pi-lens/rules/tree-sitter-queries/python/python-sleep-in-test.yml

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id: python-sleep-in-test
name: time.sleep in Test
severity: warning
category: correctness
defect_class: async-misuse
inline_tier: warning
language: python

message: "time.sleep() in test — use synchronisation primitives or polling helpers instead of fixed sleeps"

description: |
  Fixed sleeps in tests cause flakiness: they slow down the suite and still
  fail on resource-constrained CI runners.

  ✅ FIX: use threading.Event, asyncio.wait_for, or a polling helper like
  tenacity or pytest-eventually.

query: |
  (call
    function: (attribute
      object: (identifier) @MOD
      attribute: (identifier) @FN)
    (#eq? @MOD "time")
    (#eq? @FN "sleep")) @CALL

metavars:
  - MOD
  - FN
  - CALL

has_fix: false

tags:
  - python
  - testing
  - flakiness
  - sleep

examples:
  bad: |
    def test_worker_starts():
        worker.start()
        time.sleep(0.5)   # fragile
        assert worker.is_ready()

  good: |
    def test_worker_starts():
        worker.start()
        worker.ready_event.wait(timeout=5)
        assert worker.is_ready()