diff --git a/test/common/applications.sh b/test/common/applications.sh
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a038c5d95
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/common/applications.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+# Default set of apps used in functional testing
+
+_root=$(readlink -f "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")")
+_root=${_root%/test/common}
+_app_dir=$_root/app
+_test_app_dir=$_root/test/app
+
+FUZZ_APP=("$_test_app_dir/fuzz/vhost_fuzz/vhost_fuzz")
+ISCSI_APP=("$_app_dir/iscsi_tgt/iscsi_tgt")
+NVMF_APP=("$_app_dir/nvmf_tgt/nvmf_tgt")
+VHOST_APP=("$_app_dir/vhost/vhost")
diff --git a/test/common/autotest_common.sh b/test/common/autotest_common.sh
index 12f3d1e9c..8cd0f8790 100644
--- a/test/common/autotest_common.sh
+++ b/test/common/autotest_common.sh
@@ -16,6 +16,8 @@ xtrace_disable
 set -e
 shopt -s expand_aliases
 
+source "$rootdir/test/common/applications.sh"
+
 # Dummy function to be called after restoring xtrace just so that it appears in the
 # xtrace log. This way we can consistently track when xtrace is enabled/disabled.
 function xtrace_enable() {
diff --git a/test/fuzz/autofuzz_nvmf.sh b/test/fuzz/autofuzz_nvmf.sh
index 501651640..a8ca0c3f4 100755
--- a/test/fuzz/autofuzz_nvmf.sh
+++ b/test/fuzz/autofuzz_nvmf.sh
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ timing_enter nvmf_fuzz_test
 echo "[Nvme]" > $testdir/nvmf_fuzz.conf
 echo "  TransportID \"trtype:$TEST_TRANSPORT adrfam:IPv4 subnqn:nqn.2016-06.io.spdk:cnode1 traddr:$NVMF_FIRST_TARGET_IP trsvcid:$NVMF_PORT\" Nvme0" >> $testdir/nvmf_fuzz.conf
 
-$NVMF_APP -m 0xF &>$output_dir/nvmf_autofuzz_tgt_output.txt &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0xF &>"$output_dir/nvmf_autofuzz_tgt_output.txt" &
 nvmfpid=$!
 
 trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; rm -f $testdir/nvmf_fuzz.conf; killprocess $nvmfpid; nvmftestfini $1; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/fuzz/autofuzz_vhost.sh b/test/fuzz/autofuzz_vhost.sh
index 963004116..36f6d02a3 100755
--- a/test/fuzz/autofuzz_vhost.sh
+++ b/test/fuzz/autofuzz_vhost.sh
@@ -6,9 +6,9 @@ source "$rootdir/scripts/common.sh"
 
 TEST_TIMEOUT=1200
 
-VHOST_APP="$rootdir/app/vhost/vhost -p 0"
+VHOST_APP+=(-p 0)
 FUZZ_RPC_SOCK="/var/tmp/spdk_fuzz.sock"
-FUZZ_APP="$rootdir/test/app/fuzz/vhost_fuzz/vhost_fuzz -r $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK --wait-for-rpc"
+FUZZ_APP+=(-r "$FUZZ_RPC_SOCK" --wait-for-rpc)
 
 vhost_rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 fuzz_generic_rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py -s $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK"
@@ -29,13 +29,13 @@ timing_enter setup
 $rootdir/scripts/setup.sh
 timing_exit setup
 
-$VHOST_APP &>$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_tgt_output.txt &
+"${VHOST_APP[@]}" &>"$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_tgt_output.txt" &
 vhostpid=$!
 waitforlisten $vhostpid
 
 trap 'killprocess $vhostpid; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM exit
 
-$FUZZ_APP -t $TEST_TIMEOUT 2>$output_dir/vhost_autofuzz_output1.txt &
+"${FUZZ_APP[@]}" -t $TEST_TIMEOUT 2>"$output_dir/vhost_autofuzz_output1.txt" &
 fuzzpid=$!
 waitforlisten $fuzzpid $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/bdev_io_wait/bdev_io_wait.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/bdev_io_wait/bdev_io_wait.sh
index b754b8099..44197f073 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/bdev_io_wait/bdev_io_wait.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/bdev_io_wait/bdev_io_wait.sh
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "iSCSI target launched. pid: $pid"
 trap 'killprocess $pid; iscsitestfini $1 $2; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/calsoft/calsoft.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/calsoft/calsoft.sh
index a80bb3cb4..b2fe56703 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/calsoft/calsoft.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/calsoft/calsoft.sh
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ echo "IP=$TARGET_IP" >> /usr/local/etc/its.conf
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m 0x1 --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m 0x1 --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/common.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/common.sh
index 36b7d1bdd..ac7de0309 100644
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/common.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/common.sh
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 TARGET_INTERFACE="spdk_tgt_int"
 INITIATOR_INTERFACE="spdk_init_int"
 TARGET_NAMESPACE="spdk_iscsi_ns"
-TARGET_NS_CMD="ip netns exec $TARGET_NAMESPACE"
+TARGET_NS_CMD=(ip netns exec "$TARGET_NAMESPACE")
 
 # iSCSI target configuration
 TARGET_IP=10.0.0.1
@@ -12,9 +12,9 @@ NETMASK=$INITIATOR_IP/32
 INITIATOR_TAG=2
 INITIATOR_NAME=ANY
 PORTAL_TAG=1
-ISCSI_APP="$TARGET_NS_CMD ./app/iscsi_tgt/iscsi_tgt"
+ISCSI_APP=("${TARGET_NS_CMD[@]}" "${ISCSI_APP[@]}")
 if [ $SPDK_TEST_VPP -eq 1 ]; then
-	ISCSI_APP+=" -L sock_vpp"
+	ISCSI_APP+=(-L sock_vpp)
 fi
 ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK=0xFF
 
@@ -37,11 +37,11 @@ function create_veth_interfaces() {
 	# Accept connections from veth interface
 	iptables -I INPUT 1 -i $INITIATOR_INTERFACE -p tcp --dport $ISCSI_PORT -j ACCEPT
 
-	$TARGET_NS_CMD ip link set $TARGET_INTERFACE up
+	"${TARGET_NS_CMD[@]}" ip link set $TARGET_INTERFACE up
 
 	if [ "$1" == "posix" ]; then
-		$TARGET_NS_CMD ip link set lo up
-		$TARGET_NS_CMD ip addr add $TARGET_IP/24 dev $TARGET_INTERFACE
+		"${TARGET_NS_CMD[@]}" ip link set lo up
+		"${TARGET_NS_CMD[@]}" ip addr add $TARGET_IP/24 dev $TARGET_INTERFACE
 
 		# Verify connectivity
 		ping -c 1 $TARGET_IP
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ function start_vpp() {
 	ethtool -k $INITIATOR_INTERFACE
 
 	# Start VPP process in SPDK target network namespace
-	$TARGET_NS_CMD vpp \
+	"${TARGET_NS_CMD[@]}" vpp \
 		unix { nodaemon cli-listen /run/vpp/cli.sock } \
 		dpdk { no-pci } \
 		session { evt_qs_memfd_seg } \
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/digests/digests.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/digests/digests.sh
index b14277ee8..3a03c10ec 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/digests/digests.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/digests/digests.sh
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/ext4test/ext4test.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/ext4test/ext4test.sh
index 7a7a9f111..de58f2a96 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/ext4test/ext4test.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/ext4test/ext4test.sh
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ node_base="iqn.2013-06.com.intel.ch.spdk"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/filesystem/filesystem.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/filesystem/filesystem.sh
index 78aa79f74..73173009a 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/filesystem/filesystem.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/filesystem/filesystem.sh
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ function remove_backends() {
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/fio/fio.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/fio/fio.sh
index eaa3c6165..0a3f3df5a 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/fio/fio.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/fio/fio.sh
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ function running_config() {
 
 	timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt2
 
-	$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+	"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 	pid=$!
 	echo "Process pid: $pid"
 	trap 'iscsicleanup; killprocess $pid; delete_tmp_files; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/initiator/initiator.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/initiator/initiator.sh
index 82e1a2398..64f76fe4c 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/initiator/initiator.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/initiator/initiator.sh
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "iSCSI target launched. pid: $pid"
 trap 'killprocess $pid;exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/ip_migration/ip_migration.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/ip_migration/ip_migration.sh
index c8006670b..a1f361fa2 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/ip_migration/ip_migration.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/ip_migration/ip_migration.sh
@@ -14,7 +14,8 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 # Namespaces are NOT used here on purpose. This test requires changes to detect
 # ifc_index for interface that was put into namespace. Needed for net_interface_add_ip_address.
-ISCSI_APP="$rootdir/app/iscsi_tgt/iscsi_tgt"
+# Reset ISCSI_APP[] to use only the plain app for this test without TARGET_NS_CMD preset.
+source "$rootdir/test/common/applications.sh"
 NETMASK=127.0.0.0/24
 MIGRATION_ADDRESS=127.0.0.2
 
@@ -82,7 +83,7 @@ for ((i = 0; i < 2; i++)); do
 	rpc_addr="/var/tmp/spdk${i}.sock"
 
 	# TODO: run the different iSCSI instances on non-overlapping CPU masks
-	$ISCSI_APP -r $rpc_addr -i $i -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+	"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -r $rpc_addr -i $i -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 	pid=$!
 	echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/lvol/iscsi_lvol.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/lvol/iscsi_lvol.sh
index 86f53cecb..095149900 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/lvol/iscsi_lvol.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/lvol/iscsi_lvol.sh
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/multiconnection/multiconnection.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/multiconnection/multiconnection.sh
index fe5eaa6dc..badf70197 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/multiconnection/multiconnection.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/multiconnection/multiconnection.sh
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ function remove_backends() {
 }
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
-$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 iscsipid=$!
 echo "iSCSI target launched. pid: $iscsipid"
 trap 'remove_backends; iscsicleanup; killprocess $iscsipid; iscsitestfini $1 $2; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/nvme_remote/fio_remote_nvme.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/nvme_remote/fio_remote_nvme.sh
index fa48fadf0..38329dc43 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/nvme_remote/fio_remote_nvme.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/nvme_remote/fio_remote_nvme.sh
@@ -23,8 +23,7 @@ function run_nvme_remote() {
 	echo "now use $1 method to run iscsi tgt."
 
 	iscsi_rpc_addr="/var/tmp/spdk-iscsi.sock"
-	ISCSI_APP="$rootdir/app/iscsi_tgt/iscsi_tgt"
-	$ISCSI_APP -r "$iscsi_rpc_addr" -m 0x1 -p 0 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
+	"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -r "$iscsi_rpc_addr" -m 0x1 -p 0 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
 	iscsipid=$!
 	echo "iSCSI target launched. pid: $iscsipid"
 	trap 'killprocess $iscsipid; iscsitestfini $1 $2; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
@@ -54,8 +53,7 @@ function run_nvme_remote() {
 }
 
 # Start the NVMf target
-NVMF_APP="$rootdir/app/nvmf_tgt/nvmf_tgt"
-$NVMF_APP -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0x2 -p 1 -s 512 --wait-for-rpc &
 nvmfpid=$!
 echo "NVMf target launched. pid: $nvmfpid"
 trap 'iscsitestfini $1 $2; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/pmem/iscsi_pmem.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/pmem/iscsi_pmem.sh
index 1f0378284..da6fd77f4 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/pmem/iscsi_pmem.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/pmem/iscsi_pmem.sh
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_target
-$ISCSI_APP -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/qos/qos.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/qos/qos.sh
index e10c7b3bc..0e013b790 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/qos/qos.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/qos/qos.sh
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 trap 'killprocess $pid; iscsitestfini $1 $2; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/rbd/rbd.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/rbd/rbd.sh
index 73f6dec5b..6c498ff0e 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/rbd/rbd.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/rbd/rbd.sh
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m $ISCSI_TEST_CORE_MASK --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 
 trap 'killprocess $pid; rbd_cleanup; iscsitestfini $1 $2; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/reset/reset.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/reset/reset.sh
index 16fb8884f..406a10c45 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/reset/reset.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/reset/reset.sh
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ fi
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/rpc_config/rpc_config.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/rpc_config/rpc_config.sh
index ab608c331..ce54b4ab2 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/rpc_config/rpc_config.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/rpc_config/rpc_config.sh
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ rpc_config_py="$testdir/rpc_config.py"
 
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
-$ISCSI_APP --wait-for-rpc &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" --wait-for-rpc &
 pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $pid"
 
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/sock/sock.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/sock/sock.sh
index fef6488e8..99879197b 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/sock/sock.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/sock/sock.sh
@@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ if [ "$TEST_TYPE" != "posix" ] && [ "$TEST_TYPE" != "vpp" ]; then
         exit 1
 fi
 
-HELLO_SOCK_APP="$TARGET_NS_CMD $rootdir/examples/sock/hello_world/hello_sock"
+HELLO_SOCK_APP="${TARGET_NS_CMD[*]} $rootdir/examples/sock/hello_world/hello_sock"
 if [ $SPDK_TEST_VPP -eq 1 ]; then
 	HELLO_SOCK_APP+=" -L sock_vpp"
 fi
diff --git a/test/iscsi_tgt/trace_record/trace_record.sh b/test/iscsi_tgt/trace_record/trace_record.sh
index 0f390f864..e13f80893 100755
--- a/test/iscsi_tgt/trace_record/trace_record.sh
+++ b/test/iscsi_tgt/trace_record/trace_record.sh
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ fio_py="$rootdir/scripts/fio.py"
 timing_enter start_iscsi_tgt
 
 echo "start iscsi_tgt with trace enabled"
-$ISCSI_APP -m 0xf --num-trace-entries $NUM_TRACE_ENTRIES --tpoint-group-mask 0xf &
+"${ISCSI_APP[@]}" -m 0xf --num-trace-entries $NUM_TRACE_ENTRIES --tpoint-group-mask 0xf &
 iscsi_pid=$!
 echo "Process pid: $iscsi_pid"
 
diff --git a/test/nvmf/common.sh b/test/nvmf/common.sh
index 20b7f51ad..6f4376a6f 100644
--- a/test/nvmf/common.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/common.sh
@@ -8,14 +8,15 @@ NVMF_SERIAL=SPDK00000000000001
 function build_nvmf_app_args()
 {
 	if [ $SPDK_RUN_NON_ROOT -eq 1 ]; then
-		echo "sudo -u $(logname) ./app/nvmf_tgt/nvmf_tgt -i $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID -e 0xFFFF"
+		NVMF_APP=(sudo -u "$USER" "${NVMF_APP[@]}")
+		NVMF_APP+=(-i "$NVMF_APP_SHM_ID" -e 0xFFFF)
 	else
-		echo "./app/nvmf_tgt/nvmf_tgt -i $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID -e 0xFFFF"
+		NVMF_APP+=(-i "$NVMF_APP_SHM_ID" -e 0xFFFF)
 	fi
 }
 
 : ${NVMF_APP_SHM_ID="0"}; export NVMF_APP_SHM_ID
-: ${NVMF_APP="$(build_nvmf_app_args)"}; export NVMF_APP
+build_nvmf_app_args
 
 have_pci_nics=0
 
@@ -207,7 +208,7 @@ function nvmftestinit()
 function nvmfappstart()
 {
 	timing_enter start_nvmf_tgt
-	$NVMF_APP $1 &
+	"${NVMF_APP[@]}" $1 &
 	nvmfpid=$!
 	trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
 	waitforlisten $nvmfpid
diff --git a/test/nvmf/host/fio.sh b/test/nvmf/host/fio.sh
index 3c46992f4..8121382df 100755
--- a/test/nvmf/host/fio.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/host/fio.sh
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ fi
 
 timing_enter start_nvmf_tgt
 
-$NVMF_APP -m 0xF &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0xF &
 nvmfpid=$!
 
 trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/nvmf/host/identify.sh b/test/nvmf/host/identify.sh
index b12bda5b6..cc503d127 100755
--- a/test/nvmf/host/identify.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/host/identify.sh
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ nvmftestinit
 
 timing_enter start_nvmf_tgt
 
-$NVMF_APP -m 0xF &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0xF &
 nvmfpid=$!
 
 trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/nvmf/target/fuzz.sh b/test/nvmf/target/fuzz.sh
index ee9fff9fc..538cb1d70 100755
--- a/test/nvmf/target/fuzz.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/target/fuzz.sh
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 
 nvmftestinit
 
-$NVMF_APP -m 0xF >$output_dir/nvmf_fuzz_tgt_output.txt 2>&1 &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0xF >$output_dir/nvmf_fuzz_tgt_output.txt 2>&1 &
 nvmfpid=$!
 
 trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; rm -f $testdir/nvmf_fuzz.conf; killprocess $nvmfpid; nvmftestfini $1; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/nvmf/target/identify_passthru.sh b/test/nvmf/target/identify_passthru.sh
index afc707f7a..e102c749c 100755
--- a/test/nvmf/target/identify_passthru.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/target/identify_passthru.sh
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ timing_exit nvme_identify
 
 timing_enter start_nvmf_tgt
 
-$NVMF_APP -m 0xF --wait-for-rpc &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -m 0xF --wait-for-rpc &
 nvmfpid=$!
 
 trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EXIT
diff --git a/test/nvmf/target/nvmf_vhost.sh b/test/nvmf/target/nvmf_vhost.sh
index 700bb69ae..6fd53db8c 100755
--- a/test/nvmf/target/nvmf_vhost.sh
+++ b/test/nvmf/target/nvmf_vhost.sh
@@ -18,13 +18,13 @@ NVMF_SOCK="/tmp/nvmf_rpc.sock"
 NVMF_RPC="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py -s $NVMF_SOCK"
 
 VHOST_SOCK="/tmp/vhost_rpc.sock"
-VHOST_APP="$rootdir/app/vhost/vhost -p 0 -r $VHOST_SOCK -u"
+VHOST_APP+=(-p 0 -r "$VHOST_SOCK" -u)
 VHOST_RPC="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py -s $VHOST_SOCK"
 
 nvmftestinit
 
 # Start Apps
-$NVMF_APP -r $NVMF_SOCK &
+"${NVMF_APP[@]}" -r $NVMF_SOCK &
 nvmfpid=$!
 waitforlisten $nvmfpid $NVMF_SOCK
 
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ trap 'process_shm --id $NVMF_APP_SHM_ID; nvmftestfini; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM EX
 
 mkdir -p "$(get_vhost_dir 3)"
 
-$VHOST_APP -S "$(get_vhost_dir 3)" &
+"${VHOST_APP[@]}" -S "$(get_vhost_dir 3)" &
 vhostpid=$!
 waitforlisten $vhostpid $NVMF_SOCK
 
diff --git a/test/vhost/fuzz/fuzz.sh b/test/vhost/fuzz/fuzz.sh
index 865a9dcf7..5a17c5fc9 100755
--- a/test/vhost/fuzz/fuzz.sh
+++ b/test/vhost/fuzz/fuzz.sh
@@ -5,21 +5,21 @@ rootdir=$(readlink -f $(dirname $0))/../../..
 source $rootdir/test/common/autotest_common.sh
 source "$rootdir/scripts/common.sh"
 
-VHOST_APP="$rootdir/app/vhost/vhost -p 0"
+VHOST_APP+=(-p 0)
 FUZZ_RPC_SOCK="/var/tmp/spdk_fuzz.sock"
-FUZZ_APP="$rootdir/test/app/fuzz/vhost_fuzz/vhost_fuzz -r $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK --wait-for-rpc"
+FUZZ_APP+=(-r "$FUZZ_RPC_SOCK" --wait-for-rpc)
 
 vhost_rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py"
 fuzz_generic_rpc_py="$rootdir/scripts/rpc.py -s $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK"
 fuzz_specific_rpc_py="$rootdir/test/app/fuzz/common/fuzz_rpc.py -s $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK"
 
-$VHOST_APP >$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_tgt_output.txt 2>&1 &
+"${VHOST_APP[@]}" >"$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_tgt_output.txt" 2>&1 &
 vhostpid=$!
 waitforlisten $vhostpid
 
 trap 'killprocess $vhostpid; exit 1' SIGINT SIGTERM exit
 
-$FUZZ_APP -t 10 2>$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_output1.txt &
+"${FUZZ_APP[@]}" -t 10 2>"$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_output1.txt" &
 fuzzpid=$!
 waitforlisten $fuzzpid $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK
 
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ $fuzz_generic_rpc_py framework_start_init
 
 wait $fuzzpid
 
-$FUZZ_APP -j $rootdir/test/app/fuzz/vhost_fuzz/example.json 2>$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_output2.txt &
+"${FUZZ_APP[@]}" -j "$rootdir/test/app/fuzz/vhost_fuzz/example.json" 2>"$output_dir/vhost_fuzz_output2.txt" &
 fuzzpid=$!
 waitforlisten $fuzzpid $FUZZ_RPC_SOCK
 
diff --git a/test/vhost/other/negative.sh b/test/vhost/other/negative.sh
index 6566b07d7..829dceeca 100755
--- a/test/vhost/other/negative.sh
+++ b/test/vhost/other/negative.sh
@@ -36,30 +36,28 @@ vhosttestinit
 
 trap error_exit ERR
 
-VHOST_APP="$rootdir/app/vhost/vhost"
-
 notice "Testing vhost command line arguments"
 # Printing help will force vhost to exit without error
-$VHOST_APP -c /path/to/non_existing_file/conf -S $testdir -e 0x0 -s 1024 -d -h --silence-noticelog
+"${VHOST_APP[@]}" -c /path/to/non_existing_file/conf -S $testdir -e 0x0 -s 1024 -d -h --silence-noticelog
 
 # Testing vhost create pid file option. Vhost will exit with error as invalid config path is given
-if $VHOST_APP -c /path/to/non_existing_file/conf -f $VHOST_DIR/vhost/vhost.pid; then
+if "${VHOST_APP[@]}" -c /path/to/non_existing_file/conf -f "$VHOST_DIR/vhost/vhost.pid"; then
 	fail "vhost started when specifying invalid config file"
 fi
 rm -f $VHOST_DIR/vhost/vhost.pid
 
 # Testing vhost start with invalid config. Vhost will exit with error as bdev module init failed
-if $VHOST_APP -c $testdir/invalid.config; then
+if "${VHOST_APP[@]}" -c $testdir/invalid.config; then
 	fail "vhost started when specifying invalid config file"
 fi
 
 # Expecting vhost to fail if an incorrect argument is given
-if $VHOST_APP -x -h; then
+if "${VHOST_APP[@]}" -x -h; then
 	fail "vhost started with invalid -x command line option"
 fi
 
 # Passing trace flags if spdk is build without CONFIG_DEBUG=y option make vhost exit with error
-if ! $VHOST_APP -t vhost_scsi -h;  then
+if ! "${VHOST_APP[@]}" -t vhost_scsi -h;  then
 	warning "vhost did not started with trace flags enabled but ignoring this as it might not be a debug build"
 fi