diff --git a/command/agent/testagent.go b/command/agent/testagent.go
index f911142fde..789bfa9c22 100644
--- a/command/agent/testagent.go
+++ b/command/agent/testagent.go
@@ -25,7 +25,8 @@ func init() {
 	rand.Seed(time.Now().UnixNano()) // seed random number generator
 }
 
-var TempDir = "/tmp"
+// TempDir defines the base dir for temporary directories.
+var TempDir = os.TempDir()
 
 // TestAgent encapsulates an Agent with a default configuration and
 // startup procedure suitable for testing. It panics if there are errors