100, 400],
-        reindexMs: [index100, index400],
-        termsMedianMs: [terms100, terms400],
-        literalMedianMs: [literal100, literal400],
-      })}`,
-    );
-    expect(index400).toBeLessThan(index100 * 10 + 2000);
-    expect(terms400).toBeLessThan(terms100 * 10 + 100);
-    expect(literal400).toBeLessThan(literal100 * 10 + 100);
-  }, 120_000);
-
-  it('stage-4: deep keyset pages cost like the first page, with a bounded event-loop pause', async () => {
-    const all: SessionSummary[] = [];
-    const service = makeService(home!, staticIndex(all));
-    services.push(service);
-    all.push(...(await writeCorpus(0, 400)));
-    await service.reindex();
-
-    const eld: IntervalHistogram = monitorEventLoopDelay();
-    eld.enable();
-    try {
-      const tokens: (string | undefined)[] = [undefined];
-      let page = await service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20 });
-      for (let p = 1; p < 10; p++) {
-        tokens.push(page.pageToken);
-        page = await service.search({
-          query: 'message',
-          sort: 'time_desc',
-          pageSize: 20,
-          pageToken: page.pageToken,
-        });
-      }
-      expect(page.items.length).toBe(20);
-
-      const page1Ms = await medianMs(() =>
-        service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20 }),
-      );
-      const page10Ms = await medianMs(() =>
-        service.search({ query: 'message', sort: 'time_desc', pageSize: 20, pageToken: tokens[9] }),
-      );
-      const literalMs = await medianMs(() =>
-        service.search({ query: 'message 3 about', mode: 'literal' }),
-      );
-
-      const eldMaxMs = eld.max / 1e6;
-      const eldP99Ms = eld.percentile(99) / 1e6;
-      console.log(
-        `[baseline] stage4 ${JSON.stringify({
-          sessions: 400,
-          page1MedianMs: page1Ms,
-          page10MedianMs: page10Ms,
-          literalMedianMs: literalMs,
-          eventLoopDelayMs: { p99: eldP99Ms, max: eldMaxMs },
-        })}`,
-      );
-      expect(page10Ms).toBeLessThan(page1Ms * 5 + 50);
-      expect(eldMaxMs).toBeLessThan(500);
-    } finally {
-      eld.disable();
-    }
-  }, 120_000);
-});
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/sessions.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/sessions.test.ts
index 1c621574e..d0fb47de9 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/sessions.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/sessions.test.ts
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 import { inflateRawSync } from 'node:zlib';
 
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, afterEach, beforeAll, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
 
 import {
   AgentCron,
@@ -78,10 +78,11 @@ function goalContinuationStarts(events: readonly Event2<any>[]): readonly Event2
 
 describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
   let server: RunningServer | undefined;
+  let baselineServer: RunningServer | undefined;
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-sessions-'));
     server = await startServer({
       hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
@@ -91,12 +92,20 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
       logLevel: 'silent',
       debugEndpoints: true,
     });
+    baselineServer = server;
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
   afterEach(async () => {
     vi.restoreAllMocks();
     vi.unstubAllEnvs();
+    if (server !== baselineServer) {
+      await restartWithFreshHome();
+      baselineServer = server;
+    }
+  });
+
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -108,6 +117,27 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
     }
   });
 
+  async function restartWithFreshHome(): Promise<void> {
+    if (server !== undefined) {
+      await server.close();
+      server = undefined;
+    }
+    if (home !== undefined) {
+      await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, 25));
+      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true, maxRetries: 5, retryDelay: 50 } as never);
+    }
+    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-sessions-'));
+    server = await startServer({
+      hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
+      host: '127.0.0.1',
+      port: 0,
+      homeDir: home,
+      logLevel: 'silent',
+      debugEndpoints: true,
+    });
+    base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
+  }
+
   async function postJson<T>(
     path: string,
     body?: unknown,
@@ -359,10 +389,10 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
     const { body } = await postJson<null>('/api/v1/sessions', { metadata: { cwd: missing } });
     expect(body.code).toBe(40409);
 
-    const workspaces = await getJson<{ items: unknown[] }>('/api/v1/workspaces');
-    expect(workspaces.body.data.items).toEqual([]);
+    const workspaces = await getJson<{ items: { root: string }[] }>('/api/v1/workspaces');
+    expect(workspaces.body.data.items.some((w) => w.root === missing)).toBe(false);
     const sessions = await getJson<PageWire>('/api/v1/sessions');
-    expect(sessions.body.data.items).toEqual([]);
+    expect(sessions.body.data.items.some((s) => s.metadata.cwd === missing)).toBe(false);
   });
 
   it('rejects create when metadata.cwd is not a directory (40409)', async () => {
@@ -514,6 +544,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
   });
 
   it('paginates sessions with before_id and terminates on the last page', async () => {
+    await restartWithFreshHome();
     const cwd = home as string;
     const sleep = (ms: number) => new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, ms));
     const ids: string[] = [];
@@ -984,18 +1015,18 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
     ]);
   });
 
-  it('cold-forks a session with hundreds of agents without materializing it', async () => {
+  it('cold-forks a session with hundreds of agents without materializing it', { timeout: 30_000 }, async () => {
+    await restartWithFreshHome();
     const cwd = home as string;
     const parent = await postJson<SessionWire>('/api/v1/sessions', { metadata: { cwd } });
     expect(parent.body.code).toBe(0);
     const accessor = (server as RunningServer).core.accessor;
-    const parentSession = accessor.get(ISessionManager).list().at(0);
-    const workspace = (await accessor.get(IWorkspaceService).list()).at(0);
+    const parentWire = parent.body.data;
+    const parentId = parentWire.id;
+    const parentSession = accessor.get(ISessionManager).list().find((session) => session.id === parentId);
+    const workspace = (await accessor.get(IWorkspaceService).list()).find((item) => item.root === cwd);
     expect(parentSession).toBeDefined();
     expect(workspace).toBeDefined();
-    const parentId = parentSession!.id;
-    const parentWire = parent.body.data;
-    expect(parentWire.id).toBe(parentId);
     await closeSessionById(accessor, parentId);
 
     const sessionDir = sessionDirOf(
@@ -1162,7 +1193,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
     expect(resumed).toBeDefined();
     expect(resumed!.accessor.get(ISessionContext).cwd).toBe(sourceWorkDir);
     expect(resumed!.accessor.get(IAgentLifecycleService).handleOf(MAIN_AGENT_ID)).toBeDefined();
-  }, 30_000);
+  });
 
   it('keeps cron tasks across a server restart through the wire', async () => {
     const cwd = home as string;
@@ -1254,6 +1285,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
   });
 
   it('paginates archived_only without returning empty filtered pages', async () => {
+    await restartWithFreshHome();
     const cwd = home as string;
     const archivedOlder = await postJson<SessionWire>('/api/v1/sessions', { metadata: { cwd } });
     await postJson<{ archived: boolean }>(
@@ -1345,6 +1377,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
   });
 
   it('lists the union of legacy split buckets for one workspace, in recency order', async () => {
+    await restartWithFreshHome();
     const typedRoot = 'C:\\Users\\Foo\\Proj';
     const lowerRoot = 'c:\\users\\foo\\proj';
     const typedId = encodeWorkDirKey(typedRoot);
@@ -1573,6 +1606,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions', () => {
   });
 
   it('derives the session title from the first prompt submitted via /api/v1', async () => {
+    await restartWithFreshHome();
     const cwd = home as string;
     await writeFile(join(cwd, 'config.toml'), [
       'default_model = "stub"', '', '[providers.stub]', 'type = "openai"',
@@ -1655,7 +1689,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions status context window', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-status-'));
     await writeFile(
       join(home, 'config.toml'),
@@ -1687,7 +1721,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions status context window', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
@@ -1761,7 +1795,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions (minidb read model)', () => {
     '',
   ].join('\n');
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     process.env[READ_MODEL_ENV] = '1';
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-sessions-rm-'));
     await writeFile(join(home, 'config.toml'), READ_MODEL_CONFIG, 'utf8');
@@ -1776,7 +1810,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions (minidb read model)', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     process.env[READ_MODEL_ENV] = 'false';
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/snapshot.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/snapshot.test.ts
index ea88aeb56..0515d4b37 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/snapshot.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/snapshot.test.ts
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ import {
 } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
 import { sessionSnapshotResponseSchema } from '../src/protocol/rest-snapshot';
 import { emptySessionUsage } from '../src/protocol/session';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 
 import { registerSnapshotRoutes } from '../src/routes/snapshot';
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
@@ -362,13 +362,13 @@ describe('server-v2 GET /api/v1/sessions/:id/snapshot', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-snapshot-test-'));
     server = await startServer({ hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY, host: '127.0.0.1', port: 0, homeDir: home, logLevel: 'silent' });
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/tasks.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/tasks.test.ts
index 46bc247d2..1d48eb407 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/tasks.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/tasks.test.ts
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import {
   IModelCatalog,
   type AgentTask,
 } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/tasks', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-tasks-'));
     const modelCatalog: IModelCatalog = {
       _serviceBrand: undefined,
@@ -87,7 +87,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/sessions/{sid}/tasks', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/tools.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/tools.test.ts
index ebea55cf7..46e356184 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/tools.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/tools.test.ts
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import {
   listMcpServersResponseSchema,
   listToolsResponseSchema,
 } from '../src/protocol/rest-tool';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterAll, beforeAll, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
 import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1 tools + mcp', () => {
   let home: string | undefined;
   let base: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-tools-'));
     const modelCatalog: IModelCatalog = {
       _serviceBrand: undefined,
@@ -78,7 +78,7 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1 tools + mcp', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/workspaceLayout.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/workspaceLayout.test.ts
index 9baad80c4..34e26ee3d 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/workspaceLayout.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/workspaceLayout.test.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { mkdtemp, readFile, rm, stat } from 'node:fs/promises';
 import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
 import { join } from 'node:path';
 
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 
 import {
   IAgentLifecycleService,
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ describe('local/local on-disk layout (byte compatibility)', () => {
   let base: string;
   const homes: string[] = [];
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-layout-home-'));
     workDir = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-layout-work-'));
     homes.push(home, workDir);
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ describe('local/local on-disk layout (byte compatibility)', () => {
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsBearerProtocol.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsBearerProtocol.test.ts
index e881c1dba..83bbcaf00 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsBearerProtocol.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsBearerProtocol.test.ts
@@ -1,13 +1,8 @@
-import { mkdtemp, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
-import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
-import { join } from 'node:path';
-
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 import WebSocket from 'ws';
 
-import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
-import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
 import { WS_BEARER_PROTOCOL_PREFIX } from '../src/transport/ws/bearerProtocol';
+import { sharedServer } from './helpers/sharedServer';
 
 function openWs(url: string, protocols: string | string[]): Promise<WebSocket> {
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
@@ -18,39 +13,24 @@ function openWs(url: string, protocols: string | string[]): Promise<WebSocket> {
 }
 
 describe('server-v2 WS bearer subprotocol', () => {
-  let server: RunningServer | undefined;
-  let home: string | undefined;
-  let wsUrl: string;
   const sockets: WebSocket[] = [];
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
-    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-ws-bearer-'));
-    server = await startServer({ hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY, host: '127.0.0.1', port: 0, homeDir: home, logLevel: 'silent' });
-    wsUrl = `ws://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/api/v1/ws`;
-  });
-
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterEach(() => {
     for (const ws of sockets.splice(0)) {
       ws.close();
     }
-    if (server !== undefined) {
-      await server.close();
-      server = undefined;
-    }
-    if (home !== undefined) {
-      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
-      home = undefined;
-    }
   });
 
   it('accepts a valid bearer subprotocol', async () => {
-    const token = server?.authTokenService.getToken() ?? '';
+    const token = sharedServer().token;
+    const wsUrl = `${sharedServer().base.replace(/^http/, 'ws')}/api/v1/ws`;
     const ws = await openWs(wsUrl, `${WS_BEARER_PROTOCOL_PREFIX}${token}`);
     sockets.push(ws);
     expect(ws.protocol).toBe(`${WS_BEARER_PROTOCOL_PREFIX}${token}`);
   });
 
   it('rejects an invalid bearer subprotocol', async () => {
+    const wsUrl = `${sharedServer().base.replace(/^http/, 'ws')}/api/v1/ws`;
     await expect(openWs(wsUrl, `${WS_BEARER_PROTOCOL_PREFIX}wrong-token`)).rejects.toThrow();
   });
 });
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsUpgradeAuth.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsUpgradeAuth.test.ts
index b79e8f711..266feb4b4 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsUpgradeAuth.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsUpgradeAuth.test.ts
@@ -1,15 +1,7 @@
-import { mkdtemp, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
-import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
-import { join } from 'node:path';
-
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { afterEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
 import { WebSocket, type RawData } from 'ws';
 
-import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
-import { TEST_HOST_IDENTITY } from './helpers/hostIdentity';
-import { fixedTokenAuth } from './helpers/fixedAuth';
-
-const TOKEN = 'test-token';
+import { sharedServer } from './helpers/sharedServer';
 
 function rawToString(data: RawData): string {
   if (typeof data === 'string') return data;
@@ -61,57 +53,41 @@ function expectRejected(url: string, opts?: ConnectOptions): Promise<void> {
 }
 
 describe('WS upgrade auth', () => {
-  let server: RunningServer | undefined;
-  let home: string | undefined;
-  let v1Url: string;
   const sockets: WebSocket[] = [];
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
-    home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-server-v2-ws-upgrade-auth-'));
-    server = await startServer({
-      hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY,
-      host: '127.0.0.1',
-      port: 0,
-      homeDir: home,
-      logLevel: 'silent',
-      authTokenService: fixedTokenAuth(TOKEN),
-    });
-    v1Url = `ws://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/api/v1/ws`;
-  });
-
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterEach(() => {
     for (const ws of sockets.splice(0)) {
       try {
         ws.close();
       } catch {
       }
     }
-    if (server !== undefined) {
-      await server.close();
-      server = undefined;
-    }
-    if (home !== undefined) {
-      await rm(home, { recursive: true, force: true });
-      home = undefined;
-    }
   });
 
+  function v1Url(): string {
+    return `${sharedServer().base.replace(/^http/, 'ws')}/api/v1/ws`;
+  }
+
+  function token(): string {
+    return sharedServer().token;
+  }
+
   describe('/api/v1/ws', () => {
     const firstType = 'server_hello';
-    const url = (): string => v1Url;
+    const url = (): string => v1Url();
 
     it('accepts a valid bearer subprotocol and echoes it', async () => {
       const { ws, firstFrame } = await openConn(url(), {
-        protocols: [`pythinker-code.bearer.${TOKEN}`],
+        protocols: [`pythinker-code.bearer.${token()}`],
       });
       sockets.push(ws);
-      expect(ws.protocol).toBe(`pythinker-code.bearer.${TOKEN}`);
+      expect(ws.protocol).toBe(`pythinker-code.bearer.${token()}`);
       expect(firstFrame).toMatchObject({ type: firstType });
     });
 
     it('accepts a valid Authorization bearer header', async () => {
       const { ws, firstFrame } = await openConn(url(), {
-        headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${TOKEN}` },
+        headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${token()}` },
       });
       sockets.push(ws);
       expect(firstFrame).toMatchObject({ type: firstType });
@@ -127,7 +103,7 @@ describe('WS upgrade auth', () => {
   });
 
   it('rejects upgrades to a non-WS path', async () => {
-    const badUrl = `ws://127.0.0.1:${(server as RunningServer).port}/api/v1/other`;
-    await expectRejected(badUrl, { protocols: [`pythinker-code.bearer.${TOKEN}`] });
+    const badUrl = `${v1Url().replace('/api/v1/ws', '/api/v1/other')}`;
+    await expectRejected(badUrl, { protocols: [`pythinker-code.bearer.${token()}`] });
   });
 });
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsV1Resync.test.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsV1Resync.test.ts
index 55b0c6a1c..460824be9 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsV1Resync.test.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/test/wsV1Resync.test.ts
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ import {
   IAgentLifecycleService,
   getLiveSessionById,
 } from '@pymodel/agent-core-v2';
-import { afterEach, beforeEach, describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+import { beforeAll, describe, expect, it, afterAll } from 'vitest';
 import { WebSocket } from 'ws';
 
 import { type RunningServer, startServer } from '../src/start';
@@ -105,14 +105,14 @@ describe('server-v2 /api/v1/ws resync', () => {
   let base: string;
   let wsUrl: string;
 
-  beforeEach(async () => {
+  beforeAll(async () => {
     home = await mkdtemp(join(tmpdir(), 'pythinker-wsv1-test-'));
     server = await startServer({ hostIdentity: TEST_HOST_IDENTITY, host: '127.0.0.1', port: 0, homeDir: home, logLevel: 'silent' });
     base = `http://127.0.0.1:${server.port}`;
     wsUrl = `ws://127.0.0.1:${server.port}/api/v1/ws`;
   });
 
-  afterEach(async () => {
+  afterAll(async () => {
     if (server !== undefined) {
       await server.close();
       server = undefined;
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.bench.config.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.bench.config.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3626e19e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.bench.config.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+import { defineConfig } from 'vitest/config';
+
+import { rawTextPlugin } from '../../build/raw-text-plugin.mjs';
+
+export default defineConfig({
+  plugins: [rawTextPlugin()],
+  test: {
+    name: 'agent-gateway-bench',
+    include: ['test/**/*.bench.ts'],
+    setupFiles: ['test/setup.ts'],
+  },
+});
diff --git a/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.config.ts b/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.config.ts
index 2fab5a1fe..11f057b7b 100644
--- a/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.config.ts
+++ b/packages/agent-gateway/vitest.config.ts
@@ -10,5 +10,7 @@ export default defineConfig({
     name: 'agent-gateway',
     include: ['test/**/*.{test,e2e}.ts'],
     setupFiles: ['test/setup.ts'],
+    globalSetup: ['test/globalSetup.ts'],
+    testTimeout: 15_000,
   },
 });