Retry Storms

Uber builds context-aware retry system to stop cascading service failures

Uber engineers describe a new mechanism built into shared infrastructure that makes retries 'context-aware,' allowing services to distinguish between errors originating locally versus those merely passed through from downstream dependencies. The system aims to replace uniform, blanket retry policies with conditional logic that adapts based on the severity of degradation across Uber's deep, fan-out-heavy microservice call chains.