retry vs promise-retry vs exponential-backoff vs async-retry vs backoff
Retry Mechanisms in JavaScript Comparison
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What's Retry Mechanisms in JavaScript?

Retry mechanisms in JavaScript are techniques used to automatically attempt a failed operation multiple times before giving up. This is particularly useful for handling transient errors, such as network failures or temporary unavailability of a service. By implementing a retry strategy, developers can improve the resilience of their applications, reduce the likelihood of failures, and enhance the user experience. These mechanisms can be customized with parameters like the number of retries, delay between attempts, and backoff strategies to control how retries are performed. The following libraries provide various implementations of retry mechanisms in JavaScript, each with its own features and use cases.

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retry42,330,9141,247-194 years agoMIT
promise-retry16,078,728317-115 years agoMIT
exponential-backoff12,458,96637055.2 kB62 months agoApache-2.0
async-retry9,697,5741,871-304 years agoMIT
backoff712,113337-119 years agoMIT
Feature Comparison: retry vs promise-retry vs exponential-backoff vs async-retry vs backoff

Backoff Strategies

  • retry:

    retry supports various backoff strategies, including exponential and linear, and allows for extensive customization of the backoff behavior through options.

  • promise-retry:

    promise-retry supports customizable delays between retries, but does not have built-in support for multiple backoff strategies. You can implement your own logic for backoff if needed.

  • exponential-backoff:

    exponential-backoff focuses solely on exponential backoff, providing a simple and efficient implementation for scenarios where this strategy is sufficient.

  • async-retry:

    async-retry allows you to define custom backoff strategies, including exponential backoff, but does not provide built-in support for multiple backoff types.

  • backoff:

    backoff provides a wide range of backoff strategies, including exponential, linear, and custom backoff, with the ability to easily switch between them and configure their behavior.

Error Handling

  • retry:

    retry allows for custom error handling and provides options to specify which errors should trigger a retry. You can implement logic to handle specific error types.

  • promise-retry:

    promise-retry allows you to handle errors and customize the retry logic based on the error. You can provide a function to determine whether to retry based on the error type.

  • exponential-backoff:

    exponential-backoff provides basic error handling, but it is up to the developer to implement custom logic for handling errors and determining when to stop retrying.

  • async-retry:

    async-retry allows you to handle errors and decide whether to retry based on the error type or message. You can implement custom logic to determine when to stop retrying.

  • backoff:

    backoff provides event hooks for error handling, allowing you to respond to errors, retries, and completion events. This makes it easy to integrate custom error handling logic.

Promise Support

  • retry:

    retry supports both callback and promise-based APIs, allowing for flexibility in how you implement retry logic in your code.

  • promise-retry:

    promise-retry is specifically designed for promise-based operations, making it easy to integrate into async functions and handle retries with promises.

  • exponential-backoff:

    exponential-backoff is designed for use with promises, making it suitable for retrying asynchronous operations that return promises.

  • async-retry:

    async-retry is designed for asynchronous operations and works seamlessly with promises. It supports both async/await and promise-based APIs.

  • backoff:

    backoff is primarily focused on backoff strategies and does not provide built-in support for promises. However, it can be integrated with promise-based code.

Customization

  • retry:

    retry provides extensive customization options for retries, delays, and backoff strategies. It is versatile and can be configured to handle a wide range of retry scenarios.

  • promise-retry:

    promise-retry allows for customization of the retry count, delay, and error handling. It is straightforward to use and configure, making it suitable for most use cases.

  • exponential-backoff:

    exponential-backoff is simple and lightweight, but it has limited customization options. It is best suited for scenarios where a straightforward exponential backoff implementation is needed.

  • async-retry:

    async-retry offers a high degree of customization, allowing you to define the number of retries, backoff strategy, and error handling logic. It is flexible and easy to configure.

  • backoff:

    backoff is highly customizable, allowing you to configure backoff strategies, error handling, and event listeners. It provides a lot of flexibility for complex use cases.

Ease of Use: Code Examples

  • retry:

    Using retry for a callback-based operation

    const retry = require('retry');

const operation = retry.operation({
  retries: 5,
  factor: 2,
  minTimeout: 1000,
  maxTimeout: 5000,
});

operation.attempt((currentAttempt) => {
  console.log(`Attempt ${currentAttempt}`);
  // Simulate a failing operation
  const error = new Error('Operation failed');
  if (operation.retry(error)) {
    console.log(`Retrying...`);
  } else {
    console.error(`Failed after ${operation.attempts()} attempts`);
  }
});
  • promise-retry:

    Retrying a promise-based function with promise-retry

    const promiseRetry = require('promise-retry');

function unreliableApiCall(retry, attempt) {
  console.log(`Attempt ${attempt}`);
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const success = Math.random() > 0.5; // 50% chance of failure
    setTimeout(() => (success ? resolve('Data') : reject(new Error('Failed'))), 1000);
  });
}

promiseRetry((retry) => {
  return unreliableApiCall(retry);
}, {
  retries: 5,
  minTimeout: 1000,
  maxTimeout: 5000,
}).then(console.log).catch(console.error);
  • exponential-backoff:

    Exponential backoff example

    const exponentialBackoff = require('exponential-backoff');

function unreliableFunction() {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const success = Math.random() > 0.7; // 30% chance of failure
    setTimeout(() => (success ? resolve('Success!') : reject(new Error('Failed'))), 1000);
  });
}

const backoff = exponentialBackoff.backoff({
  initialDelay: 1000,
  maxDelay: 16000,
  multiplier: 2,
});

backoff.retry(unreliableFunction)
  .then(result => console.log(result))
  .catch(error => console.error(error));
  • async-retry:

    Retrying an asynchronous operation with async-retry

    const retry = require('async-retry');

async function fetchData() {
  // Simulate a function that may fail
  throw new Error('Network error');
}

async function main() {
  try {
    const result = await retry(fetchData, {
      retries: 3,
      factor: 2,
      minTimeout: 1000,
      maxTimeout: 5000,
    });
    console.log('Data fetched:', result);
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Failed to fetch data:', error);
  }
}

main();
  • backoff:

    Using backoff for exponential backoff

    const backoff = require('backoff');

const operation = backoff.call(function (callback) {
  // Simulate a failing operation
  console.log('Attempting operation...');
  callback(new Error('Operation failed'));
});

operation.failAfter(5); // Fail after 5 attempts
operation.on('backoff', function (number, delay) {
  console.log(`Backoff #${number} for ${delay}ms`);
});
operation.on('fail', function () {
  console.log('Operation failed after multiple attempts.');
});
operation.start();
How to Choose: retry vs promise-retry vs exponential-backoff vs async-retry vs backoff
  • retry:

    Choose retry if you need a versatile library that supports both callback and promise-based APIs for retrying operations, with extensive customization options for retries, delays, and backoff strategies.

  • promise-retry:

    Choose promise-retry if you want a straightforward way to retry promise-based operations with support for customizable retry counts and delays, while keeping the API simple and easy to use.

  • exponential-backoff:

    Choose exponential-backoff if you specifically need a lightweight implementation of exponential backoff for retrying operations, especially in scenarios like API calls or network requests.

  • async-retry:

    Choose async-retry if you need a simple and flexible solution for retrying asynchronous operations with customizable retry logic and backoff strategies.

  • backoff:

    Choose backoff if you require a comprehensive library that supports various backoff strategies, including exponential, linear, and custom backoff, with built-in event handling.

Similar Npm Packages to retry

retry is a versatile npm package designed to provide a simple way to retry asynchronous operations in JavaScript. This can be particularly useful in scenarios where network requests or other operations may fail intermittently and need to be retried. The retry package allows developers to specify the number of attempts, delay between attempts, and other customizable options, making it a flexible solution for handling transient errors.

While retry is a solid choice, there are several alternatives in the ecosystem that offer similar functionality with different features and approaches. Here are a few noteworthy alternatives:

  • async-retry is a lightweight library that provides a simple way to retry asynchronous functions with customizable options. It supports exponential backoff and allows you to define the number of attempts and the delay between retries. async-retry is particularly useful for handling promises and works seamlessly with async/await syntax, making it a great choice for modern JavaScript applications.

  • backoff is a library that implements exponential backoff algorithms for retrying operations. It provides a more sophisticated approach to retries, allowing developers to define custom backoff strategies. This can be particularly useful in scenarios where you want to avoid overwhelming a server with repeated requests in a short period. backoff is suitable for applications that require fine-tuned control over retry behavior.

  • promise-retry is another library focused on retrying promise-based functions. It offers a straightforward API for retrying failed promises with customizable options for the number of retries and delay. promise-retry is a good choice for developers who want a simple and effective way to handle retries in promise-based workflows.

  • retry-axios is a specialized library that integrates the retry functionality directly with the Axios HTTP client. It allows you to automatically retry failed HTTP requests made with Axios, providing a seamless experience for handling transient network errors. If you are already using Axios in your application, retry-axios can be a great addition to enhance its resilience.

  • retry-request is a library that extends the functionality of the popular request library by adding retry capabilities. It allows you to specify retry options for HTTP requests, making it easier to handle transient errors when making network calls. If you are using the request library, retry-request can provide a straightforward way to add retry logic to your requests.

To compare these packages and see how they stack up against each other, check out the following link: Comparing async-retry vs backoff vs promise-retry vs retry vs retry-axios vs retry-request.

Similar Npm Packages to promise-retry

promise-retry is a utility library that allows developers to retry asynchronous operations that return promises. This can be particularly useful for handling transient errors in network requests or other operations that may fail intermittently. By providing a simple API to specify the number of retries and the delay between attempts, promise-retry helps ensure that applications can gracefully handle failures and improve their resilience.

While promise-retry is a solid choice for retrying promises, there are several alternatives in the JavaScript ecosystem that offer similar functionality. Here are a few noteworthy options:

  • async-retry is a library designed for retrying asynchronous functions with a simple and flexible API. It allows developers to specify the number of retries, delay between attempts, and even customize the retry logic based on the type of error encountered. async-retry is particularly useful for scenarios where you need more control over the retry behavior and want to handle different types of errors differently.

  • p-retry is another lightweight library that focuses on retrying promises. It provides a straightforward API that allows you to specify the number of retries, delay, and a predicate function to determine if the operation should be retried based on the error. p-retry is a great choice for developers looking for a simple and effective way to implement retry logic in their applications without additional overhead.

  • promise-poller is a utility for polling asynchronous operations until they succeed or a specified timeout is reached. While it is not strictly a retry library, it can be used to repeatedly check the status of an operation at specified intervals. This is especially useful for scenarios where you need to wait for a resource to become available or for a condition to be met.

  • retry is a more general-purpose library for retrying functions, not limited to promises. It provides a flexible way to specify retry strategies, including exponential backoff and custom error handling. This library is suitable for developers who want a more comprehensive solution for retrying both synchronous and asynchronous operations.

  • retry-axios is an Axios interceptor that automatically retries failed HTTP requests. It integrates seamlessly with Axios, allowing developers to specify retry logic directly in their HTTP client configuration. If you are using Axios for making HTTP requests and want built-in retry functionality, retry-axios is an excellent choice.

To see how promise-retry compares with async-retry, p-retry, promise-poller, retry, and retry-axios, check out the comparison: Comparing async-retry vs p-retry vs promise-poller vs promise-retry vs retry vs retry-axios.

Similar Npm Packages to exponential-backoff

exponential-backoff is a JavaScript library designed to implement the exponential backoff algorithm, which is commonly used in network communication and API calls to handle retries in a controlled manner. This approach gradually increases the wait time between retries after each failure, which helps to reduce the load on servers and improve the chances of successful requests over time. While exponential-backoff is a solid choice for managing retries, there are several alternatives available in the npm ecosystem. Here are a few noteworthy options:

  • async-retry is a simple and flexible library for retrying asynchronous functions. It allows developers to specify the number of retries, the delay between attempts, and even custom retry strategies. async-retry is particularly useful when you need to handle transient errors in network requests or other asynchronous operations, making it a great alternative to exponential-backoff for more complex retry scenarios.

  • backoff is another library that provides a robust implementation of the backoff algorithm, including exponential backoff. It allows you to create customizable backoff strategies with various options for delays and maximum attempts. backoff is suitable for applications that require fine-tuned control over the retry process and can be used for both synchronous and asynchronous operations.

  • p-retry is a promise-based retry library that simplifies the process of retrying failed asynchronous operations. It provides a straightforward API for specifying the number of retries and delay strategies, including exponential backoff. If you are working with promises and want a simple way to implement retries, p-retry is a great choice.

  • promise-retry is another library focused on retrying promise-returning functions. It allows you to define the number of retries, delay between attempts, and even custom retry conditions. This library is particularly useful for handling API calls and other asynchronous operations that may fail intermittently.

  • retry is a general-purpose retry library that can be used with both synchronous and asynchronous functions. It provides a flexible API for configuring retry attempts, delays, and strategies. If you need a versatile solution that can handle various types of operations, retry is worth considering.

To compare these libraries and see how they stack up against each other, check out the following link: Comparing async-retry vs backoff vs exponential-backoff vs p-retry vs promise-retry vs retry.

Similar Npm Packages to async-retry

async-retry is a utility library for retrying asynchronous functions in JavaScript. It provides a simple and flexible way to handle retries for operations that may fail intermittently, such as network requests or database operations. With async-retry, developers can easily specify the number of retries, delay between attempts, and conditions under which to retry, making it a powerful tool for improving the resilience of applications. However, there are several alternatives available that offer similar functionality. Here are a few noteworthy options:

  • p-retry is a promise-based retry utility that allows you to retry asynchronous functions with customizable options. It is designed to work seamlessly with promises, making it a great choice for modern JavaScript applications. p-retry provides a straightforward API for defining retry logic, including the number of retries, delay between attempts, and error handling. If you are looking for a lightweight and promise-centric solution for retrying asynchronous operations, p-retry is an excellent option.

  • promise-retry is another library that focuses on retrying promise-returning functions. It offers a simple API for defining retry logic, including options for maximum retries, delay, and exponential backoff. promise-retry is particularly useful for scenarios where you need to handle transient errors in asynchronous operations, such as API calls or database queries. If you prefer a library that emphasizes simplicity and ease of use, promise-retry is worth considering.

  • retry is a more general-purpose retry utility that can be used with both synchronous and asynchronous functions. It provides a flexible API for configuring retries, including options for maximum attempts, delay, and backoff strategies. retry is suitable for a wide range of use cases, making it a versatile choice for developers who need a robust retry mechanism. If you require a library that can handle both sync and async operations with customizable retry logic, retry is a solid option.

  • retry-axios is a specialized library designed to work with Axios, the popular HTTP client for JavaScript. It provides automatic retry functionality for failed HTTP requests, making it easy to handle transient errors in network communication. With retry-axios, you can configure retry options such as the number of attempts and delay between retries, all while leveraging the familiar Axios API. If you are using Axios for your HTTP requests and want to add retry capabilities, retry-axios is a great choice.

For a comprehensive comparison of these libraries, check out the link: Comparing async-retry vs p-retry vs promise-retry vs retry vs retry-axios.

Similar Npm Packages to backoff

backoff is a JavaScript library designed to implement exponential backoff strategies for retrying failed asynchronous operations. This is particularly useful in scenarios where you need to handle transient errors, such as network requests or API calls, that may succeed if retried after a certain delay. The backoff library provides a simple and flexible API to configure the retry strategy, including options for maximum retries, delay intervals, and jitter to avoid thundering herd problems.

While backoff is a solid choice for implementing retry logic, there are several alternatives available in the ecosystem that offer similar functionalities. Here are a few noteworthy options:

  • async-retry is a lightweight library that provides a simple way to retry asynchronous functions with customizable retry strategies. It allows you to specify the number of retries, delay intervals, and even a custom retry condition. async-retry is particularly useful for handling promises and can be easily integrated into existing asynchronous workflows, making it a great choice for developers looking for a straightforward retry mechanism.

  • exponential-backoff is a library that focuses specifically on implementing the exponential backoff algorithm. It provides a simple API to configure the backoff strategy, including options for maximum delay and jitter. This library is ideal for developers who want a dedicated solution for exponential backoff without additional features that may come with more comprehensive libraries.

  • promise-retry is another library that allows you to retry promise-returning functions with a customizable retry strategy. It supports both linear and exponential backoff strategies and provides options for maximum retries and delay intervals. promise-retry is a good choice for developers who want a straightforward way to handle retries for promises while maintaining control over the retry logic.

  • retry is a versatile library that provides a simple way to retry any function, including synchronous and asynchronous ones. It offers a variety of options for configuring the retry strategy, including exponential backoff, maximum retries, and delay intervals. retry is suitable for developers looking for a general-purpose retry mechanism that can handle both promise-based and callback-based functions.

To see how backoff compares with async-retry, exponential-backoff, promise-retry, and retry, check out the comparison: Comparing async-retry vs backoff vs exponential-backoff vs promise-retry vs retry.

README for retry

Build Status codecov

retry

Abstraction for exponential and custom retry strategies for failed operations.

Installation

npm install retry

Current Status

This module has been tested and is ready to be used.

Tutorial

The example below will retry a potentially failing dns.resolve operation 10 times using an exponential backoff strategy. With the default settings, this means the last attempt is made after 17 minutes and 3 seconds.

var dns = require('dns');
var retry = require('retry');

function faultTolerantResolve(address, cb) {
  var operation = retry.operation();

  operation.attempt(function(currentAttempt) {
    dns.resolve(address, function(err, addresses) {
      if (operation.retry(err)) {
        return;
      }

      cb(err ? operation.mainError() : null, addresses);
    });
  });
}

faultTolerantResolve('nodejs.org', function(err, addresses) {
  console.log(err, addresses);
});

Of course you can also configure the factors that go into the exponential backoff. See the API documentation below for all available settings. currentAttempt is an int representing the number of attempts so far.

var operation = retry.operation({
  retries: 5,
  factor: 3,
  minTimeout: 1 * 1000,
  maxTimeout: 60 * 1000,
  randomize: true,
});

API

retry.operation([options])

Creates a new RetryOperation object. options is the same as retry.timeouts()'s options, with three additions:

  • forever: Whether to retry forever, defaults to false.
  • unref: Whether to unref the setTimeout's, defaults to false.
  • maxRetryTime: The maximum time (in milliseconds) that the retried operation is allowed to run. Default is Infinity.

retry.timeouts([options])

Returns an array of timeouts. All time options and return values are in milliseconds. If options is an array, a copy of that array is returned.

options is a JS object that can contain any of the following keys:

  • retries: The maximum amount of times to retry the operation. Default is 10. Seting this to 1 means do it once, then retry it once.
  • factor: The exponential factor to use. Default is 2.
  • minTimeout: The number of milliseconds before starting the first retry. Default is 1000.
  • maxTimeout: The maximum number of milliseconds between two retries. Default is Infinity.
  • randomize: Randomizes the timeouts by multiplying with a factor between 1 to 2. Default is false.

The formula used to calculate the individual timeouts is:

Math.min(random * minTimeout * Math.pow(factor, attempt), maxTimeout)

Have a look at this article for a better explanation of approach.

If you want to tune your factor / times settings to attempt the last retry after a certain amount of time, you can use wolfram alpha. For example in order to tune for 10 attempts in 5 minutes, you can use this equation:

screenshot

Explaining the various values from left to right:

  • k = 0 ... 9: The retries value (10)
  • 1000: The minTimeout value in ms (1000)
  • x^k: No need to change this, x will be your resulting factor
  • 5 * 60 * 1000: The desired total amount of time for retrying in ms (5 minutes)

To make this a little easier for you, use wolfram alpha to do the calculations:

http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=Sum%5B1000*x^k%2C+{k%2C+0%2C+9}%5D+%3D+5+*+60+*+1000

retry.createTimeout(attempt, opts)

Returns a new timeout (integer in milliseconds) based on the given parameters.

attempt is an integer representing for which retry the timeout should be calculated. If your retry operation was executed 4 times you had one attempt and 3 retries. If you then want to calculate a new timeout, you should set attempt to 4 (attempts are zero-indexed).

opts can include factor, minTimeout, randomize (boolean) and maxTimeout. They are documented above.

retry.createTimeout() is used internally by retry.timeouts() and is public for you to be able to create your own timeouts for reinserting an item, see issue #13.

retry.wrap(obj, [options], [methodNames])

Wrap all functions of the obj with retry. Optionally you can pass operation options and an array of method names which need to be wrapped.

retry.wrap(obj)

retry.wrap(obj, ['method1', 'method2'])

retry.wrap(obj, {retries: 3})

retry.wrap(obj, {retries: 3}, ['method1', 'method2'])

The options object can take any options that the usual call to retry.operation can take.

new RetryOperation(timeouts, [options])

Creates a new RetryOperation where timeouts is an array where each value is a timeout given in milliseconds.

Available options:

  • forever: Whether to retry forever, defaults to false.
  • unref: Wether to unref the setTimeout's, defaults to false.

If forever is true, the following changes happen:

  • RetryOperation.errors() will only output an array of one item: the last error.
  • RetryOperation will repeatedly use the timeouts array. Once all of its timeouts have been used up, it restarts with the first timeout, then uses the second and so on.

retryOperation.errors()

Returns an array of all errors that have been passed to retryOperation.retry() so far. The returning array has the errors ordered chronologically based on when they were passed to retryOperation.retry(), which means the first passed error is at index zero and the last is at the last index.

retryOperation.mainError()

A reference to the error object that occured most frequently. Errors are compared using the error.message property.

If multiple error messages occured the same amount of time, the last error object with that message is returned.

If no errors occured so far, the value is null.

retryOperation.attempt(fn, timeoutOps)

Defines the function fn that is to be retried and executes it for the first time right away. The fn function can receive an optional currentAttempt callback that represents the number of attempts to execute fn so far.

Optionally defines timeoutOps which is an object having a property timeout in miliseconds and a property cb callback function. Whenever your retry operation takes longer than timeout to execute, the timeout callback function cb is called.

retryOperation.try(fn)

This is an alias for retryOperation.attempt(fn). This is deprecated. Please use retryOperation.attempt(fn) instead.

retryOperation.start(fn)

This is an alias for retryOperation.attempt(fn). This is deprecated. Please use retryOperation.attempt(fn) instead.

retryOperation.retry(error)

Returns false when no error value is given, or the maximum amount of retries has been reached.

Otherwise it returns true, and retries the operation after the timeout for the current attempt number.

retryOperation.stop()

Allows you to stop the operation being retried. Useful for aborting the operation on a fatal error etc.

retryOperation.reset()

Resets the internal state of the operation object, so that you can call attempt() again as if this was a new operation object.

retryOperation.attempts()

Returns an int representing the number of attempts it took to call fn before it was successful.

License

retry is licensed under the MIT license.

Changelog

0.10.0 Adding stop functionality, thanks to @maxnachlinger.

0.9.0 Adding unref functionality, thanks to @satazor.

0.8.0 Implementing retry.wrap.

0.7.0 Some bug fixes and made retry.createTimeout() public. Fixed issues #10, #12, and #13.

0.6.0 Introduced optional timeOps parameter for the attempt() function which is an object having a property timeout in milliseconds and a property cb callback function. Whenever your retry operation takes longer than timeout to execute, the timeout callback function cb is called.

0.5.0 Some minor refactoring.

0.4.0 Changed retryOperation.try() to retryOperation.attempt(). Deprecated the aliases start() and try() for it.

0.3.0 Added retryOperation.start() which is an alias for retryOperation.try().

0.2.0 Added attempts() function and parameter to retryOperation.try() representing the number of attempts it took to call fn().

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