Options directive (timeout, retry) in Jenkins - Step-by-Step Execution

Process Flow - Options directive (timeout, retry)

Start Pipeline

↓

Apply Options Directive

↓

Execute Stage

↓

Check Timeout

↓

Abort Stage

↓

Check Retry Count

↓

Retry Stage

↓

End Pipeline

The pipeline starts, applies options like timeout and retry, runs the stage, checks if timeout occurred to abort, and retries the stage if it fails, until success or retry limit.

Execution Sample

Jenkins

pipeline {
  options {
    timeout(time: 1, unit: 'MINUTES')
    retry(2)
  }
  stages {
    stage('Example') { steps { sh 'exit 1' } }
  }
}

This Jenkins pipeline runs a stage with a 1-minute timeout and retries the stage up to 2 times if it fails.

Process Table

Step	Action	Timeout Check	Retry Count	Stage Result	Next Step
1	Start pipeline and apply options	No timeout	0	Not started	Execute stage
2	Execute stage first time	No timeout	0	Fail (exit 1)	Retry stage (retry=1)
3	Execute stage retry 1	No timeout	1	Fail (exit 1)	Retry stage (retry=2)
4	Execute stage retry 2	No timeout	2	Fail (exit 1)	No retries left, abort
5	Pipeline aborts due to failure after retries	No timeout	2	Aborted	End pipeline

💡 Retries exhausted (2 retries done), stage failed, pipeline aborts

Status Tracker

Variable	Start	After Step 2	After Step 3	After Step 4	Final
retryCount	0	1	2	2	2
stageResult	Not started	Fail	Fail	Fail	Aborted
timeoutReached	No	No	No	No	No

Key Moments - 2 Insights

Why does the pipeline retry the stage after failure?

Because the retry option is set to 2, the pipeline retries the stage up to 2 times after failure, as shown in steps 2, 3, and 4 in the execution table.

What happens if the stage takes longer than the timeout?

If the stage exceeds the timeout, the pipeline aborts the stage immediately. In this example, no timeout occurred, but if it did, step 4 would show 'Timeout reached' and abort.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution table, what is the retryCount after the first retry?

A 1

B 0

C 2

D 3

💡 Hint

Check the 'retryCount' variable in the variable_tracker after Step 2 and Step 3.

At which step does the pipeline stop retrying the stage?

A Step 2

B Step 3

C Step 4

D Step 5

💡 Hint

Look at the 'Next Step' column in the execution_table where retries are exhausted.

If the timeout was set to 0.5 minutes, how would the execution table change?

A Timeout Check would be 'Yes' and pipeline aborts earlier

B Retry count would increase

C Stage result would always be success

D No change at all

💡 Hint

Timeout affects the 'Timeout Check' column and can cause early abort as per concept_flow.

Concept Snapshot

Jenkins options directive sets pipeline-wide behaviors.
Use timeout(time, unit) to limit stage duration.
Use retry(count) to rerun failed stages.
If timeout triggers, stage aborts immediately.
Retries stop after count is reached.
Combine for robust pipeline control.

Full Transcript

This visual execution shows how Jenkins pipeline options directive works with timeout and retry. The pipeline starts and applies options. It runs the stage and checks if the timeout is reached. If not, it checks the stage result. On failure, it retries the stage up to the retry count. If retries are exhausted, the pipeline aborts. Variables like retryCount and stageResult track progress. This helps beginners see how timeout stops long stages and retry reruns failed stages automatically.