filtering

Filtering specs: running a subset

Ginkgo offers many ways to run fewer specs — ad-hoc (Pending/Skip/Focus) and structured (labels, semver, file/description filters). They combine by a strict precedence (see bottom). Decorator specifics live in ginkgo:decorators; label-driven CI in ginkgo:ci. Docs: https://onsi.github.io/ginkgo/#filtering-specs.

Pending — compile-time skip, uncoercible

Marks a spec/container as under development. Nothing can override Pending and make it run — not focus, not labels.

It("needs work", Pending, func() { ... })
It("placeholder", Pending)            // pending specs need no closure
PDescribe("not ready", func() { ... }) // == Describe(..., Pending); X-prefix is identical
PIt(...) / XIt(...) / PEntry(...)

Pending specs don't fail the suite. ginkgo --fail-on-pending makes them fail CI — a policy that pending specs shouldn't be committed. Pending is compile-time only; you cannot make a spec pending at runtime — for that, use Skip.

Skip — runtime skip

Call Skip("reason") from any subject or setup node to skip during the run phase. It panics to halt the spec (like Fail) and records the reason; it does not fail the suite (even skipping every spec passes).

It("if it can", func() {
	if !someCondition { Skip("special condition wasn't met") }
	...
})

Scope matters: in a BeforeEach it skips the current spec; in a BeforeAll it skips all specs in the Ordered container; in a BeforeSuite it skips the entire suite. You cannot call Skip in a container body — it only applies during the run phase.

Focus — programmatic, for iterating (don't commit it)

When any spec is focused, Ginkgo runs only focused specs.

FIt("just me", func() { ... })   // or It(..., Focus, ...)
FDescribe(...) / FContext(...) / FEntry(...)

Child focus unfocuses focused ancestors. F an inner It inside an FDescribe and only that It runs — matches how you narrow while debugging.