Open CLI

k6

officialscriptableobservability
$ brew install k6
Summary

Load testing, performance, and http tests from the terminal.

  • k6 fits infra well, especially for load testing, performance, and http tests from the terminal.
  • It is the official CLI from Grafana.
  • Easy to automate.
  • Good fit for coding-agent workflows and repeatable scripts.
  • Output is mostly text-first, so verify results before scripting around it.
infra-k6-SKILL.md

K6 guide

The official CLI from Grafana. Load testing, performance, and http tests from the terminal.

Open CLI packages the install path, verify step, and safe-start workflow so this tool can move from “interesting CLI” to something you can actually use. It also integrates with skills.sh so each CLI comes with the right companion skills, not just a binary and a docs link.

When to apply

  • load testing, performance, and http tests from the terminal.
  • You need observability in both local dev and CI.
  • You need load testing.
  • You need performance.
  • You need http tests.

Quick reference

Installbrew install k6
Verifyk6 --version
First real commandk6 run script.js

Open CLI × skills.sh

Open CLI integrates k6 with the right skills.sh companions so you get the tool and the workflow together.

Backend Testing

Verified pairing

Open CLI integrates k6 with this skills.sh skill because it is the clearest fit for how k6 is usually used. Backstop CLI-driven changes with stronger validation and test coverage.

View on skills.sh
$ npx skills add https://github.com/supercent-io/skills-template --skill backend-testing
Starter prompt

Use k6 together with the Backend Testing skills.sh skill. Start with safe inspection commands, summarize what you find, and ask before any step with side effects.

Also useful from skills.sh
Monitoring & Observabilityskills.shDebuggingskills.sh

Why this tool

  • k6 fits infra well, especially for load testing, performance, and http tests from the terminal.
  • It is the official CLI from Grafana.
  • Easy to automate.

Watch-outs

  • Output is mostly plain text.

Example workflow

1. k6 run script.js

Safe start

Step 1

Install k6.

Step 2

Run `k6 --version` first.

Step 3

Start with `k6 run script.js`.

Step 4

Install the infra CLI and verify kubeconfig, Docker context, or cloud credentials.

Alternatives worth considering

datadog-ci

CI tests, source maps, and deploy markers from the terminal.

sentry-cli

Releases, source maps, and issue debugging from the terminal.

stern

Kubernetes logs, multi-pod tails, and debugging from the terminal.