fix(core): add retry logic for specific fetch errors #11066

SandyTao520 · Oct 13, 2025

TLDR

Adds configuration and logic to retry API calls when a specific "fetch failed" error occurs, addressing transient network issues.

Dive Deeper

Introduces a --retry-fetch-errors CLI flag (and corresponding config) that, when enabled, allows geminiChat to retry requests that fail with "exception TypeError: fetch failed sending request". This is handled within the existing retryWithBackoff utility in @google/gemini-cli-core.

Reviewer Test Plan

Run the CLI with --retry-fetch-errors in an environment with unstable network connectivity or mock network failures to verify retries occur (disconnect network or set GOOGLE_GEMINI_BASE_URL=http://localhost:9999).

Testing Matrix

	🍏	🪟	🐧
npm run	✅	❓	❓
npx	✅	❓	❓
Docker	❓	❓	❓
Podman	❓	-	-
Seatbelt	❓	-	-

Linked issues / bugs

gemini-code-assist · Oct 13, 2025

Summary of Changes

Hello @SandyTao520, I'm Gemini Code Assist¹! I'm currently reviewing this pull request and will post my feedback shortly. In the meantime, here's a summary to help you and other reviewers quickly get up to speed!

This pull request significantly enhances the resilience of the Gemini CLI by implementing a configurable retry mechanism for specific network-related fetch errors. By introducing a new CLI flag and integrating the logic into the core retry utility, the CLI can now gracefully handle transient network connectivity issues, leading to a more stable and reliable user experience during API interactions.

Highlights

New CLI Flag for Retries: Introduced a new --retry-fetch-errors CLI flag that, when enabled, allows the Gemini CLI to automatically retry API calls that fail due to specific 'exception TypeError: fetch failed sending request' errors.
Enhanced Retry Logic: The existing retryWithBackoff utility has been updated to incorporate the new retryFetchErrors configuration, specifically targeting and retrying transient network issues indicated by the 'fetch failed' error message.
Configuration Integration: The retryFetchErrors option has been integrated into both the CLI's CliArgs and the core library's Config class, ensuring consistent handling and access across the application.
Comprehensive Testing: New unit tests have been added to geminiChat.test.ts to verify that the retry mechanism correctly functions when retryFetchErrors is enabled and a 'fetch failed' error occurs, ensuring robustness.

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Code Review

This pull request introduces retry logic for specific 'fetch failed' errors, controlled by a new --retry-fetch-errors flag. The implementation correctly threads the new configuration from the CLI down to the retryWithBackoff utility. However, there are two high-severity issues that should be addressed. First, the retry condition relies on a hardcoded error message string, which is brittle and could lead to silent failures if the error format changes. Second, the new test case intended to validate this feature mocks the retryWithBackoff function, meaning the new retry logic is not actually being tested. The test should be updated to test the real implementation or a new unit test should be added.

packages/core/src/core/geminiChat.test.ts

packages/core/src/utils/retry.ts

github-actions · Oct 13, 2025

Size Change: +926 B (+0.01%)

Total Size: 17.8 MB

ℹ️ View Unchanged

Filename	Size	Change
`./bundle/gemini.js`	17.8 MB	+926 B (+0.01%)
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-permissive-closed.sb`	1.03 kB	0 B
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-permissive-open.sb`	830 B	0 B
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-permissive-proxied.sb`	1.31 kB	0 B
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-restrictive-closed.sb`	3.29 kB	0 B
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-restrictive-open.sb`	3.36 kB	0 B
`./bundle/sandbox-macos-restrictive-proxied.sb`	3.56 kB	0 B

_{compressed-size-action}

packages/cli/src/config/config.ts

packages/core/src/core/geminiChat.test.ts

jacob314 · Oct 14, 2025

packages/core/src/utils/retry.test.ts

  });

+  describe('Fetch error retries', () => {
+    const fetchErrorMsg = 'exception TypeError: fetch failed sending request';


Can we specify the fetch error with a Type rather than a String?

The SDK throws away error details: https://github.com/googleapis/js-genai/blob/58133cdbc2971c09c5ba7358da82b18b25e160eb/src/_api_client.ts#L600

Thanks for the context, SandyTao520. Given that the SDK discards error details, using error.message.includes() for the specific fetch error message is a pragmatic and reasonable approach to handle these transient network issues. If the SDK evolves to expose more granular error types in the future, we can revisit this to use a more robust type-based check. The linked issue also provides good background on the problem.

packages/core/src/utils/retry.ts

jacob314

Approved after these comments are addressed.

SandyTao520 · Oct 14, 2025

I've addressed the comments by moving the retry-fetch-errors from a flag to a setting, and updating the test to use the actual retryWithBackoff implementation.

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fix(core): add retry logic for specific fetch errors

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SandyTao520 requested a review from a team as a code owner October 13, 2025 21:38

gemini-code-assist bot reviewed Oct 13, 2025

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SandyTao520 added 3 commits October 13, 2025 16:22

fix

7e14999

add test

3ea7dc3

Merge branch 'main' into st/fix/retry-fetch-errors

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jacob314 reviewed Oct 14, 2025

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jacob314 reviewed Oct 14, 2025

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refactor: move retry-fetch-errors from flag to setting, improve test

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Merge remote-tracking branch 'origin/main' into st/fix/retry-fetch-er…

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