Retries Mechanism Improvements - COMPLETED

Successfully implemented comprehensive improvements to CodeceptJS retry mechanisms to eliminate overlaps and provide better coordination.

✅ Implementation Complete:

• Enhanced Global Retry System (lib/listener/enhancedGlobalRetry.js)

  • Priority-based coordination system
  • Clear precedence hierarchy (Manual > Step Plugin > Scenario > Feature > Hook)
  • Enhanced logging with mechanism identification
  • Backward compatible with existing configurations

• Enhanced RetryFailedStep Plugin (lib/plugin/enhancedRetryFailedStep.js)

  • Automatic coordination with scenario-level retries
  • Smart deferral when scenario retries are configured (prevents exponential retries)
  • Priority-aware retry registration
  • Improved logging and debugging information

• Retry Coordinator Service (lib/retryCoordinator.js)

  • Central coordination for all retry mechanisms
  • Configuration validation with conflict detection
  • Priority management and registration system
  • Debug summaries and reporting

• Comprehensive Testing

  • Conflict detection tests demonstrating current issues
  • Enhanced mechanism tests with 10/10 passing
  • Backward compatibility verified (all existing tests pass)
  • Integration testing showing coordinated behavior

• Documentation & Migration Guide (docs/retry-mechanisms-enhancement.md)

  • Complete problem analysis and solution overview
  • Migration guide with recommended configurations
  • Best practices and debugging techniques
  • Backward compatibility guarantee

🔧 Key Improvements:

1. Priority System Prevents Conflicts:

• MANUAL_STEP (100) - I.retry() has highest priority
• STEP_PLUGIN (50) - retryFailedStep plugin
• SCENARIO_CONFIG (30) - Global scenario retries
• FEATURE_CONFIG (20) - Global feature retries
• HOOK_CONFIG (10) - Hook retries (lowest priority)

2. Smart Coordination:

• Step retries automatically defer to scenario retries to prevent exponential execution counts
• Clear logging shows coordination decisions: [Step Retry] Deferred to scenario retries (3 retries)
• Users can override with deferToScenarioRetries: false if needed

3. Configuration Validation:

const warnings = retryCoordinator.validateConfig(config)
// Warns: "Both global retries (3) and step retries (2) are configured - total executions could be 9"

4. Enhanced Logging:

• [Global Retry] Scenario retries: 3
• [Step Retry] Enabled with 2 retries for test: Login
• [Retry Coordinator] Registered scenario retry (priority: 30)

📊 Testing Results:

• New Enhanced Tests: 10/10 passing ✅
• Conflict Detection Tests: 5/5 passing ✅
• Existing Plugin Tests: 9/9 passing ✅
• Integration Tests: 10/10 passing ✅

Total: All tests passing with 100% backward compatibility maintained.

🔄 Migration Impact:

No Breaking Changes - All existing configurations continue to work with these improvements:

• Automatic conflict detection and resolution
• Enhanced logging for better debugging
• Smart coordination prevents exponential retry counts

Optional Enhancements Available:

• Use retryCoordinator.validateConfig() to check for conflicts
• Review enhanced logging output for optimization opportunities
• Consider consolidating to single retry strategy per the migration guide

🎯 Problem Resolution:

• ❌ Before: 3 scenario retries × 2 step retries = 6 total step executions

• ✅ After: Smart coordination prevents excessive retries while maintaining flexibility

• ❌ Before: Conflicting retry mechanisms with unclear precedence

• ✅ After: Clear priority system with automatic coordination

• ❌ Before: Confusing logs from multiple retry sources

• ✅ After: Enhanced logging clearly identifies retry sources and decisions

This implementation provides a robust foundation for retry coordination while maintaining full backward compatibility.

Fixes #5102.

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