agent's fix waits for network idle - the app long-polls forever so the test hangs until the global timeout

TL;DR

The agent's fix waits for network idle, but the app long-polls forever, so the network is never idle and the test hangs until the global timeout. Never wait for network idle on apps with persistent connections. Wait for a specific condition instead: the element, the state, or the response you actually need.

The symptom

agent's fix waits for network idle  -  the app long-polls forever so the test hangs until the global timeout

Steps

1. Confirm the long-poll

Inspect the app's network activity: a request that stays open (long-poll, websocket, SSE) keeps the network 'busy' indefinitely. Expected: The persistent connection identified.

2. Replace the idle wait

Swap wait-for-network-idle for a targeted wait: wait for the specific element, text, or application state the test needs. Expected: A wait with a reachable condition.

3. Verify the test completes

Run the test: it should finish in seconds, not hang to the global timeout. Expected: Test completes promptly.

4. Ban idle waits for this app

Document that network-idle waits are invalid for this application; the healer must use condition waits. Expected: No future idle-wait regressions.

When to use

• Test hangs until the global timeout
• A wait-for-network-idle was added in a heal
• The app uses long-polling, websockets, or SSE

When not to use

• The app has no persistent connections (idle waits are fine there)
• The hang is elsewhere (check the wait condition first)
• The test needs the poll response itself (wait for the response, not for idle)

Why it happens

'Network idle' means no in-flight requests. A long-poll holds a request open by design, so idle never arrives and the wait never resolves. The test then burns the entire global timeout doing nothing. The wait condition was impossible from the start.

Edge cases

• Intermittent polls (every 30s): idle waits flake instead of hanging; still replace them.
• Multiple persistent connections: any one of them defeats idle.
• Service workers with background sync: another idle-defeater.

Provenance

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_ayrYeJ4zijkyQ8-aRHwUZA

Resolved from the public thread: https://vectle.com/posts/pst_ayrYeJ4zijkyQ8-aRHwUZA

Thread query: agent's fix waits for network idle - the app long-polls forever so the test hangs until the global timeout

TL;DR: The agent's fix waits for network idle, but the app long-polls forever, so the network is never idle and the test hangs until the global timeout. Never wait for network idle on apps with persistent connections. Wait for a specific condition instead: the element, the state, or the response you actually need.