diff --git a/autotest.sh b/autotest.sh
index ffc5eada5..a41ebc1d2 100755
--- a/autotest.sh
+++ b/autotest.sh
@@ -9,9 +9,6 @@ if [[ ! -f $1 ]]; then
 	exit 1
 fi
 
-# always test with SPDK shared objects.
-export SPDK_LIB_DIR="$rootdir/build/lib"
-
 # Autotest.sh, as part of autorun.sh, runs in a different
 # shell process than autobuild.sh. Use helper file to pass
 # over env variable containing libraries paths.
diff --git a/test/common/autotest_common.sh b/test/common/autotest_common.sh
index 110e44781..818997a99 100755
--- a/test/common/autotest_common.sh
+++ b/test/common/autotest_common.sh
@@ -156,8 +156,11 @@ export SPDK_TEST_SCHEDULER
 : ${SPDK_TEST_SCANBUILD:=0}
 export SPDK_TEST_SCANBUILD
 
+# always test with SPDK shared objects.
+export SPDK_LIB_DIR="$rootdir/build/lib"
 export DPDK_LIB_DIR="${SPDK_RUN_EXTERNAL_DPDK:-$rootdir/dpdk/build}/lib"
-export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:$SPDK_LIB_DIR:$DPDK_LIB_DIR
+export VFIO_LIB_DIR="$rootdir/libvfio-user/build/release/lib"
+export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:$SPDK_LIB_DIR:$DPDK_LIB_DIR:$VFIO_LIB_DIR
 
 # Tell setup.sh to wait for block devices upon each reset
 export PCI_BLOCK_SYNC_ON_RESET=yes
diff --git a/test/external_code/test_make.sh b/test/external_code/test_make.sh
index 30beb01c9..53c05f129 100755
--- a/test/external_code/test_make.sh
+++ b/test/external_code/test_make.sh
@@ -22,10 +22,7 @@ $SPDK_DIR/configure --with-shared --without-isal --without-ocf --disable-asan $W
 make -C $SPDK_DIR -j$(nproc)
 
 export SPDK_HEADER_DIR="$SPDK_DIR/include"
-export SPDK_LIB_DIR="$SPDK_DIR/build/lib"
-export DPDK_LIB_DIR="${SPDK_RUN_EXTERNAL_DPDK:-$SPDK_DIR/dpdk/build}/lib"
-export VFIO_LIB_DIR="$SPDK_DIR/libvfio-user/build/release/lib"
-export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:$SPDK_LIB_DIR:$DPDK_LIB_DIR:$VFIO_LIB_DIR:"$test_root/passthru"
+export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:"$test_root/passthru"
 
 # The default target is to make both the app and bdev and link them against the combined SPDK shared library libspdk.so.
 run_test "external_make_hello_bdev_shared_combo" make -C $test_root hello_world_bdev_shared_combo
diff --git a/test/nvme/hw_hotplug.sh b/test/nvme/hw_hotplug.sh
index 49c2840be..76871583d 100755
--- a/test/nvme/hw_hotplug.sh
+++ b/test/nvme/hw_hotplug.sh
@@ -4,10 +4,6 @@ testdir=$(readlink -f $(dirname $0))
 rootdir=$(readlink -f $testdir/../..)
 source $rootdir/test/common/autotest_common.sh
 
-export SPDK_LIB_DIR="$rootdir/build/lib"
-export DPDK_LIB_DIR="$rootdir/dpdk/build/lib"
-export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=$LD_LIBRARY_PATH:$SPDK_LIB_DIR:$DPDK_LIB_DIR
-
 function insert_device() {
 	ssh root@$ip 'Beetle --SetGpio "$gpio" HIGH'
 	waitforblk $name