nick-fields/retry

Retry a flaky command with a timeout, instead of re-running the whole job.

Community actionCategory: Testing & CoverageLatest v4View on GitHub

What it does

nick-fields/retry wraps a shell command with retry logic: it enforces a per-attempt timeout, waits between attempts, and only fails the step after max_attempts is exhausted.

It can retry on any failure, only on timeout, only on error, or only on a specific exit code, and can run a cleanup command between attempts.

Usage

workflow (.yml)

steps:
  - uses: actions/checkout@v4
  - uses: nick-fields/retry@v4
    with:
      timeout_minutes: 10
      max_attempts: 3
      command: npm run test:e2e

Inputs

Input	Description	Default	Required
`command`	The command to run.	-	Yes
`max_attempts`	Number of attempts to make before failing the step.	`3`	Yes
`timeout_minutes`	Minutes to wait before an attempt times out. Specify either minutes or seconds, not both.	-	No
`timeout_seconds`	Seconds to wait before an attempt times out. Specify either minutes or seconds, not both.	-	No
`retry_wait_seconds`	Seconds to wait before the next retry.	`10`	No
`retry_on`	Event to retry on: any, timeout, or error.	-	No
`on_retry_command`	Command to run before a retry (such as a cleanup script).	-	No

Outputs

Output	Description
`total_attempts`	The final number of attempts made.
`exit_code`	The final exit code returned by the command.
`exit_error`	The final error returned by the command.

Notes

A timeout is mandatory: set exactly one of timeout_minutes or timeout_seconds, or the action fails before running the command.

Retrying masks flakiness rather than fixing it, pair it with a test reporter so retried failures stay visible.

Common errors

Must specify either timeout_minutes or timeout_seconds inputs means neither timeout was set. One of the two is required.
Final attempt failed means the command failed on every attempt; the step then exits with the command's exit code. Check the log of the last attempt, not the first.

Security and pinning

The command runs with the job's full environment and token. Never interpolate untrusted input (PR titles, issue bodies) into it, and pin the action to a commit SHA.

Alternatives and related

cypress-io/github-actionRun Cypress end-to-end and component tests with dependency install and caching handled for you. dorny/test-reporterTurn test result files (JUnit, TRX, JSON) into a GitHub check run with annotations.

Frequently asked questions

Can this retry a whole job or another action?

No. It retries a single shell command. To retry a uses: step or an entire job you need to re-run the job or restructure the logic into a command this action can wrap.