diff --git a/fail2ban/tests/clientreadertestcase.py b/fail2ban/tests/clientreadertestcase.py
index ee362e3d..dd98374c 100644
--- a/fail2ban/tests/clientreadertestcase.py
+++ b/fail2ban/tests/clientreadertestcase.py
@@ -36,7 +36,7 @@ from ..client.jailsreader import JailsReader
 from ..client.actionreader import ActionReader
 from ..client.configurator import Configurator
 from ..version import version
-from .utils import LogCaptureTestCase
+from .utils import LogCaptureTestCase, with_tmpdir
 
 TEST_FILES_DIR = os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), "files")
 
@@ -94,9 +94,8 @@ option = %s
 		if not os.access(f, os.R_OK):
 			self.assertFalse(self.c.read('d'))	# should not be readable BUT present
 		else:
-			# SkipTest introduced only in 2.7 thus can't yet use generally
-			# raise unittest.SkipTest("Skipping on %s -- access rights are not enforced" % platform)
-			pass
+			import platform
+			raise unittest.SkipTest("Skipping on %s -- access rights are not enforced" % platform.platform())
 
 	def testOptionalDotDDir(self):
 		self.assertFalse(self.c.read('c'))	# nothing is there yet
@@ -281,8 +280,8 @@ class JailReaderTest(LogCaptureTestCase):
 		self.assertEqual(eval(act[2][5]).get('agent', '<wrong>'), useragent)
 		self.assertEqual(act[3], ['set', 'blocklisttest', 'action', 'mynetwatchman', 'agent', useragent])
 
-	def testGlob(self):
-		d = tempfile.mkdtemp(prefix="f2b-temp")
+	@with_tmpdir
+	def testGlob(self, d):
 		# Generate few files
 		# regular file
 		f1 = os.path.join(d, 'f1')
@@ -297,9 +296,6 @@ class JailReaderTest(LogCaptureTestCase):
 		self.assertEqual(JailReader._glob(f2), [])
 		self.assertLogged('File %s is a dangling link, thus cannot be monitored' % f2)
 		self.assertEqual(JailReader._glob(os.path.join(d, 'nonexisting')), [])
-		os.remove(f1)
-		os.remove(f2)
-		os.rmdir(d)
 
 		
 class FilterReaderTest(unittest.TestCase):
@@ -433,10 +429,10 @@ class JailsReaderTestCache(LogCaptureTestCase):
 				cnt += 1
 		return cnt
 
-	def testTestJailConfCache(self):
+	@with_tmpdir
+	def testTestJailConfCache(self, basedir):
 		saved_ll = configparserinc.logLevel
 		configparserinc.logLevel = logging.DEBUG
-		basedir = tempfile.mkdtemp("fail2ban_conf")
 		try:
 			shutil.rmtree(basedir)
 			shutil.copytree(CONFIG_DIR, basedir)
@@ -468,7 +464,6 @@ class JailsReaderTestCache(LogCaptureTestCase):
 			cnt = self._getLoggedReadCount(r'action\.d/iptables-common\.conf')
 			self.assertTrue(cnt == 1, "Unexpected count by reading of action files, cnt = %s" % cnt)
 		finally:
-			shutil.rmtree(basedir)
 			configparserinc.logLevel = saved_ll
 
 
@@ -718,8 +713,8 @@ class JailsReaderTest(LogCaptureTestCase):
 			self.assertEqual(configurator._Configurator__jails.getBaseDir(), '/tmp')
 			self.assertEqual(configurator.getBaseDir(), CONFIG_DIR)
 
-	def testMultipleSameAction(self):
-		basedir = tempfile.mkdtemp("fail2ban_conf")
+	@with_tmpdir
+	def testMultipleSameAction(self, basedir):
 		os.mkdir(os.path.join(basedir, "filter.d"))
 		os.mkdir(os.path.join(basedir, "action.d"))
 		open(os.path.join(basedir, "action.d", "testaction1.conf"), 'w').close()
@@ -748,4 +743,33 @@ filter = testfilter1
 		# Python actions should not be passed `actname`
 		self.assertEqual(add_actions[-1][-1], "{}")
 
-		shutil.rmtree(basedir)
+	def testLogPathFileFilterBackend(self):
+		self.assertRaisesRegexp(ValueError, r"Have not found any log file for .* jail", 
+			self._testLogPath, backend='polling')
+
+	def testLogPathSystemdBackend(self):
+		try: # pragma: systemd no cover
+			from ..server.filtersystemd import FilterSystemd
+		except Exception, e: # pragma: no cover
+			raise unittest.SkipTest("systemd python interface not available")
+		self._testLogPath(backend='systemd')
+		self._testLogPath(backend='systemd[journalflags=2]')
+	
+	@with_tmpdir
+	def _testLogPath(self, basedir, backend):
+		jailfd = open(os.path.join(basedir, "jail.conf"), 'w')
+		jailfd.write("""
+[testjail1]
+enabled = true
+backend = %s
+logpath = %s/not/exist.log
+          /this/path/should/not/exist.log
+action = 
+filter = 
+failregex = test <HOST>
+""" % (backend, basedir))
+		jailfd.close()
+		jails = JailsReader(basedir=basedir)
+		self.assertTrue(jails.read())
+		self.assertTrue(jails.getOptions())
+		jails.convert()
diff --git a/fail2ban/tests/databasetestcase.py b/fail2ban/tests/databasetestcase.py
index e934ba45..2b599f61 100644
--- a/fail2ban/tests/databasetestcase.py
+++ b/fail2ban/tests/databasetestcase.py
@@ -48,12 +48,10 @@ class DatabaseTest(LogCaptureTestCase):
 	def setUp(self):
 		"""Call before every test case."""
 		super(DatabaseTest, self).setUp()
-		if Fail2BanDb is None and sys.version_info >= (2,7): # pragma: no cover
+		if Fail2BanDb is None: # pragma: no cover
 			raise unittest.SkipTest(
 				"Unable to import fail2ban database module as sqlite is not "
 				"available.")
-		elif Fail2BanDb is None:
-			return
 		_, self.dbFilename = tempfile.mkstemp(".db", "fail2ban_")
 		self.db = Fail2BanDb(self.dbFilename)
 
diff --git a/fail2ban/tests/filtertestcase.py b/fail2ban/tests/filtertestcase.py
index 6194243b..4f9d8a06 100644
--- a/fail2ban/tests/filtertestcase.py
+++ b/fail2ban/tests/filtertestcase.py
@@ -734,7 +734,7 @@ def get_monitor_failures_journal_testcase(Filter_): # pragma: systemd no cover
 				pass
 
 		def testJournalFlagsArg(self):
-			self._initFilter(journalflags=0) # journal.RUNTIME_ONLY
+			self._initFilter(journalflags=2) # journal.RUNTIME_ONLY
 
 		def __str__(self):
 			return "MonitorJournalFailures%s(%s)" \
diff --git a/fail2ban/tests/servertestcase.py b/fail2ban/tests/servertestcase.py
index 21e2d784..99502794 100644
--- a/fail2ban/tests/servertestcase.py
+++ b/fail2ban/tests/servertestcase.py
@@ -688,10 +688,7 @@ class Transmitter(TransmitterBase):
 
 	def testJournalMatch(self):
 		if not filtersystemd: # pragma: no cover
-			if sys.version_info >= (2, 7):
-				raise unittest.SkipTest(
-					"systemd python interface not available")
-			return
+			raise unittest.SkipTest("systemd python interface not available")
 		jailName = "TestJail2"
 		self.server.addJail(jailName, "systemd")
 		values = [
@@ -791,10 +788,8 @@ class TransmitterLogging(TransmitterBase):
 		self.setGetTest("logtarget", "STDERR")
 
 	def testLogTargetSYSLOG(self):
-		if not os.path.exists("/dev/log") and sys.version_info >= (2, 7):
+		if not os.path.exists("/dev/log"):
 			raise unittest.SkipTest("'/dev/log' not present")
-		elif not os.path.exists("/dev/log"):
-			return
 		self.assertTrue(self.server.getSyslogSocket(), "auto")
 		self.setGetTest("logtarget", "SYSLOG")
 		self.assertTrue(self.server.getSyslogSocket(), "/dev/log")
diff --git a/fail2ban/tests/utils.py b/fail2ban/tests/utils.py
index e091c935..05d9d5ed 100644
--- a/fail2ban/tests/utils.py
+++ b/fail2ban/tests/utils.py
@@ -26,10 +26,13 @@ import itertools
 import logging
 import os
 import re
+import tempfile
+import shutil
 import sys
 import time
 import unittest
 from StringIO import StringIO
+from functools import wraps
 
 from ..server.mytime import MyTime
 from ..helpers import getLogger
@@ -46,6 +49,40 @@ if not CONFIG_DIR:
 		CONFIG_DIR = '/etc/fail2ban'
 
 
+def with_tmpdir(f):
+	"""Helper decorator to create a temporary directory
+
+	Directory gets removed after function returns, regardless
+	if exception was thrown of not
+	"""
+	@wraps(f)
+	def wrapper(self, *args, **kwargs):
+		tmp = tempfile.mkdtemp(prefix="f2b-temp")
+		try:
+			return f(self, tmp, *args, **kwargs)
+		finally:
+			# clean up
+			shutil.rmtree(tmp)
+	return wrapper
+
+
+# backwards compatibility to python 2.6:
+if not hasattr(unittest, 'SkipTest'): # pragma: no cover
+	class SkipTest(Exception):
+		pass
+	unittest.SkipTest = SkipTest
+	_org_AddError = unittest._TextTestResult.addError
+	def addError(self, test, err):
+		if err[0] is SkipTest: 
+			if self.showAll:
+				self.stream.writeln(str(err[1]))
+			elif self.dots:
+				self.stream.write('s')
+				self.stream.flush()
+			return
+		_org_AddError(self, test, err)
+	unittest._TextTestResult.addError = addError
+
 def mtimesleep():
 	# no sleep now should be necessary since polling tracks now not only
 	# mtime but also ino and size
@@ -218,8 +255,8 @@ if not hasattr(unittest.TestCase, 'assertRaisesRegexp'):
 		try:
 			fun(*args, **kwargs)
 		except exccls as e:
-			if re.search(regexp, e.message) is None:
-				self.fail('\"%s\" does not match \"%s\"' % (regexp, e.message))
+			if re.search(regexp, str(e)) is None:
+				self.fail('\"%s\" does not match \"%s\"' % (regexp, e))
 		else:
 			self.fail('%s not raised' % getattr(exccls, '__name__'))
 	unittest.TestCase.assertRaisesRegexp = assertRaisesRegexp