diff --git a/src/drivers.rs b/src/drivers.rs
index 1c8d067..fdd4d3a 100644
--- a/src/drivers.rs
+++ b/src/drivers.rs
@@ -16568,5 +16568,53 @@ processes 9
         assert!(format!("{error:#}").contains("starting Docker runner"), "{error:#}");
         Ok(())
     }
+
+    /// The 2026-10-25 vili failure: `node --test` reported on stdout alone,
+    /// stderr stayed empty (the runner's /tmp is a noexec tmpfs) and the step
+    /// exited 1. The old capture dropped stdout and printed an empty message.
+    #[cfg(unix)]
+    #[test]
+    fn a_step_that_reports_only_on_stdout_keeps_that_report_and_its_name() -> Result<()> {
+        let temp = tempfile::tempdir()?;
+        let driver = fake_docker(
+            temp.path(),
+            &format!("echo 'not ok 1 - daemon {RUNNER_CANARY}'\necho '# fail 1'\nexit 1"),
+        )?;
+        let error = run_step(&driver, temp.path(), "test-daemon").expect_err("the step passed");
+        // The error names the step and carries no output.
+        let text = format!("{error:#}");
+        assert!(text.contains("runner step test-daemon on runner rust exited with exit status 1"), "{text}");
+        assert!(!text.contains(RUNNER_CANARY) && !text.contains("not ok"), "{text}");
+        // The evidence keeps the stdout tail; the empty stderr is a recorded 0.
+        let failure = error
+            .downcast_ref::<RunnerStepFailure>()
+            .context("the failure is not typed")?;
+        let store = temp.path().join("runner-evidence.cc");
+        let record = crate::runner_evidence::RunnerFailureRecord::from_failure(
+            "tx-vili",
+            "up-vili",
+            "vili",
+            failure,
+            1,
+        );
+        crate::runner_evidence::record(&store, &record)?;
+        let kept = crate::runner_evidence::for_transaction(&store, "tx-vili")?.context("no evidence kept")?;
+        assert_eq!(kept.subject_id, "test-daemon");
+        assert_eq!(kept.exit_code, Some(1));
+        assert_eq!(
+            String::from_utf8_lossy(&kept.stdout_tail),
+            format!("not ok 1 - daemon {RUNNER_CANARY}\n# fail 1\n")
+        );
+        assert_eq!(kept.stdout_total_bytes, kept.stdout_tail.len() as u64);
+        assert!(kept.stderr_tail.is_empty());
+        assert_eq!(kept.stderr_total_bytes, 0);
+        let rendered = crate::runner_evidence::render(&kept).join("\n");
+        assert!(rendered.contains("stderr (last 0 of 0 bytes)"), "{rendered}");
+        assert!(rendered.contains(&format!("| not ok 1 - daemon {RUNNER_CANARY}")), "{rendered}");
+        // Debug names the failure and prints no tail.
+        let debug = format!("{failure:?}");
+        assert!(debug.starts_with("RunnerStepFailure") && !debug.contains("not ok"), "{debug}");
+        Ok(())
+    }
     // END runner-failure-evidence tests
 }
diff --git a/src/runner_evidence.rs b/src/runner_evidence.rs
index 9eeab4c..d77961f 100644
--- a/src/runner_evidence.rs
+++ b/src/runner_evidence.rs
@@ -314,11 +314,12 @@ mod tests {
     fn the_evidence_store_keeps_the_newest_32() -> Result<()> {
         let temp = tempfile::tempdir()?;
         let path = runner_evidence_store_path(&temp.path().join("control.cc"));
-        for index in 0..=RUNNER_EVIDENCE_RECORDS {
+        // The literal, not the constant: the spec's bound is 32.
+        for index in 0..=32 {
             record(&path, &record_at(&format!("tx-{index:02}"), 1000 + index as u64))?;
         }
         let kept: Vec<_> = snapshot(&path)?.1.into_iter().map(|stored| stored.transaction_id).collect();
-        assert_eq!(kept.len(), RUNNER_EVIDENCE_RECORDS);
+        assert_eq!(kept.len(), 32);
         assert!(!kept.contains(&"tx-00".to_owned()), "the oldest survived");
         assert!(kept.contains(&"tx-32".to_owned()), "the newest was evicted");
         assert!(kept.contains(&"tx-01".to_owned()), "the second oldest was evicted early");
@@ -328,7 +329,7 @@ mod tests {
         again.stdout_total_bytes = 10;
         record(&path, &again)?;
         let kept = snapshot(&path)?.1;
-        assert_eq!(kept.len(), RUNNER_EVIDENCE_RECORDS);
+        assert_eq!(kept.len(), 32);
         assert!(kept.iter().any(|stored| stored.transaction_id == "tx-01"));
         let stored = for_transaction(&path, "tx-05")?.context("rewritten record is gone")?;
         assert_eq!(stored.stdout_tail, b"rewritten\n");
@@ -407,6 +408,15 @@ mod tests {
         );
     }
 
+    #[test]
+    fn debug_names_the_record_and_prints_no_tail() {
+        let mut stored = record_at("tx-a", 1);
+        stored.stdout_tail = b"SECRET-OUTPUT".to_vec();
+        stored.stdout_total_bytes = 13;
+        let debug = format!("{stored:?}");
+        assert!(debug.contains("tx-a") && !debug.contains("SECRET"), "{debug}");
+    }
+
     #[test]
     fn an_empty_tail_renders_only_its_header() {
         let mut stored = record_at("tx-a", 1);