diff --git a/.github/workflows/notebook-controller-images-updater.yaml b/.github/workflows/notebook-controller-images-updater.yaml
index 3811956a764..99b020e8fd0 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/notebook-controller-images-updater.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/notebook-controller-images-updater.yaml
@@ -73,7 +73,7 @@ jobs:
         echo "Updating files in VERSION=${VERSION} with COMMIT_ID=${COMMIT_ID}"
         sed -E "s/(odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=quay\.io\/opendatahub\/kubeflow-notebook-controller:)[^: -]+(-)[^ ]+/\1$VERSION\2$COMMIT_ID/" -i components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
         sed -E "s/(odh-notebook-controller-image=quay\.io\/opendatahub\/odh-notebook-controller:)[^: -]+(-)[^ ]+/\1$VERSION\2$COMMIT_ID/" -i  components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
-        sed -E "s/(KF_TAG \?= )[^\-]+(-)[^ ]+/\1$VERSION\2$COMMIT_ID/" -i components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
+        sed -E "s/(KF_TAG \?= )[^\-]+(-)[^ ]+/\1$VERSION\2$COMMIT_ID/" -i components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk
 
         git status
         if [[ $(git status --porcelain | wc -l) -gt 0 ]]; then
@@ -82,8 +82,8 @@ jobs:
           git pull origin ${{ env.TEMP_UPDATER_BRANCH }}
           git add components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
           git add components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
-          git add components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
-          git commit -m "Update odh and notebook-controller with image ${VERSION}-${COMMIT_ID}"
+          git add components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk
+          git commit -m ":robot: Update odh and notebook-controller with image ${VERSION}-${COMMIT_ID}"
           git push origin ${{ env.TEMP_UPDATER_BRANCH }}
           git log --oneline
         else
@@ -106,4 +106,5 @@ jobs:
             Have been updated the following related files:
               - components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
               - components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
-              - components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
+              - components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk
+
diff --git a/.github/workflows/sync-branches-through-pr.yaml b/.github/workflows/sync-branches-through-pr.yaml
index f412be13f7f..6923981dc88 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/sync-branches-through-pr.yaml
+++ b/.github/workflows/sync-branches-through-pr.yaml
@@ -1,47 +1,80 @@
 ---
-name: Sync branches through Pull Request
+name: Sync Branches
 
-on:  # yamllint disable-line rule:truthy
+on:
   workflow_dispatch:
     inputs:
       source:
-        description: Source branch
+        description: "From:"
         required: true
+        type: string
       target:
-        description: Target branch
+        description: "To:"
         required: true
+        type: string
 
 jobs:
-  sync:
-    permissions:
-      contents: write
-      pull-requests: write
+  sync-branches:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+
     steps:
-      - name: Checkout repository
-        uses: actions/checkout@v4
-        with:
-          ref: ${{ github.event.inputs.target }}
-          fetch-depth: 0
-
-      - name: Prepare sync branch
-        id: prepare
-        run: |
-          git fetch origin ${{ github.event.inputs.source }}
-          git reset --hard origin/${{ github.event.inputs.source }}
-
-          TIMESTAMP=$(date +'%Y%m%d%H%M%S')
-          SYNC_BRANCH=sync__${{ github.event.inputs.source }}__${{ github.event.inputs.target }}__${TIMESTAMP}
-          echo "branch=$SYNC_BRANCH" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
-
-      - name: Create pull request
-        uses: peter-evans/create-pull-request@5e914681df9dc83aa4e4905692ca88beb2f9e91f  # v7.0.5
-        with:
-          branch: ${{ steps.prepare.outputs.branch }}
-          title: "Sync `${{ github.event.inputs.target }}` branch with `${{ github.event.inputs.source }}` branch"
-          body: |
-            :robot: This is an automated Pull Request created by `/.github/workflows/sync-branches-through-pr.yml`.
-
-            It merges all commits from `${{ github.event.inputs.source }}` branch into `${{ github.event.inputs.target }}` branch.
-
-            :warning: **IMPORTANT NOTE**: Remember to delete the `${{ steps.prepare.outputs.branch }}` branch after merging the changes.
+    - name: Checkout repository
+      uses: actions/checkout@v4
+      with:
+        fetch-depth: 0 # Ensure full history is fetched for merging
+
+    - name: Set up Git
+      run: |
+        git config user.name "github-actions[bot]"
+        git config user.email "github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com"
+
+    - name: Merge source branch into target with conflict resolution
+      id: merge
+      run: |
+        set -e
+        SOURCE_BRANCH="${{ github.event.inputs.source }}"
+        TARGET_BRANCH="${{ github.event.inputs.target }}"
+
+        git fetch origin ${TARGET_BRANCH}:${TARGET_BRANCH}
+        git checkout ${TARGET_BRANCH}
+
+        git fetch origin ${SOURCE_BRANCH}:${SOURCE_BRANCH}
+        git merge --no-commit origin/${SOURCE_BRANCH} || true
+
+        # Resolve conflicts for specific files
+        FILES=(
+          "components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env"
+          "components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env"
+          "components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk"
+        )
+
+        for FILE in "${FILES[@]}"; do
+          if [[ -f "$FILE" && "$(git status --porcelain=v1 2>/dev/null | grep -c "$FILE")" -gt 0 ]]; then
+            echo "Resolving conflict for $FILE by keeping target branch version."
+            git checkout --ours "$FILE"
+            git add "$FILE"
+          fi
+        done
+
+        # Commit the merge changes
+        git commit -m "Merge ${SOURCE_BRANCH} into ${TARGET_BRANCH} with resolved conflicts" || echo "Nothing to commit"
+
+        # Create a new branch for the sync
+        TIMESTAMP=$(date +'%Y%m%d%H%M%S')
+        SYNC_BRANCH="sync__${SOURCE_BRANCH}__${TARGET_BRANCH}__${TIMESTAMP}"
+        git checkout -b $SYNC_BRANCH
+        git push origin $SYNC_BRANCH
+        echo "branch=$SYNC_BRANCH" >> $GITHUB_OUTPUT
+
+    - name: Create a Pull Request
+      env:
+        GH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+      run: |
+        SOURCE_BRANCH="${{ github.event.inputs.source }}"
+        TARGET_BRANCH="${{ github.event.inputs.target }}"
+        SYNC_BRANCH=$(echo "${{ steps.merge.outputs.branch }}")
+        gh pr create \
+          --title "Sync ${SOURCE_BRANCH} into ${TARGET_BRANCH}" \
+          --body ":robot: This is an automated PR" \
+          --base "${{ github.event.inputs.target }}" \
+          --head "${SYNC_BRANCH}"
diff --git a/components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env b/components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
index 752384aeaf7..7fe7b775d19 100644
--- a/components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
+++ b/components/notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
@@ -1 +1 @@
-odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=quay.io/opendatahub/kubeflow-notebook-controller:main-363bcdb
+odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=quay.io/opendatahub/kubeflow-notebook-controller:main
diff --git a/components/notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go b/components/notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
index 3093e1b5e97..8f5a1f8a9a2 100644
--- a/components/notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
+++ b/components/notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
@@ -58,7 +58,8 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 		ErrorIfCRDPathMissing: true,
 	}
 
-	cfg, err := testEnv.Start()
+	var err error
+	cfg, err = testEnv.Start()
 	Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
 	Expect(cfg).NotTo(BeNil())
 
@@ -91,7 +92,6 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred(), "failed to run manager")
 	}()
 
-	k8sClient = k8sManager.GetClient()
 	Expect(k8sClient).ToNot(BeNil())
 
 }, 60)
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile b/components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
index e92d704bf3b..90de33e4e54 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/Makefile
@@ -1,10 +1,12 @@
 
+include makefile-vars.mk
+
 # Image URL to use all building/pushing image targets
 IMG ?= quay.io/opendatahub/odh-notebook-controller
 TAG ?= $(shell git describe --tags --always)
 
 KF_IMG ?= quay.io/opendatahub/kubeflow-notebook-controller
-KF_TAG ?= main-363bcdb
+KF_TAG ?= $(KF_TAG)
 
 CONTAINER_ENGINE ?= podman
 
@@ -132,16 +134,13 @@ endif
 setup-kf: kustomize ## Replace Kustomize manifests with your environment configuration.
 	sed -i'' -e 's,namespace: .*,namespace: '"${K8S_NAMESPACE}"',' \
 		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newName: .*,newName: '"${KF_IMG}"',' \
-		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newTag: .*,newTag: '"${KF_TAG}"',' \
- 	../notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/kustomization.yaml
+	sed -i'' -e "s,odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=.*,odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=${KF_IMG}:${KF_TAG}," \
+		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
 
 .PHONY: setup
 setup: manifests kustomize ## Replace Kustomize manifests with your environment configuration.
 	sed -i'' -e 's,namespace: .*,namespace: '"${K8S_NAMESPACE}"',' ./config/default/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newName: .*,newName: '"${IMG}"',' ./config/base/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newTag: .*,newTag: '"${TAG}"',' ./config/base/kustomization.yaml
+	sed -i'' -e "s,odh-notebook-controller-image=.*,odh-notebook-controller-image=${IMG}:${TAG}," ./config/base/params.env
 
 .PHONY: setup-service-mesh
 setup-service-mesh: kustomize ## Replace Kustomize manifests with your environment configuration.
@@ -151,10 +150,8 @@ setup-service-mesh: kustomize ## Replace Kustomize manifests with your environme
 		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/standalone-service-mesh/kustomization.yaml
 	sed -i'' -e 's,ISTIO_GATEWAY=.*,ISTIO_GATEWAY='"${K8S_NAMESPACE}/odh-gateway"',' \
     		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/standalone-service-mesh/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newName: .*,newName: '"${KF_IMG}"',' \
-		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/standalone-service-mesh/kustomization.yaml
-	sed -i'' -e 's,newTag: .*,newTag: '"${KF_TAG}"',' \
-	../notebook-controller/config/overlays/standalone-service-mesh/kustomization.yaml
+	sed -i'' -e "s,odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=.*,odh-kf-notebook-controller-image=${KF_IMG}:${KF_TAG}," \
+		../notebook-controller/config/overlays/openshift/params.env
 	sed -i'' -e 's,host: .*,host: opendatahub.'"$(shell kubectl get ingress.config.openshift.io cluster -o 'jsonpath={.spec.domain}')"',' \
     	../notebook-controller/config/overlays/standalone-service-mesh/gateway-route.yaml
 
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/README.md b/components/odh-notebook-controller/README.md
index d170be23cd2..5320cbe7e0f 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/README.md
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/README.md
@@ -78,6 +78,21 @@ Run the following command to execute them:
 make test
 ```
 
+Useful options for running tests (that are already included in the above `make` command) are
+
+| Option                     | Description                                                                                   |
+|----------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
+| KUBEBUILDER_ASSETS        | Environment variable that specifies path to where Kubebuilder has downloaded envtest binaries |
+| -ginkgo.v -ginkgo.progress | Enables verbose output from Ginkgo                                                            |
+| -test.v                    | Enables verbose output from Go tests (*testing.T)                                             |
+
+The following environment variables are used to enable additional debug options for the tests
+
+| Environment variable   | Description                                                                                                                                  |
+|------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
+| DEBUG_WRITE_KUBECONFIG | Writes a Kubeconfig file to disk. It can be used with `kubectl` or `k9s` to examine the envtest cluster when test is paused on a breakpoint. |
+| DEBUG_WRITE_AUDITLOG   | Writes kube-apiserver auditlogs to disk. The config is in `envtest-audit-policy.yaml`, set the namespace of interest there.                  |
+
 ### Run locally
 
 Install the `notebooks.kubeflow.org` CRD from the [Kubeflow notebook
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env b/components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
index 664290753b9..f20ffe232a8 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/config/base/params.env
@@ -1 +1 @@
-odh-notebook-controller-image=quay.io/opendatahub/odh-notebook-controller:main-363bcdb
+odh-notebook-controller-image=quay.io/opendatahub/odh-notebook-controller:main
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller.go b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller.go
index 3e667ed06cb..daac2b87bce 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller.go
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller.go
@@ -283,6 +283,9 @@ func (r *OpenshiftNotebookReconciler) CreateNotebookCertConfigMap(notebook *nbv1
 		for _, certFile := range configMapFileNames[configMapName] {
 
 			certData, ok := configMap.Data[certFile]
+			// RHOAIENG-15743: opendatahub-operator#1339 started adding '\n' unconditionally, which
+			// is breaking our `== ""` checks below. Trim the certData again.
+			certData = strings.TrimSpace(certData)
 			// If ca-bundle.crt is not found in the ConfigMap odh-trusted-ca-bundle
 			// no need to create the workbench-trusted-ca-bundle, as it is created
 			// by annotation inject-ca-bundle: "true"
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller_test.go b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller_test.go
index e9c9c6b0941..b3ed46bf3ef 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller_test.go
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/notebook_controller_test.go
@@ -26,15 +26,15 @@ import (
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/go-logr/logr"
-	"github.com/onsi/gomega/format"
-	netv1 "k8s.io/api/networking/v1"
-	rbacv1 "k8s.io/api/rbac/v1"
-	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/resource"
-
+	"github.com/google/go-cmp/cmp"
 	. "github.com/onsi/ginkgo"
 	. "github.com/onsi/gomega"
+
 	routev1 "github.com/openshift/api/route/v1"
 	corev1 "k8s.io/api/core/v1"
+	netv1 "k8s.io/api/networking/v1"
+	rbacv1 "k8s.io/api/rbac/v1"
+	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/api/resource"
 	metav1 "k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/apis/meta/v1"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/types"
 	"k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/util/intstr"
@@ -102,7 +102,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, route)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should reconcile the Route when modified", func() {
@@ -120,7 +120,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				}
 				return route.Spec.To.Name, nil
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Equal(Name))
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should recreate the Route when deleted", func() {
@@ -133,7 +133,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, route)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should delete the Openshift Route", func() {
@@ -498,7 +498,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name + "-ctrl-np", Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, notebookNetworkPolicy)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)))
 
 			By("By checking that the controller has created Network policy to allow all requests on OAuth port")
 			Eventually(func() error {
@@ -506,7 +506,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
 			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)).
-				To(BeTrue(), "Expected :%v\n, Got: %v", format.Object(expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, 1), format.Object(notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, 1))
+				To(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should reconcile the Network policies when modified", func() {
@@ -524,7 +524,8 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				}
 				return string(notebookNetworkPolicy.Spec.PolicyTypes[0]), nil
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Equal("Ingress"))
-			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)).Should(
+				BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebookNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookNetworkPolicy)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should recreate the Network Policy when deleted", func() {
@@ -537,7 +538,8 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name + "-oauth-np", Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookNetworkPolicies(*notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)).Should(
+				BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebookOAuthNetworkPolicy, expectedNotebookOAuthNetworkPolicy)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should delete the Network Policies", func() {
@@ -670,7 +672,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 			time.Sleep(interval)
 
 			By("By checking that the webhook has injected the sidecar container")
-			Expect(CompareNotebooks(*notebook, expectedNotebook)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebooks(*notebook, expectedNotebook)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebook, expectedNotebook)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should remove the reconciliation lock annotation", func() {
@@ -683,7 +685,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 					return false
 				}
 				return CompareNotebooks(*notebook, expectedNotebook)
-			}, duration, interval).Should(BeTrue())
+			}, duration, interval).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebook, expectedNotebook)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should reconcile the Notebook when modified", func() {
@@ -699,7 +701,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, notebook)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebooks(*notebook, expectedNotebook)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebooks(*notebook, expectedNotebook)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*notebook, expectedNotebook)))
 		})
 
 		serviceAccount := &corev1.ServiceAccount{}
@@ -711,7 +713,8 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, serviceAccount)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookServiceAccounts(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookServiceAccounts(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)).Should(
+				BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should recreate the Service Account when deleted", func() {
@@ -724,7 +727,8 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, serviceAccount)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookServiceAccounts(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookServiceAccounts(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)).Should(
+				BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*serviceAccount, expectedServiceAccount)))
 		})
 
 		service := &corev1.Service{}
@@ -755,7 +759,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name + "-tls", Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, service)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookServices(*service, expectedService)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookServices(*service, expectedService)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*service, expectedService)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should recreate the Service when deleted", func() {
@@ -768,7 +772,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name + "-tls", Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, service)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookServices(*service, expectedService)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookServices(*service, expectedService)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*service, expectedService)))
 		})
 
 		secret := &corev1.Secret{}
@@ -831,7 +835,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, route)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should recreate the Route when deleted", func() {
@@ -844,7 +848,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				key := types.NamespacedName{Name: Name, Namespace: Namespace}
 				return cli.Get(ctx, key, route)
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Succeed())
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should reconcile the Route when modified", func() {
@@ -862,7 +866,7 @@ var _ = Describe("The Openshift Notebook controller", func() {
 				}
 				return route.Spec.To.Name, nil
 			}, duration, interval).Should(Equal(Name + "-tls"))
-			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrue())
+			Expect(CompareNotebookRoutes(*route, expectedRoute)).Should(BeTrueBecause(cmp.Diff(*route, expectedRoute)))
 		})
 
 		It("Should delete the OAuth proxy objects", func() {
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
index 16efc780537..a9c93337db4 100644
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/controllers/suite_test.go
@@ -18,7 +18,9 @@ import (
 	"context"
 	"crypto/tls"
 	"fmt"
+	"k8s.io/utils/ptr"
 	"net"
+	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"testing"
 	"time"
@@ -55,11 +57,14 @@ import (
 // +kubebuilder:docs-gen:collapse=Imports
 
 var (
-	cfg            *rest.Config
-	cli            client.Client
-	envTest        *envtest.Environment
+	cfg     *rest.Config
+	cli     client.Client
+	envTest *envtest.Environment
+
 	ctx            context.Context
 	cancel         context.CancelFunc
+	managerStopped = make(chan struct{})
+
 	testNamespaces = []string{}
 )
 
@@ -74,7 +79,7 @@ func TestAPIs(t *testing.T) {
 }
 
 var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
-	ctx, cancel = context.WithCancel(context.TODO())
+	ctx, cancel = context.WithCancel(context.Background())
 
 	// Initialize logger
 	opts := zap.Options{
@@ -83,10 +88,13 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 	}
 	logf.SetLogger(zap.New(zap.WriteTo(GinkgoWriter), zap.UseFlagOptions(&opts)))
 
-	// Initiliaze test environment:
+	// Initialize test environment:
 	// https://pkg.go.dev/sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime/pkg/envtest#Environment.Start
 	By("Bootstrapping test environment")
 	envTest = &envtest.Environment{
+		ControlPlane: envtest.ControlPlane{
+			APIServer: &envtest.APIServer{},
+		},
 		CRDInstallOptions: envtest.CRDInstallOptions{
 			Paths:              []string{filepath.Join("..", "config", "crd", "external")},
 			ErrorIfPathMissing: true,
@@ -97,11 +105,39 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 			IgnoreErrorIfPathMissing: false,
 		},
 	}
+	if auditLogPath, found := os.LookupEnv("DEBUG_WRITE_AUDITLOG"); found {
+		envTest.ControlPlane.APIServer.Configure().
+			// https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/debug/debug-cluster/audit/#log-backend
+			Append("audit-log-maxage", "1").
+			Append("audit-log-maxbackup", "5").
+			Append("audit-log-maxsize", "100"). // in MiB
+			Append("audit-log-format", "json").
+			Append("audit-policy-file", filepath.Join("..", "envtest-audit-policy.yaml")).
+			Append("audit-log-path", auditLogPath)
+		GinkgoT().Logf("DEBUG_WRITE_AUDITLOG is set, writing `envtest-audit-policy.yaml` auditlog to %s", auditLogPath)
+	} else {
+		GinkgoT().Logf("DEBUG_WRITE_AUDITLOG environment variable was not provided")
+	}
 
-	cfg, err := envTest.Start()
+	var err error
+	cfg, err = envTest.Start()
 	Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
 	Expect(cfg).NotTo(BeNil())
 
+	if kubeconfigPath, found := os.LookupEnv("DEBUG_WRITE_KUBECONFIG"); found {
+		// https://github.com/rancher/fleet/blob/main/integrationtests/utils/kubeconfig.go
+		user := envtest.User{Name: "MasterOfTheSystems", Groups: []string{"system:masters"}}
+		authedUser, err := envTest.ControlPlane.AddUser(user, nil)
+		Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
+		config, err := authedUser.KubeConfig()
+		Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
+		err = os.WriteFile(kubeconfigPath, config, 0600)
+		Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
+		GinkgoT().Logf("DEBUG_WRITE_KUBECONFIG is set, writing system:masters' Kubeconfig to %s", kubeconfigPath)
+	} else {
+		GinkgoT().Logf("DEBUG_WRITE_KUBECONFIG environment variable was not provided")
+	}
+
 	// Register API objects
 	scheme := runtime.NewScheme()
 	utilruntime.Must(clientgoscheme.AddToScheme(scheme))
@@ -110,7 +146,7 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 	utilruntime.Must(netv1.AddToScheme(scheme))
 	// +kubebuilder:scaffold:scheme
 
-	// Initiliaze Kubernetes client
+	// Initialize Kubernetes client
 	cli, err = client.New(cfg, client.Options{Scheme: scheme})
 	Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
 	Expect(cli).NotTo(BeNil())
@@ -126,6 +162,12 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 			Port:    webhookInstallOptions.LocalServingPort,
 			CertDir: webhookInstallOptions.LocalServingCertDir,
 		}),
+		// Issue#429: waiting in tests only wastes time and prints pointless context-cancelled errors
+		GracefulShutdownTimeout: ptr.To(time.Duration(0)),
+		// pass in test context because why not
+		BaseContext: func() context.Context {
+			return ctx
+		},
 	})
 	Expect(err).NotTo(HaveOccurred())
 
@@ -156,6 +198,7 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 	go func() {
 		defer GinkgoRecover()
 		err = mgr.Start(ctx)
+		managerStopped <- struct{}{}
 		Expect(err).ToNot(HaveOccurred(), "Failed to run manager")
 	}()
 
@@ -172,7 +215,6 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 	}).Should(Succeed())
 
 	// Verify kubernetes client is working
-	cli = mgr.GetClient()
 	Expect(cli).ToNot(BeNil())
 
 	for _, namespace := range testNamespaces {
@@ -187,7 +229,10 @@ var _ = BeforeSuite(func() {
 }, 60)
 
 var _ = AfterSuite(func() {
+	By("Stopping the manager")
 	cancel()
+	<-managerStopped // Issue#429: waiting to avoid shutdown errors being logged
+
 	By("Tearing down the test environment")
 	// TODO: Stop cert controller-runtime.certwatcher before manager
 	err := envTest.Stop()
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/envtest-audit-policy.yaml b/components/odh-notebook-controller/envtest-audit-policy.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..70b8551ddf4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/envtest-audit-policy.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+# https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/debug/debug-cluster/audit/#audit-policy
+# This is extremely verbose kube-apiserver logging that may be enabled for debugging of envtest-based tests
+---
+apiVersion: audit.k8s.io/v1
+kind: Policy
+rules:
+  # Log all requests in `developer` namespace at the RequestResponse (maximum verbosity) level.
+  - level: RequestResponse
+    namespaces: ["developer"]
+
+# Use jq to analyze the log file this produces. For example:
+
+# jq 'select((.objectRef.apiGroup == "dscinitialization.opendatahub.io"
+#              or .objectRef.apiGroup == "datasciencecluster.opendatahub.io")
+#            and .user.username != "system:serviceaccount:redhat-ods-operator:redhat-ods-operator-controller-manager"
+#            and .verb != "get" and .verb != "watch" and .verb != "list")' < /tmp/kube-apiserver-audit.log
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk b/components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fcd1af1d6bc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/makefile-vars.mk
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+KF_TAG ?= main
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test-service-mesh.sh b/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test-service-mesh.sh
index db4c6d0eb4a..1e431a8a53b 100755
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test-service-mesh.sh
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test-service-mesh.sh
@@ -1,23 +1,44 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 
+# https://vaneyckt.io/posts/safer_bash_scripts_with_set_euxo_pipefail/
+set -Eeuxo pipefail
+
+echo "Running the ${0} setup"
+
 TEST_NAMESPACE="odh-notebook-controller-system"
 
-# setup and deploy the controller
-oc new-project $TEST_NAMESPACE -n $TEST_NAMESPACE --skip-config-write
+# Following variables are optional - if not set, the default values in relevant params.env
+# will be used for both images. As such, if you want to run tests against your custom changes,
+# be sure to perform a docker build and set these variables accordingly!
+ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE="${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE:-}"
+KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER="${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER:-}"
 
-IFS=':' read -r -a CTRL_IMG <<< "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"
-export IMG="${CTRL_IMG[0]}"
-export TAG="${CTRL_IMG[1]}"
-IFS=':' read -r -a KF_NBC_IMG <<< "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"
-export KF_IMG="${KF_NBC_IMG[0]}"
-export KF_TAG="${KF_NBC_IMG[1]}"
-export K8S_NAMESPACE=$TEST_NAMESPACE
 
-make deploy-service-mesh deploy-with-mesh
+if test -n "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"; then
+    IFS=':' read -r -a CTRL_IMG <<< "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"
+    export IMG="${CTRL_IMG[0]}"
+    export TAG="${CTRL_IMG[1]}"
+fi
 
-# run e2e tests
-make e2e-test-service-mesh
+if test -n "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"; then
+    IFS=':' read -r -a KF_NBC_IMG <<< "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"
+    export KF_IMG="${KF_NBC_IMG[0]}"
+    export KF_TAG="${KF_NBC_IMG[1]}"
+fi
+
+export K8S_NAMESPACE="${TEST_NAMESPACE}"
 
-# cleanup deployment
-make undeploy-with-mesh undeploy-service-mesh
-oc delete project $TEST_NAMESPACE -n $TEST_NAMESPACE
+# From now on we want to be sure that undeploy and testing project deletion are called
+
+function cleanup() {
+    echo "Performing deployment cleanup of the ${0}"
+    make undeploy-with-mesh undeploy-service-mesh && oc delete project "${TEST_NAMESPACE}"
+}
+trap cleanup EXIT
+
+# setup and deploy the controller
+oc new-project "${TEST_NAMESPACE}" --skip-config-write
+
+# deploy and run e2e tests
+make deploy-service-mesh deploy-with-mesh
+make e2e-test-service-mesh
diff --git a/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test.sh b/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test.sh
index bf6c6a42e0e..0dc75e400ba 100755
--- a/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test.sh
+++ b/components/odh-notebook-controller/run-e2e-test.sh
@@ -1,23 +1,44 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 
+# https://vaneyckt.io/posts/safer_bash_scripts_with_set_euxo_pipefail/
+set -Eeuxo pipefail
+
+echo "Running the ${0} setup"
+
 TEST_NAMESPACE="odh-notebook-controller-system"
 
-# setup and deploy the controller
-oc new-project $TEST_NAMESPACE -n $TEST_NAMESPACE --skip-config-write
+# Following variables are optional - if not set, the default values in relevant params.env
+# will be used for both images. As such, if you want to run tests against your custom changes,
+# be sure to perform a docker build and set these variables accordingly!
+ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE="${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE:-}"
+KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER="${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER:-}"
 
-IFS=':' read -r -a CTRL_IMG <<< "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"
-export IMG="${CTRL_IMG[0]}"
-export TAG="${CTRL_IMG[1]}"
-IFS=':' read -r -a KF_NBC_IMG <<< "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"
-export KF_IMG="${KF_NBC_IMG[0]}"
-export KF_TAG="${KF_NBC_IMG[1]}"
-export K8S_NAMESPACE=$TEST_NAMESPACE
 
-make deploy
+if test -n "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"; then
+    IFS=':' read -r -a CTRL_IMG <<< "${ODH_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER_IMAGE}"
+    export IMG="${CTRL_IMG[0]}"
+    export TAG="${CTRL_IMG[1]}"
+fi
 
-# run e2e tests
-make e2e-test
+if test -n "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"; then
+    IFS=':' read -r -a KF_NBC_IMG <<< "${KF_NOTEBOOK_CONTROLLER}"
+    export KF_IMG="${KF_NBC_IMG[0]}"
+    export KF_TAG="${KF_NBC_IMG[1]}"
+fi
+
+export K8S_NAMESPACE="${TEST_NAMESPACE}"
 
-# cleanup deployment
-make undeploy
-oc delete project $TEST_NAMESPACE -n $TEST_NAMESPACE
+# From now on we want to be sure that undeploy and testing project deletion are called
+
+function cleanup() {
+    echo "Performing deployment cleanup of the ${0}"
+    make undeploy && oc delete project "${TEST_NAMESPACE}"
+}
+trap cleanup EXIT
+
+# setup and deploy the controller
+oc new-project "${TEST_NAMESPACE}"
+
+# deploy and run e2e tests
+make deploy
+make e2e-test