---
name: robust-error-handling-in-scripts
description: Use this skill when writing shell scripts, Python automation, or any unattended batch job. Ensure failures are detected, logged, and handled — never silently ignored.
category: automation
---

# Robust Error Handling in Scripts

**Shell scripts:**
```bash
set -euo pipefail  # Exit on error, undefined var, pipe failure
trap 'echo "Failed at line $LINENO"' ERR
```

**Python scripts:**
```python
import logging, sys
logging.basicConfig(level=logging.INFO, format='%(asctime)s %(levelname)s %(message)s')
try:
    main()
except Exception as e:
    logging.exception("Unhandled error: %s", e)
    sys.exit(1)
```

**Retry with backoff** for transient network/API failures:
```python
from tenacity import retry, stop_after_attempt, wait_exponential
@retry(stop=stop_after_attempt(3), wait=wait_exponential(min=2, max=10))
def call_api(): ...
```