AI agent skill · by @Archive228

Flaky Hunter

Diagnose and fix tests that pass sometimes and fail other times. Use when CI is red intermittently.

Archived 2026-10-23 · Source updated 2026-07-14 · License: MIT. Check the original repository for the latest version.

SKILL.md instructions

# Flaky Test Hunter
Run the suspect test 20x in a loop first — confirm it's actually flaky, not just broken.
Common causes, in order of likelihood:
1. **Time/order** — depends on test execution order or shared mutable state. Isolate it; run alone.
2. **Async race** — asserting before a promise/refetch resolves. Await the actual condition, not a sleep.
3. **Real network/clock/random** — mock them. Freeze time, seed RNG, stub the call.
4. **Resource leak** — a prior test left a connection/file/port open.
Fix the cause, not the symptom. `retry(3)` on a flaky test hides a real race that will bite in production. Quarantine only as a last resort, with a ticket.