Why blindly retrying failed API requests can be dangerous

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Retrying a failed request in a Node.js service seems harmless, but a timeout does not necessarily mean the server failed to act. The operation may have succeeded while the response was lost, so a blind retry of a payment or order could duplicate it. The article argues that retries should be applied selectively, only to safe operations, with a firm attempt limit and delays that respect the server. It walks through a small JSON HTTP client built on built-in Node.js APIs, covering transient errors, backoff, Retry-After headers, timeouts, and duplicate-request safety. The example is educational rather than production-ready and is not based on any cryptocurrency platform's internal systems.

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North Korea Suspected Behind Record $6.3bn Crypto Hack, Binance Freezes $3bn

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ProgrammingDEV Community ·

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ProgrammingDEV Community ·

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ProgrammingDEV Community ·

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