diff --git a/.travis.yml b/.travis.yml
index 584f308f81..8253ebb93d 100644
--- a/.travis.yml
+++ b/.travis.yml
@@ -7,22 +7,16 @@ matrix:
     env: CXX=g++-4.8
   - node_js: 8
     env: CXX=g++-4.8
-    #  - node_js: stable
-    #    env: CXX=g++-4.8
 
 script:
   - npm run lint
   - npm run test
-  - npm run coverage
   - make test
 
 before_script:
   - export DISPLAY=:99.0
   - sh -e /etc/init.d/xvfb start
 
-after_success:
-  - npm run coverage-publish
-
 addons:
   firefox: 'latest'
   apt:
diff --git a/circle.yml b/circle.yml
index a0da9bc019..a132855ce9 100644
--- a/circle.yml
+++ b/circle.yml
@@ -2,6 +2,10 @@ machine:
   node:
     version: stable
 
+test:
+  post:
+    - npm run coverage -- --upload
+
 dependencies:
   pre:
     - google-chrome --version
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 24cca718ad..762e9a9ef2 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@
     "test:unit:node:gateway": "aegir test -t node -f test/gateway/index.js",
     "test:unit:node:cli": "aegir test -t node -f test/cli/index.js",
     "test:unit:browser": "aegir test -t browser --no-cors",
-    "test:interop": "IPFS_TEST=interop aegir test -t node -t browser -f test/interop",
+    "test:interop": "IPFS_TEST=interop aegir test -t node -f test/interop",
     "test:interop:node": "IPFS_TEST=interop aegir test -t node -f test/interop/node.js",
     "test:interop:browser": "IPFS_TEST=interop aegir test -t browser -f test/interop/browser.js",
     "test:bootstrapers": "IPFS_TEST=bootstrapers aegir test -t browser -f test/bootstrapers.js",
@@ -63,7 +63,7 @@
   },
   "homepage": "https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs#readme",
   "devDependencies": {
-    "aegir": "^12.1.3",
+    "aegir": "^12.2.0",
     "buffer-loader": "0.0.1",
     "chai": "^4.1.2",
     "delay": "^2.0.0",
@@ -75,8 +75,8 @@
     "expose-loader": "^0.7.4",
     "form-data": "^2.3.1",
     "hat": "0.0.3",
-    "interface-ipfs-core": "~0.36.7",
-    "ipfsd-ctl": "~0.24.1",
+    "interface-ipfs-core": "~0.36.8",
+    "ipfsd-ctl": "~0.25.1",
     "left-pad": "^1.2.0",
     "lodash": "^4.17.4",
     "mocha": "^4.0.1",
@@ -92,13 +92,14 @@
   },
   "dependencies": {
     "async": "^2.6.0",
+    "binary-querystring": "~0.1.2",
     "bl": "^1.2.1",
     "boom": "^7.1.1",
     "bs58": "^4.0.1",
     "byteman": "^1.3.5",
     "cids": "^0.5.2",
     "debug": "^3.1.0",
-    "file-type": "^7.2.0",
+    "file-type": "^7.3.0",
     "filesize": "^3.5.11",
     "fsm-event": "^2.1.0",
     "get-folder-size": "^1.0.0",
@@ -106,7 +107,7 @@
     "hapi": "^16.6.2",
     "hapi-set-header": "^1.0.2",
     "hoek": "^5.0.2",
-    "ipfs-api": "^17.1.0",
+    "ipfs-api": "^17.1.2",
     "ipfs-bitswap": "~0.17.4",
     "ipfs-block": "~0.6.1",
     "ipfs-block-service": "~0.13.0",
@@ -120,7 +121,7 @@
     "joi": "^13.0.2",
     "libp2p": "~0.13.1",
     "libp2p-circuit": "~0.1.4",
-    "libp2p-floodsub": "~0.12.1",
+    "libp2p-floodsub": "~0.13.0",
     "libp2p-kad-dht": "~0.6.0",
     "libp2p-mdns": "~0.9.1",
     "libp2p-multiplex": "~0.5.0",
diff --git a/src/core/components/no-floodsub.js b/src/core/components/no-floodsub.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..95db571f5f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/core/components/no-floodsub.js
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+'use strict'
+
+const EventEmitter = require('events')
+
+function fail () {
+  throw new Error('The daemon must be run with \'--enable-pubsub-experiment\'')
+}
+
+class NoFloodSub extends EventEmitter {
+  constructor () {
+    super()
+
+    this.peers = new Map()
+    this.subscriptions = new Set()
+  }
+
+  start (callback) { callback() }
+  stop (callback) { callback() }
+  publish () { fail() }
+  subscribe () { fail() }
+  unsubscribe () { fail() }
+}
+
+module.exports = NoFloodSub
diff --git a/src/core/components/start.js b/src/core/components/start.js
index 54ff3c9833..9575c3e3c6 100644
--- a/src/core/components/start.js
+++ b/src/core/components/start.js
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 const series = require('async/series')
 const Bitswap = require('ipfs-bitswap')
 const FloodSub = require('libp2p-floodsub')
+const NoFloodSub = require('./no-floodsub')
 const setImmediate = require('async/setImmediate')
 const promisify = require('promisify-es6')
 
@@ -50,12 +51,10 @@ module.exports = (self) => {
       self._bitswap.start()
       self._blockService.setExchange(self._bitswap)
 
-      if (self._options.EXPERIMENTAL.pubsub) {
-        self._pubsub = new FloodSub(self._libp2pNode)
-        self._pubsub.start(done)
-      } else {
-        done()
-      }
+      self._pubsub = self._options.EXPERIMENTAL.pubsub
+        ? new FloodSub(self._libp2pNode)
+        : new NoFloodSub()
+      self._pubsub.start(done)
     })
   })
 }
diff --git a/src/core/components/stop.js b/src/core/components/stop.js
index 3a2dd8c04f..6ac0dc91a3 100644
--- a/src/core/components/stop.js
+++ b/src/core/components/stop.js
@@ -31,13 +31,7 @@ module.exports = (self) => {
     self._bitswap.stop()
 
     series([
-      (cb) => {
-        if (self._options.EXPERIMENTAL.pubsub) {
-          self._pubsub.stop(cb)
-        } else {
-          cb()
-        }
-      },
+      (cb) => self._pubsub.stop(cb),
       (cb) => self.libp2p.stop(cb),
       (cb) => self._repo.close(cb)
     ], done)
diff --git a/src/http/api/resources/pubsub.js b/src/http/api/resources/pubsub.js
index 6aa1ad6f82..a0dd21f748 100644
--- a/src/http/api/resources/pubsub.js
+++ b/src/http/api/resources/pubsub.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 const PassThrough = require('stream').PassThrough
 const bs58 = require('bs58')
+const binaryQueryString = require('binary-querystring')
 
 exports = module.exports
 
@@ -48,6 +49,7 @@ exports.subscribe = {
 
       reply(res)
         .header('X-Chunked-Output', '1')
+        .header('content-encoding', 'identity') // stop gzip from buffering, see https://github.com/hapijs/hapi/issues/2975
         .header('content-type', 'application/json')
     })
   }
@@ -57,7 +59,9 @@ exports.publish = {
   handler: (request, reply) => {
     const arg = request.query.arg
     const topic = arg[0]
-    const buf = arg[1]
+
+    const rawArgs = binaryQueryString(request.url.search)
+    const buf = rawArgs.arg && rawArgs.arg[1]
 
     const ipfs = request.server.app.ipfs
 
@@ -65,11 +69,11 @@ exports.publish = {
       return reply(new Error('Missing topic'))
     }
 
-    if (!buf) {
+    if (!buf || buf.length === 0) {
       return reply(new Error('Missing buf'))
     }
 
-    ipfs.pubsub.publish(topic, Buffer.from(String(buf)), (err) => {
+    ipfs.pubsub.publish(topic, buf, (err) => {
       if (err) {
         return reply(new Error(`Failed to publish to topic ${topic}: ${err}`))
       }
diff --git a/test/cli/bitswap.js b/test/cli/bitswap.js
index 90943ba561..40e0ba3455 100644
--- a/test/cli/bitswap.js
+++ b/test/cli/bitswap.js
@@ -4,36 +4,39 @@
 const expect = require('chai').expect
 const runOn = require('../utils/on-and-off').on
 
-describe('bitswap', () => runOn((thing) => {
-  let ipfs
-  const key = 'QmUBdnXXPyoDFXj3Hj39dNJ5VkN3QFRskXxcGaYFBB8CNR'
+describe('bitswap', function () {
+  runOn((thing) => {
+    this.timeout(30000)
+    let ipfs
+    const key = 'QmUBdnXXPyoDFXj3Hj39dNJ5VkN3QFRskXxcGaYFBB8CNR'
 
-  before((done) => {
-    ipfs = thing.ipfs
-    ipfs('block get ' + key)
-      .then(() => {})
-      .catch(() => {})
-    setTimeout(done, 800)
-  })
+    before((done) => {
+      ipfs = thing.ipfs
+      ipfs('block get ' + key)
+        .then(() => {})
+        .catch(() => {})
+      setTimeout(done, 800)
+    })
 
-  it('wantlist', () => {
-    return ipfs('bitswap wantlist').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.eql(key + '\n')
+    it('wantlist', () => {
+      return ipfs('bitswap wantlist').then((out) => {
+        expect(out).to.eql(key + '\n')
+      })
     })
-  })
 
-  it('stat', () => {
-    return ipfs('bitswap stat').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql([
-        'bitswap status',
-        '  blocks received: 0',
-        '  dup blocks received: 0',
-        '  dup data received: 0B',
-        '  wantlist [1 keys]',
-        `    ${key}`,
-        '  partners [0]',
-        '    '
-      ].join('\n') + '\n')
+    it('stat', () => {
+      return ipfs('bitswap stat').then((out) => {
+        expect(out).to.be.eql([
+          'bitswap status',
+          '  blocks received: 0',
+          '  dup blocks received: 0',
+          '  dup data received: 0B',
+          '  wantlist [1 keys]',
+          `    ${key}`,
+          '  partners [0]',
+          '    '
+        ].join('\n') + '\n')
+      })
     })
   })
-}))
+})
diff --git a/test/cli/block.js b/test/cli/block.js
index 7d13fb5605..054e14995b 100644
--- a/test/cli/block.js
+++ b/test/cli/block.js
@@ -11,24 +11,31 @@ describe('block', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     ipfs = thing.ipfs
   })
 
-  it('put', () => {
+  it('put', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
     return ipfs('block put test/fixtures/test-data/hello').then((out) => {
       expect(out).to.eql('QmZjTnYw2TFhn9Nn7tjmPSoTBoY7YRkwPzwSrSbabY24Kp\n')
     })
   })
 
-  it('put with flags, format and mhtype', () => {
+  it('put with flags, format and mhtype', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('block put --format eth-block --mhtype keccak-256 test/fixtures/test-data/eth-block')
       .then((out) =>
         expect(out).to.eql('z43AaGF23fmvRnDP56Ub9WcJCfzSfqtmzNCCvmz5eudT8dtdCDS\n'))
   })
 
-  it('get', () => {
+  it('get', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('block get QmZjTnYw2TFhn9Nn7tjmPSoTBoY7YRkwPzwSrSbabY24Kp')
       .then((out) => expect(out).to.eql('hello world\n'))
   })
 
-  it('get block from file without a final newline', () => {
+  it('get block from file without a final newline', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('block put test/fixtures/test-data/no-newline').then((out) => {
       expect(out).to.eql('QmTwbQs4sGcCiPxV97SpbHS7QgmVg9SiKxcG1AcF1Ly2SL\n')
       return ipfs('block get QmTwbQs4sGcCiPxV97SpbHS7QgmVg9SiKxcG1AcF1Ly2SL')
@@ -36,7 +43,9 @@ describe('block', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       .then((out) => expect(out).to.eql('there is no newline at end of this file'))
   })
 
-  it('stat', () => {
+  it('stat', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('block stat QmZjTnYw2TFhn9Nn7tjmPSoTBoY7YRkwPzwSrSbabY24Kp')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql([
@@ -46,7 +55,9 @@ describe('block', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it.skip('rm', () => {
+  it.skip('rm', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('block rm QmZjTnYw2TFhn9Nn7tjmPSoTBoY7YRkwPzwSrSbabY24Kp')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(
diff --git a/test/cli/bootstrap.js b/test/cli/bootstrap.js
index c5e440b85b..85b7851dcb 100644
--- a/test/cli/bootstrap.js
+++ b/test/cli/bootstrap.js
@@ -8,8 +8,7 @@ const runOnAndOff = require('../utils/on-and-off')
 describe('bootstrap', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
   let ipfs
 
-  before(function () {
-    this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+  before(() => {
     ipfs = thing.ipfs
   })
 
@@ -38,42 +37,50 @@ describe('bootstrap', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     '/ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD'
   ]
 
-  it('add default', () => {
+  it('add default', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('bootstrap add --default').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
+      expect(out).to.equal(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
     })
   })
 
-  it('list the bootstrap nodes', () => {
+  it('list the bootstrap nodes', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('bootstrap list').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.eql(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
+      expect(out).to.equal(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
     })
   })
 
-  it('add another bootstrap node', () => {
+  it('add another bootstrap node', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('bootstrap add /ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql('/ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD\n')
+      expect(out).to.equal('/ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD\n')
       return ipfs('bootstrap list')
-    }).then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql(updatedList.join('\n') + '\n')
-    })
+    }).then((out) => expect(out).to.equal(updatedList.join('\n') + '\n'))
   })
 
-  it('rm a bootstrap node', () => {
+  it('rm a bootstrap node', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('bootstrap rm /ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql('/ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD\n')
+      expect(out).to.equal('/ip4/111.111.111.111/tcp/1001/ipfs/QmcyFFKfLDGJKwufn2GeitxvhricsBQyNKTkrD14psikoD\n')
       return ipfs('bootstrap list')
     }).then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.deep.equal(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
+      expect(out).to.equal(defaultList.join('\n') + '\n')
     })
   })
 
-  it('rm all bootstrap nodes', () => {
+  it('rm all bootstrap nodes', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('bootstrap rm --all').then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.be.eql('')
+      expect(out).to.equal('')
       return ipfs('bootstrap list')
     }).then((out) => {
-      expect(out).to.deep.equal('')
+      expect(out).to.equal('')
     })
   })
 }))
diff --git a/test/cli/config.js b/test/cli/config.js
index 3b01700981..5f3e72c460 100644
--- a/test/cli/config.js
+++ b/test/cli/config.js
@@ -24,7 +24,9 @@ describe('config', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     restoreConfig = () => fs.writeFileSync(configPath, fs.readFileSync(originalConfigPath, 'utf8'), 'utf8')
   })
 
-  describe('get/set', () => {
+  describe('get/set', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     it('set a config key with a string value', () => {
       return ipfs('config foo bar').then((out) => {
         expect(updatedConfig().foo).to.equal('bar')
@@ -64,7 +66,9 @@ describe('config', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     })
   })
 
-  describe('show', () => {
+  describe('show', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     it('returns the full config', () => {
       return ipfs('config show').then((out) => {
         expect(JSON.parse(out)).to.be.eql(updatedConfig())
diff --git a/test/cli/dag.js b/test/cli/dag.js
index 3a4a29785b..9cd6a3a586 100644
--- a/test/cli/dag.js
+++ b/test/cli/dag.js
@@ -11,7 +11,9 @@ describe('dag', () => runOnAndOff.off((thing) => {
     ipfs = thing.ipfs
   })
 
-  it('get', () => {
+  it('get', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     // put test eth-block
     return ipfs('block put --format eth-block --mhtype keccak-256 test/fixtures/test-data/eth-block').then((out) => {
       expect(out).to.eql('z43AaGF23fmvRnDP56Ub9WcJCfzSfqtmzNCCvmz5eudT8dtdCDS\n')
diff --git a/test/cli/files.js b/test/cli/files.js
index 32933c95a5..5c57c7d208 100644
--- a/test/cli/files.js
+++ b/test/cli/files.js
@@ -106,7 +106,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     ipfs = thing.ipfs
   })
 
-  it('add with progress', () => {
+  it('add with progress', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add -p src/init-files/init-docs/readme')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -114,7 +116,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('add', () => {
+  it('add', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add src/init-files/init-docs/readme')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -122,7 +126,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('add alias', () => {
+  it('add alias', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('add src/init-files/init-docs/readme')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -130,21 +136,27 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('add recursively test', () => {
+  it('add recursively test', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add -r test/fixtures/test-data/recursive-get-dir')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(recursiveGetDirResults.join('\n') + '\n')
       })
   })
 
-  it('add directory with trailing slash test', () => {
+  it('add directory with trailing slash test', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add -r test/fixtures/test-data/recursive-get-dir/')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(recursiveGetDirResults.join('\n') + '\n')
       })
   })
 
-  it('add and wrap with a directory', () => {
+  it('add and wrap with a directory', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('add -w src/init-files/init-docs/readme').then((out) => {
       expect(out).to.be.eql([
         'added QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB readme',
@@ -153,7 +165,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     })
   })
 
-  it('add with cid-version=0', () => {
+  it('add with cid-version=0', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('add src/init-files/init-docs/readme --cid-version=0').then((out) => {
       expect(out)
         .to.eql('added QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB readme\n')
@@ -169,7 +183,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
   // cid-version > 0 unless explicitly set to false.
   //
   // This retains feature parity without having to implement raw-leaves.
-  it('add with cid-version=1', () => {
+  it('add with cid-version=1', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
       ipfs('add src/init-files/init-docs/readme --cid-version=1')
         .then(() => reject(new Error('Raw leaves not expected to be implemented')))
@@ -197,7 +213,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
   // cid-version > 0 unless explicitly set to false.
   //
   // This retains feature parity without having to implement raw-leaves.
-  it('add with cid-version=1 and raw-leaves=true', () => {
+  it('add with cid-version=1 and raw-leaves=true', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
       ipfs('add src/init-files/init-docs/readme --cid-version=1 --raw-leaves=true')
         .then(() => reject(new Error('Raw leaves not expected to be implemented')))
@@ -208,7 +226,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     })
   })
 
-  it('add --quiet', () => {
+  it('add --quiet', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add -q src/init-files/init-docs/readme')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -216,7 +236,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('add --quieter', () => {
+  it('add --quieter', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add -Q -w test/fixtures/test-data/hello test/test-data/node.json')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -224,7 +246,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('add --silent', () => {
+  it('add --silent', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files add --silent src/init-files/init-docs/readme')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -232,14 +256,18 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('cat', () => {
+  it('cat', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files cat QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(readme)
       })
   })
 
-  it('cat alias', () => {
+  it('cat alias', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('cat QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(readme)
@@ -254,7 +282,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('ls', () => {
+  it('ls', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('ls QmYmW4HiZhotsoSqnv2o1oUusvkRM8b9RweBoH7ao5nki2')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(
@@ -266,7 +296,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('ls -v', () => {
+  it('ls -v', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('ls /ipfs/QmYmW4HiZhotsoSqnv2o1oUusvkRM8b9RweBoH7ao5nki2 -v')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(
@@ -279,7 +311,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('ls --help', () => {
+  it('ls --help', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('ls --help')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out.split('\n').slice(1)).to.eql(['',
@@ -297,7 +331,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('get', () => {
+  it('get', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('files get QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -311,7 +347,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('get alias', () => {
+  it('get alias', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('get QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB')
       .then((out) => {
         expect(out)
@@ -325,7 +363,9 @@ describe('files', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
       })
   })
 
-  it('get recursively', () => {
+  it('get recursively', function () {
+    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+
     const outDir = path.join(process.cwd(), 'QmYmW4HiZhotsoSqnv2o1oUusvkRM8b9RweBoH7ao5nki2')
     rimraf(outDir)
 
diff --git a/test/cli/id.js b/test/cli/id.js
index 412837d386..6071a7e427 100644
--- a/test/cli/id.js
+++ b/test/cli/id.js
@@ -8,11 +8,13 @@ describe('id', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
   let ipfs
 
   before(function () {
-    this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
     ipfs = thing.ipfs
   })
 
-  it('get the id', () => {
+  it('get the id', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('id').then((res) => {
       const id = JSON.parse(res)
       expect(id).to.have.property('id')
diff --git a/test/cli/init.js b/test/cli/init.js
index 7ffa915f70..1c5fcf1a1d 100644
--- a/test/cli/init.js
+++ b/test/cli/init.js
@@ -5,10 +5,13 @@ const expect = require('chai').expect
 const path = require('path')
 const fs = require('fs')
 const clean = require('../utils/clean')
+const hat = require('hat')
 const ipfsExec = require('../utils/ipfs-exec')
 const os = require('os')
 
-describe('init', () => {
+describe('init', function () {
+  this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
   let repoPath
   let ipfs
 
@@ -23,14 +26,15 @@ describe('init', () => {
     })
   }
   beforeEach(() => {
-    repoPath = os.tmpdir() + '/ipfs-' + Math.random().toString().substring(2, 8)
+    repoPath = os.tmpdir() + '/ipfs-' + hat()
     ipfs = ipfsExec(repoPath)
   })
 
   afterEach(() => clean(repoPath))
 
   it('basic', function () {
-    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('init').then((out) => {
       expect(repoDirSync('blocks')).to.have.length.above(2)
       expect(repoExistsSync('config')).to.equal(true)
@@ -43,7 +47,9 @@ describe('init', () => {
     }).then((out) => expect(out).to.equal(readme))
   })
 
-  it('bits', () => {
+  it('bits', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('init --bits 1024').then(() => {
       expect(repoDirSync('blocks')).to.have.length.above(2)
       expect(repoExistsSync('config')).to.equal(true)
@@ -51,7 +57,9 @@ describe('init', () => {
     })
   })
 
-  it('empty', () => {
+  it('empty', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('init --bits 1024 --empty-repo true').then(() => {
       expect(repoDirSync('blocks')).to.have.length(2)
       expect(repoExistsSync('config')).to.equal(true)
diff --git a/test/cli/object.js b/test/cli/object.js
index 3a6439d143..eb7aa9e189 100644
--- a/test/cli/object.js
+++ b/test/cli/object.js
@@ -44,7 +44,9 @@ describe('object', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     })
   })
 
-  it('stat', () => {
+  it('stat', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     return ipfs('object stat QmZZmY4KCu9r3e7M2Pcn46Fc5qbn6NpzaAGaYb22kbfTqm').then((out) => {
       expect(out).to.eql([
         'NumLinks: 1',
@@ -70,7 +72,9 @@ describe('object', () => runOnAndOff((thing) => {
     })
   })
 
-  describe('patch', () => {
+  describe('patch', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     it('append-data', () => {
       return ipfs('object patch append-data QmdfTbBqBPQ7VNxZEYEj14VmRuZBkqFbiwReogJgS1zR1n test/fixtures/test-data/badconfig').then((out) => {
         expect(out).to.eql(
diff --git a/test/cli/pubsub.js b/test/cli/pubsub.js
index 703b83a5b0..d4fad22c93 100644
--- a/test/cli/pubsub.js
+++ b/test/cli/pubsub.js
@@ -7,112 +7,133 @@ const dirtyChai = require('dirty-chai')
 const expect = chai.expect
 chai.use(dirtyChai)
 const delay = require('delay')
-const waterfall = require('async/waterfall')
-const HttpAPI = require('../../src/http')
-// TODO needs to use ipfs-factory-daemon
-const createTempNode = ''
-const repoPath = require('./index').repoPath
-const ipfs = require('../utils/ipfs-exec')(repoPath)
-
-describe.skip('pubsub', () => {
+const series = require('async/series')
+const InstanceFactory = require('../utils/ipfs-factory-instance')
+const DaemonFactory = require('../utils/ipfs-factory-daemon')
+const ipfsExec = require('../utils/ipfs-exec')
+
+describe('pubsub', function () {
+  this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
+  let instanceFactory
+  let daemonFactory
+  let node
+  let cli
+  let httpApi
+
   const topicA = 'nonscentsA'
   const topicB = 'nonscentsB'
   const topicC = 'nonscentsC'
-  let node
-  let id
 
-  before((done) => {
-    createTempNode(1, (err, _node) => {
+  before(function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
+    instanceFactory = new InstanceFactory()
+    instanceFactory.spawnNode((err, _node) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
       node = _node
-      node.goOnline(done)
+      done()
     })
   })
 
-  after((done) => {
-    node.goOffline(done)
-  })
+  after((done) => instanceFactory.dismantle(done))
 
-  describe('api running', () => {
-    let httpAPI
-
-    before((done) => {
-      httpAPI = new HttpAPI(repoPath)
-
-      waterfall([
-        (cb) => httpAPI.start(cb),
-        (cb) => node.id(cb),
-        (_id, cb) => {
-          id = _id
-          ipfs(`swarm connect ${id.addresses[0]}`)
-            .then(() => cb())
-            .catch(cb)
-        }
-      ], done)
+  before((done) => {
+    daemonFactory = new DaemonFactory()
+    daemonFactory.spawnNode((err, _node) => {
+      expect(err).to.not.exist()
+      httpApi = _node
+      done()
     })
+  })
 
-    after((done) => {
-      httpAPI.stop(done)
-    })
+  after((done) => daemonFactory.dismantle(done))
 
-    it('subscribe and publish', () => {
-      const sub = ipfs(`pubsub sub ${topicA}`)
+  before((done) => {
+    cli = ipfsExec(httpApi.repoPath)
+    done()
+  })
 
-      sub.stdout.on('data', (c) => {
-        expect(c.toString()).to.be.eql('world\n')
-        sub.kill()
-      })
+  it('subscribe and publish', () => {
+    const sub = cli(`pubsub sub ${topicA}`)
 
-      return Promise.all([
-        sub.catch(ignoreKill),
-        delay(200)
-          .then(() => ipfs(`pubsub pub ${topicA} world`))
-          .then((out) => {
-            expect(out).to.be.eql('')
-          })
-      ])
+    sub.stdout.on('data', (c) => {
+      expect(c.toString().trim()).to.be.eql('world')
+      sub.kill()
     })
 
-    it('ls', () => {
-      const sub = ipfs(`pubsub sub ${topicB}`)
+    return Promise.all([
+      sub.catch(ignoreKill),
+      delay(1000)
+        .then(() => cli(`pubsub pub ${topicA} world`))
+        .then((out) => {
+          expect(out).to.be.eql('')
+        })
+    ])
+  })
 
-      sub.stdout.once('data', (data) => {
-        expect(data.toString()).to.be.eql('world\n')
-        ipfs('pubsub ls')
-          .then((out) => {
-            expect(out).to.be.eql(topicB)
-            sub.kill()
-          })
-      })
+  it('ls', function () {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
-      return Promise.all([
-        sub.catch(ignoreKill),
-        delay(200)
-          .then(() => ipfs(`pubsub pub ${topicB} world`))
-      ])
-    })
+    const sub = cli(`pubsub sub ${topicB}`)
 
-    it('peers', () => {
-      const handler = (msg) => {
-        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.be.eql('world')
-        ipfs(`pubsub peers ${topicC}`)
-          .then((out) => {
-            expect(out).to.be.eql(id.id)
-            sub2.kill()
-            node.pubsub.unsubscribe(topicC, handler)
-          })
-      }
-
-      const sub1 = node.pubsub.subscribe(topicC, handler)
-      const sub2 = ipfs(`pubsub sub ${topicC}`)
-
-      return Promise.all([
-        sub1,
-        sub2.catch(ignoreKill),
-        delay(200)
-          .then(() => ipfs(`pubsub pub ${topicC} world`))
-      ])
+    sub.stdout.once('data', (data) => {
+      expect(data.toString().trim()).to.be.eql('world')
+      cli('pubsub ls')
+        .then((out) => {
+          expect(out.trim()).to.be.eql(topicB)
+          sub.kill()
+        })
     })
+
+    return Promise.all([
+      sub.catch(ignoreKill),
+      delay(200)
+        .then(() => cli(`pubsub pub ${topicB} world`))
+    ])
+  })
+
+  it('peers', (done) => {
+    let sub
+    let instancePeerId
+    let peerAddress
+    const handler = (msg) => {
+      expect(msg.data.toString()).to.be.eql('world')
+      cli(`pubsub peers ${topicC}`)
+        .then((out) => {
+          expect(out.trim()).to.be.eql(instancePeerId)
+          sub.kill()
+          node.pubsub.unsubscribe(topicC, handler)
+          done()
+        })
+    }
+
+    series(
+      [
+        (cb) => httpApi.id((err, peerInfo) => {
+          expect(err).to.not.exist()
+          peerAddress = peerInfo.addresses[0]
+          expect(peerAddress).to.exist()
+          cb()
+        }),
+        (cb) => node.id((err, peerInfo) => {
+          expect(err).to.not.exist()
+          instancePeerId = peerInfo.id.toString()
+          cb()
+        }),
+        (cb) => node.swarm.connect(peerAddress, cb),
+        (cb) => node.pubsub.subscribe(topicC, handler, cb)
+      ],
+      (err) => {
+        expect(err).to.not.exist()
+        sub = cli(`pubsub sub ${topicC}`)
+
+        return Promise.all([
+          sub.catch(ignoreKill),
+          delay(1000)
+            .then(() => cli(`pubsub pub ${topicC} world`))
+        ])
+      })
   })
 })
 
diff --git a/test/cli/swarm.js b/test/cli/swarm.js
index 546984b707..46dff8881d 100644
--- a/test/cli/swarm.js
+++ b/test/cli/swarm.js
@@ -16,10 +16,9 @@ describe('swarm', () => {
   let ipfsA
 
   before(function (done) {
-    // CI takes longer to instantiate the daemon,
-    // so we need to increase the timeout for the
-    // before step
-    this.timeout(25 * 1000)
+    // CI takes longer to instantiate the daemon, so we need to increase the
+    // timeout for the before step
+    this.timeout(60 * 1000)
 
     factory = new Factory()
 
@@ -47,7 +46,7 @@ describe('swarm', () => {
   after((done) => factory.dismantle(done))
 
   describe('daemon on (through http-api)', function () {
-    this.timeout(10 * 1000)
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
     it('connect', () => {
       return ipfsA('swarm', 'connect', bMultiaddr).then((out) => {
diff --git a/test/core/bitswap.spec.js b/test/core/bitswap.spec.js
index 29b45d0320..007a77ec36 100644
--- a/test/core/bitswap.spec.js
+++ b/test/core/bitswap.spec.js
@@ -34,11 +34,13 @@ function makeBlock (callback) {
   })
 }
 
-describe('bitswap', () => {
+describe('bitswap', function () {
+  this.timeout(80 * 1000)
+
   let inProcNode // Node spawned inside this process
 
   beforeEach(function (done) {
-    this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+    this.timeout(60 * 1000)
 
     let config = {
       repo: createTempRepo(),
@@ -212,7 +214,7 @@ describe('bitswap', () => {
     let node
 
     before(function (done) {
-      this.timeout(15 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
       node = new IPFS({
         repo: createTempRepo(),
@@ -248,7 +250,7 @@ describe('bitswap', () => {
 
     describe('while online', () => {
       before(function (done) {
-        this.timeout(15 * 1000)
+        this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
         node.start(() => done())
       })
diff --git a/test/core/create-node.spec.js b/test/core/create-node.spec.js
index f1ce41f75a..8660ea8a4b 100644
--- a/test/core/create-node.spec.js
+++ b/test/core/create-node.spec.js
@@ -15,9 +15,11 @@ const IPFS = require('../../src/core')
 const createTempRepo = require('../utils/create-repo-nodejs.js')
 
 describe('create node', function () {
-  this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+  this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
   it('custom repoPath', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: '/tmp/ipfs-repo-' + Math.random(),
       config: {
@@ -41,6 +43,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('custom repo', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -63,6 +67,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('IPFS.createNode', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = IPFS.createNode({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -87,7 +93,9 @@ describe('create node', function () {
     })
   })
 
-  it('init: { bits: 1024 }', (done) => {
+  it('init: { bits: 1024 }', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       init: {
@@ -112,7 +120,9 @@ describe('create node', function () {
     })
   })
 
-  it('init: false errors (start default: true)', (done) => {
+  it('init: false errors (start default: true)', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       init: false,
@@ -128,7 +138,9 @@ describe('create node', function () {
     })
   })
 
-  it('init: false, start: false', (done) => {
+  it('init: false, start: false', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       init: false,
@@ -157,6 +169,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('init: true, start: false', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       init: true,
@@ -177,6 +191,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('init: true, start: false, use callback', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       init: true,
@@ -194,11 +210,10 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('overload config', function (done) {
-    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
+    if (!isNode) { return done() }
 
-    if (!isNode) {
-      return done()
-    }
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -226,6 +241,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('start and stop, start and stop', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -245,6 +262,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('stop as promised', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -263,6 +282,8 @@ describe('create node', function () {
   })
 
   it('can start node twice without crash', function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
     const options = {
       repo: createTempRepo(),
       config: {
@@ -272,7 +293,9 @@ describe('create node', function () {
         Bootstrap: []
       }
     }
+
     let node = new IPFS(options)
+
     series([
       (cb) => node.once('start', cb),
       (cb) => node.stop(cb),
diff --git a/test/core/files-sharding.spec.js b/test/core/files-sharding.spec.js
index 9b0001c13d..aaf97c8b64 100644
--- a/test/core/files-sharding.spec.js
+++ b/test/core/files-sharding.spec.js
@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ describe('files directory (sharding tests)', () => {
     let ipfs
 
     before(function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
       ipfs = new IPFS({
         repo: createTempRepo(),
@@ -49,12 +49,12 @@ describe('files directory (sharding tests)', () => {
     })
 
     after(function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
       ipfs.stop(done)
     })
 
     it('should be able to add dir without sharding', function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
       pull(
         pull.values(createTestFiles()),
@@ -74,7 +74,7 @@ describe('files directory (sharding tests)', () => {
     let ipfs
 
     before(function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
       ipfs = new IPFS({
         repo: createTempRepo(),
@@ -97,12 +97,12 @@ describe('files directory (sharding tests)', () => {
     })
 
     after(function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
       ipfs.stop(done)
     })
 
     it('should be able to add dir with sharding', function (done) {
-      this.timeout(30 * 1000)
+      this.timeout(40 * 1000)
 
       pull(
         pull.values(createTestFiles()),
diff --git a/test/core/init.spec.js b/test/core/init.spec.js
index b9a61fe209..07990027f2 100644
--- a/test/core/init.spec.js
+++ b/test/core/init.spec.js
@@ -18,9 +18,7 @@ const IPFS = require('../../src/core')
 const createTempRepo = require('../utils/create-repo-nodejs.js')
 
 describe('init', () => {
-  if (!isNode) {
-    return
-  }
+  if (!isNode) { return }
 
   let ipfs
   let repo
@@ -38,7 +36,7 @@ describe('init', () => {
   afterEach((done) => repo.teardown(done))
 
   it('basic', (done) => {
-    ipfs.init({ bits: 1024 }, (err) => {
+    ipfs.init({ bits: 512 }, (err) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
 
       repo.exists((err, res) => {
@@ -55,8 +53,9 @@ describe('init', () => {
   })
 
   it('set # of bits in key', function (done) {
-    this.timeout(20 * 1000)
-    ipfs.init({ bits: 2048 }, (err) => {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
+    ipfs.init({ bits: 1024 }, (err) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
 
       repo.config.get((err, config) => {
@@ -68,7 +67,7 @@ describe('init', () => {
   })
 
   it('init docs are written', (done) => {
-    ipfs.init({ bits: 1024 }, (err) => {
+    ipfs.init({ bits: 512 }, (err) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
       const multihash = 'QmPZ9gcCEpqKTo6aq61g2nXGUhM4iCL3ewB6LDXZCtioEB'
 
@@ -81,7 +80,7 @@ describe('init', () => {
   })
 
   it('empty repo', (done) => {
-    ipfs.init({ bits: 1024, emptyRepo: true }, (err) => {
+    ipfs.init({ bits: 512, emptyRepo: true }, (err) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
 
       // Should not have default assets
diff --git a/test/fixtures/go-ipfs-repo/version b/test/fixtures/go-ipfs-repo/version
index 1e8b314962..62f9457511 100644
--- a/test/fixtures/go-ipfs-repo/version
+++ b/test/fixtures/go-ipfs-repo/version
@@ -1 +1 @@
-6
+6
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/block.js b/test/http-api/extra/block.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/block.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/block.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/bootstrap.js b/test/http-api/extra/bootstrap.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/bootstrap.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/bootstrap.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/config.js b/test/http-api/extra/config.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/config.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/config.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/id.js b/test/http-api/extra/id.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/id.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/id.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/object.js b/test/http-api/extra/object.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/object.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/object.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/version.js b/test/http-api/extra/version.js
similarity index 100%
rename from test/http-api/over-ipfs-api/version.js
rename to test/http-api/extra/version.js
diff --git a/test/http-api/index.js b/test/http-api/index.js
index e2c7f34ce3..85fc528a7d 100644
--- a/test/http-api/index.js
+++ b/test/http-api/index.js
@@ -18,8 +18,11 @@ describe('HTTP API', () => {
 
   let http = {}
 
-  before((done) => {
-    http.api = new API(repoTests)
+  before(function (done) {
+    this.timeout(40 * 1000)
+
+    const options = { enablePubsubExperiment: true }
+    http.api = new API(repoTests, null, options)
 
     ncp(repoExample, repoTests, (err) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
@@ -28,28 +31,26 @@ describe('HTTP API', () => {
     })
   })
 
-  after((done) => {
-    http.api.stop((err) => {
-      expect(err).to.not.exist()
-      clean(repoTests)
-      done()
-    })
-  })
+  after((done) => http.api.stop((err) => {
+    expect(err).to.not.exist()
+    clean(repoTests)
+    done()
+  }))
 
   describe('## http-api spec tests', () => {
     fs.readdirSync(path.join(__dirname, '/spec'))
       .forEach((file) => require('./spec/' + file)(http))
   })
 
-  describe('## interface tests', () => {
+  describe('## interface-ipfs-core over ipfs-api', () => {
     fs.readdirSync(path.join(__dirname, '/interface'))
       .forEach((file) => require('./interface/' + file))
   })
 
-  describe('## custom ipfs-api tests', () => {
+  describe('## extra tests with ipfs-api', () => {
     const ctl = APIctl('/ip4/127.0.0.1/tcp/6001')
 
-    fs.readdirSync(path.join(__dirname, '/over-ipfs-api'))
-      .forEach((file) => require('./over-ipfs-api/' + file)(ctl))
+    fs.readdirSync(path.join(__dirname, '/extra'))
+      .forEach((file) => require('./extra/' + file)(ctl))
   })
 })
diff --git a/test/http-api/interface/pubsub.js b/test/http-api/interface/pubsub.js
index 968227c83b..ab474fac9f 100644
--- a/test/http-api/interface/pubsub.js
+++ b/test/http-api/interface/pubsub.js
@@ -2,8 +2,6 @@
 
 'use strict'
 
-// TODO needs: https://github.com/ipfs/js-ipfs-api/pull/493
-/*
 const test = require('interface-ipfs-core')
 const FactoryClient = require('./../../utils/ipfs-factory-daemon')
 
@@ -20,4 +18,3 @@ const common = {
 }
 
 test.pubsub(common)
-*/
diff --git a/test/http-api/spec/pubsub.js b/test/http-api/spec/pubsub.js
index 245b6d153c..bbb8b56e66 100644
--- a/test/http-api/spec/pubsub.js
+++ b/test/http-api/spec/pubsub.js
@@ -6,35 +6,17 @@ const chai = require('chai')
 const dirtyChai = require('dirty-chai')
 const expect = chai.expect
 chai.use(dirtyChai)
-const createTempNode = ''
 
-// TODO migrate to use ipfs-factory-daemon
 module.exports = (http) => {
-  describe.skip('/pubsub', () => {
+  describe('/pubsub', () => {
     let api
-    let tmpNode
 
     const buf = Buffer.from('some message')
     const topic = 'nonScents'
     const topicNotSubscribed = 'somethingRandom'
 
-    before((done) => {
+    before(() => {
       api = http.api.server.select('API')
-
-      createTempNode(47, (err, _ipfs) => {
-        expect(err).to.not.exist()
-        tmpNode = _ipfs
-        tmpNode.goOnline((err) => {
-          expect(err).to.not.exist()
-          done()
-        })
-      })
-    })
-
-    after((done) => {
-      setTimeout(() => {
-        tmpNode.goOffline(done)
-      }, 1000)
     })
 
     describe('/sub', () => {
@@ -76,7 +58,7 @@ module.exports = (http) => {
       it('returns 500 if no buffer is provided', (done) => {
         api.inject({
           method: 'POST',
-          url: `/api/v0/pubsub/pub?arg=${topic}&arg=`
+          url: `/api/v0/pubsub/pub?arg=&arg=`
         }, (res) => {
           expect(res.statusCode).to.equal(500)
           expect(res.result.Code).to.be.eql(1)
diff --git a/test/interop/exchange-files.js b/test/interop/exchange-files.js
index f6b7b68d53..1c14ff57ef 100644
--- a/test/interop/exchange-files.js
+++ b/test/interop/exchange-files.js
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ chai.use(dirtyChai)
 const series = require('async/series')
 const parallel = require('async/parallel')
 const waterfall = require('async/waterfall')
-const bl = require('bl')
 const crypto = require('crypto')
 const pretty = require('pretty-bytes')
 const randomFs = require('random-fs')
@@ -128,8 +127,7 @@ describe('exchange files', () => {
       const data = crypto.randomBytes(size)
       waterfall([
         (cb) => goDaemon.api.add(data, cb),
-        (res, cb) => jsDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb),
-        (stream, cb) => stream.pipe(bl(cb))
+        (res, cb) => jsDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb)
       ], (err, file) => {
         expect(err).to.not.exist()
         expect(file).to.be.eql(data)
@@ -141,8 +139,7 @@ describe('exchange files', () => {
       const data = crypto.randomBytes(size)
       waterfall([
         (cb) => jsDaemon.api.add(data, cb),
-        (res, cb) => goDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb),
-        (stream, cb) => stream.pipe(bl(cb))
+        (res, cb) => goDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb)
       ], (err, file) => {
         expect(err).to.not.exist()
         expect(file).to.be.eql(data)
@@ -154,8 +151,7 @@ describe('exchange files', () => {
       const data = crypto.randomBytes(size)
       waterfall([
         (cb) => js2Daemon.api.add(data, cb),
-        (res, cb) => jsDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb),
-        (stream, cb) => stream.pipe(bl(cb))
+        (res, cb) => jsDaemon.api.cat(res[0].hash, cb)
       ], (err, file) => {
         expect(err).to.not.exist()
         expect(file).to.be.eql(data)
@@ -164,6 +160,7 @@ describe('exchange files', () => {
     })
   }))
 
+  // TODO these tests are not fetching the full dir??
   describe('get directory', () => dirs.forEach((num) => {
     it(`go -> js: depth: 5, num: ${num}`, () => {
       const dir = tmpDir()
diff --git a/test/interop/pubsub.js b/test/interop/pubsub.js
index b76f21967f..0bfa11f143 100644
--- a/test/interop/pubsub.js
+++ b/test/interop/pubsub.js
@@ -8,10 +8,29 @@ chai.use(dirtyChai)
 const series = require('async/series')
 const parallel = require('async/parallel')
 
-const GODaemon = require('../utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go')
+const GoDaemon = require('../utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go')
 const JSDaemon = require('../utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js')
 
-describe('pubsub', () => {
+/*
+ * Wait for a condition to become true.  When its true, callback is called.
+ */
+function waitFor (predicate, callback) {
+  const ttl = Date.now() + (2 * 1000)
+  const self = setInterval(() => {
+    if (predicate()) {
+      clearInterval(self)
+      return callback()
+    }
+    if (Date.now() > ttl) {
+      clearInterval(self)
+      return callback(new Error('waitFor time expired'))
+    }
+  }, 500)
+}
+
+describe('pubsub', function () {
+  this.timeout(5 * 1000)
+
   let jsD
   let goD
   let jsId
@@ -20,7 +39,7 @@ describe('pubsub', () => {
   before(function (done) {
     this.timeout(50 * 1000)
 
-    goD = new GODaemon({
+    goD = new GoDaemon({
       disposable: true,
       init: true,
       flags: ['--enable-pubsub-experiment']
@@ -33,48 +52,295 @@ describe('pubsub', () => {
     ], (done))
   })
 
-  after((done) => {
-    series([
+  after(function (done) {
+    this.timeout(50 * 1000)
+
+    parallel([
       (cb) => goD.stop(cb),
       (cb) => jsD.stop(cb)
     ], done)
   })
 
   it('make connections', (done) => {
-    parallel([
+    series([
       (cb) => jsD.api.id(cb),
       (cb) => goD.api.id(cb)
     ], (err, ids) => {
       expect(err).to.not.exist()
 
-      jsId = ids[0].ID
-      goId = ids[0].ID
+      jsId = ids[0].id
+      goId = ids[1].id
 
-      console.log('jsId:', jsId)
-      console.log('goId:', goId)
+      const jsLocalAddr = ids[0].addresses.find(a => a.includes('127.0.0.1'))
+      const goLocalAddr = ids[1].addresses.find(a => a.includes('127.0.0.1'))
 
       parallel([
-        (cb) => jsD.api.swarm.connect(ids[1].addresses[0], cb),
-        (cb) => goD.api.swarm.connect(ids[0].addresses[0], cb)
+        (cb) => jsD.api.swarm.connect(goLocalAddr, cb),
+        (cb) => goD.api.swarm.connect(jsLocalAddr, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => {
+          cb()
+        }, 1000)
       ], done)
     })
   })
 
-  it.skip('publish from JS, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
-    // TODO write this test
+  describe('ascii data', () => {
+    const data = Buffer.from('hello world')
+
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-go-go'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-js-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-js-go'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-go-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
   })
 
-  it.skip('publish from Go, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
-    const topic = 'pubsub-go-js'
-    const data = Buffer.from('hello world')
+  describe('non-ascii data', () => {
+    const data = Buffer.from('你好世界')
 
-    function checkMessage () {
-      console.log('check message', arguments)
-    }
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-non-ascii-go-go'
+      let n = 0
 
-    series([
-      cb => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
-      cb => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb)
-    ], done)
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-non-ascii-js-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-non-ascii-js-go'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-non-ascii-go-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString()).to.equal(data.toString())
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+  })
+
+  describe('binary data', () => {
+    const data = Buffer.from('a36161636179656162830103056164a16466666666f400010203040506070809', 'hex')
+
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-binary-go-go'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString('hex')).to.equal(data.toString('hex'))
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from Go, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-binary-go-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString('hex')).to.equal(data.toString('hex'))
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', goId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on Go', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-binary-js-go'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString('hex')).to.equal(data.toString('hex'))
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => goD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
+
+    it('publish from JS, subscribe on JS', (done) => {
+      const topic = 'pubsub-binary-js-js'
+      let n = 0
+
+      function checkMessage (msg) {
+        ++n
+        expect(msg.data.toString('hex')).to.equal(data.toString('hex'))
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('seqno')
+        expect(Buffer.isBuffer(msg.seqno)).to.be.eql(true)
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('topicIDs').eql([topic])
+        expect(msg).to.have.property('from', jsId)
+      }
+
+      series([
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.subscribe(topic, checkMessage, cb),
+        (cb) => setTimeout(() => { cb() }, 500),
+        (cb) => jsD.api.pubsub.publish(topic, data, cb),
+        (cb) => waitFor(() => n === 1, cb)
+      ], done)
+    })
   })
 })
diff --git a/test/interop/repo.js b/test/interop/repo.js
index bd981d0ff9..b82ce74804 100644
--- a/test/interop/repo.js
+++ b/test/interop/repo.js
@@ -6,7 +6,6 @@ const dirtyChai = require('dirty-chai')
 const expect = chai.expect
 chai.use(dirtyChai)
 const waterfall = require('async/waterfall')
-const bl = require('bl')
 const crypto = require('crypto')
 const os = require('os')
 
@@ -14,12 +13,9 @@ const GoDaemon = require('../utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go')
 const JsDaemon = require('../utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js')
 
 function catAndCheck (daemon, hash, data, callback) {
-  waterfall([
-    (cb) => daemon.api.cat(hash, cb),
-    (stream, cb) => stream.pipe(bl(cb))
-  ], (err, file) => {
+  daemon.api.cat(hash, (err, fileData) => {
     expect(err).to.not.exist()
-    expect(file).to.eql(data)
+    expect(fileData).to.eql(data)
     callback()
   })
 }
diff --git a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go.js b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go.js
index 92a04ca99e..8010724d81 100644
--- a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go.js
+++ b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/go.js
@@ -40,8 +40,7 @@ class GoDaemon {
         this.node = node
         this.node.setConfig('Bootstrap', '[]', cb)
       },
-      (res, cb) => this.node.startDaemon(cb),
-      // (res, cb) => this.node.startDaemon(this.flags, cb),
+      (res, cb) => this.node.startDaemon(this.flags, cb),
       (api, cb) => {
         this.api = api
 
diff --git a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js.js b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js.js
index e96850c82b..bd376ff892 100644
--- a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js.js
+++ b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/js.js
@@ -37,14 +37,17 @@ class JsDaemon extends EventEmitter {
     this.path = opts.path || tmpDir()
     this._started = false
 
+    const extras = {
+      enablePubsubExperiment: true
+    }
     if (this.init) {
       const p = portConfig(this.port)
       this.node = new HttpApi(this.path, {
         Bootstrap: [],
         Addresses: p
-      })
+      }, extras)
     } else {
-      this.node = new HttpApi(this.path)
+      this.node = new HttpApi(this.path, null, extras)
     }
 
     this.node.start(this.init, (err) => {
diff --git a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/util.js b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/util.js
index 256f857f0c..c0ca77a338 100644
--- a/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/util.js
+++ b/test/utils/interop-daemon-spawner/util.js
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@ const path = require('path')
 exports.tmpDir = (prefix) => {
   return path.join(
     os.tmpdir(),
-    prefix || 'tmp',
+    prefix || 'js-ipfs-interop',
     crypto.randomBytes(32).toString('hex')
   )
 }
diff --git a/test/utils/ipfs-exec.js b/test/utils/ipfs-exec.js
index 2d7f3746e5..c9bcb53dc3 100644
--- a/test/utils/ipfs-exec.js
+++ b/test/utils/ipfs-exec.js
@@ -8,8 +8,7 @@ chai.use(dirtyChai)
 
 const _ = require('lodash')
 
-// This is our new test utility to easily check and execute
-// ipfs cli commands.
+// This is our new test utility to easily check and execute ipfs cli commands.
 //
 // The top level export is a function that can be passed a `repoPath`
 // and optional `opts` to customize the execution of the commands.
diff --git a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/default-config.json b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/default-config.json
index 47eac6522a..f2203594df 100644
--- a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/default-config.json
+++ b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/default-config.json
@@ -3,15 +3,6 @@
     "PeerID": "",
     "PrivKey": ""
   },
-  "Datastore": {
-    "Type": "",
-    "Path": "",
-    "StorageMax": "",
-    "StorageGCWatermark": 0,
-    "GCPeriod": "",
-    "Params": null,
-    "NoSync": false
-  },
   "Addresses": {
     "Swarm": [
       "/ip4/127.0.0.1/tcp/0"
@@ -19,11 +10,6 @@
     "API": "/ip4/127.0.0.1/tcp/0",
     "Gateway": "/ip4/127.0.0.1/tcp/0"
   },
-  "Mounts": {
-    "IPFS": "/ipfs",
-    "IPNS": "/ipns",
-    "FuseAllowOther": false
-  },
   "Version": {
     "Current": "jsipfs-dev",
     "Check": "error",
@@ -40,32 +26,16 @@
       "Enabled": false
     }
   },
-  "Ipns": {
-    "RepublishPeriod": "",
-    "RecordLifetime": "",
-    "ResolveCacheSize": 128
-  },
   "Bootstrap": [],
-  "Tour": {
-    "Last": ""
-  },
   "Gateway": {
     "HTTPHeaders": null,
     "RootRedirect": "",
     "Writable": false
   },
-  "SupernodeRouting": {
-    "Servers": []
-  },
   "API": {
     "HTTPHeaders": null
   },
   "Swarm": {
     "AddrFilters": null
-  },
-  "Log": {
-    "MaxSizeMB": 250,
-    "MaxBackups": 1,
-    "MaxAgeDays": 0
   }
 }
diff --git a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/index.js b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/index.js
index 9c7a61ce73..2dde6d4eef 100644
--- a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/index.js
+++ b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-daemon/index.js
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ const series = require('async/series')
 const eachSeries = require('async/eachSeries')
 const defaultConfig = require('./default-config.json')
 const os = require('os')
+const hat = require('hat')
 
 class Factory {
   constructor () {
@@ -22,13 +23,10 @@ class Factory {
     }
     if (typeof suppliedConfig === 'function') {
       callback = suppliedConfig
-      suppliedConfig = undefined
+      suppliedConfig = {}
     }
 
-    repoPath = repoPath ||
-      os.tmpdir() + '/ipfs-' +
-        Math.random().toString().substring(2, 8) +
-      '-' + Date.now()
+    repoPath = repoPath || os.tmpdir() + '/ipfs-' + hat()
 
     let daemon
     let ctl
@@ -38,12 +36,10 @@ class Factory {
       (cb) => {
         // prepare config for node
 
-        config = Object.assign({}, defaultConfig, config || {})
+        config = Object.assign({}, defaultConfig, suppliedConfig)
 
         PeerId.create({ bits: 1024 }, (err, id) => {
-          if (err) {
-            return cb(err)
-          }
+          if (err) { return cb(err) }
 
           const peerId = id.toJSON()
           config.Identity.PeerID = peerId.id
@@ -52,7 +48,7 @@ class Factory {
         })
       },
       (cb) => {
-        daemon = new HttpApi(repoPath, config)
+        daemon = new HttpApi(repoPath, config, {enablePubsubExperiment: true})
         daemon.repoPath = repoPath
         this.daemonsSpawned.push(daemon)
 
@@ -70,11 +66,11 @@ class Factory {
   dismantle (callback) {
     eachSeries(this.daemonsSpawned, (d, cb) => {
       d.stop((err) => {
+        clean(d.repoPath)
         if (err) {
           console.error('error stopping', err)
         }
-        clean(d.repoPath)
-        cb()
+        cb(err)
       })
     }, callback)
   }
diff --git a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/default-config.json b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/default-config.json
index 8428849538..677c7c85d9 100644
--- a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/default-config.json
+++ b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/default-config.json
@@ -1,13 +1,4 @@
 {
-  "Datastore": {
-    "Type": "",
-    "Path": "",
-    "StorageMax": "",
-    "StorageGCWatermark": 0,
-    "GCPeriod": "",
-    "Params": null,
-    "NoSync": false
-  },
   "Addresses": {
     "Swarm": [
       "/ip4/127.0.0.1/tcp/0"
@@ -31,11 +22,6 @@
       "Enabled": false
     }
   },
-  "Ipns": {
-    "RepublishPeriod": "",
-    "RecordLifetime": "",
-    "ResolveCacheSize": 128
-  },
   "Bootstrap": [],
   "API": {
     "HTTPHeaders": null
diff --git a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/index.js b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/index.js
index aacfe9b4ac..febc85ca86 100644
--- a/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/index.js
+++ b/test/utils/ipfs-factory-instance/index.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 const series = require('async/series')
 const each = require('async/each')
+const hat = require('hat')
 
 const defaultConfig = require('./default-config.json')
 const IPFS = require('../../../src/core')
@@ -16,31 +17,28 @@ function Factory () {
 
   const nodes = []
 
-  /* yields a new started node */
-  this.spawnNode = (repoPath, config, callback) => {
+  /* yields a new started node instance */
+  this.spawnNode = (repoPath, suppliedConfig, callback) => {
     if (typeof repoPath === 'function') {
       callback = repoPath
       repoPath = undefined
     }
-    if (typeof config === 'function') {
-      callback = config
-      config = undefined
+
+    if (typeof suppliedConfig === 'function') {
+      callback = suppliedConfig
+      suppliedConfig = {}
     }
 
     if (!repoPath) {
-      repoPath = '/tmp/.ipfs-' + Math.random()
-        .toString()
-        .substring(2, 8)
+      repoPath = '/tmp/.ipfs-' + hat()
     }
 
-    config = config || defaultConfig
+    const config = Object.assign({}, defaultConfig, suppliedConfig)
 
     const repo = createTempRepo(repoPath)
     const node = new IPFS({
       repo: repo,
-      init: {
-        bits: 1024
-      },
+      init: { bits: 1024 },
       config: config,
       EXPERIMENTAL: {
         pubsub: true,