test(kernel-node-runtime): Fix flaky remote-comms E2E tests

[sirtimid]

Description

Two E2E tests in remote-comms.test.ts were consistently flaky on main, failing more often than passing:

1. "rejects new messages when queue reaches MAX_QUEUE limit" — timed out at 120s
2. "resolves promise after reconnection when retries have not been exhausted" — failed with URL redemption timed out after 8000ms

Root cause: Both tests used testBackoffOptions with ackTimeoutMs: 2_000. The RemoteHandle gives up after ackTimeoutMs × (MAX_RETRIES + 1) = 8s, which is too short for kernel2 to restart (new DB connection + kernel init + libp2p + relay connection + vat launch).

Changes

• Increase ackTimeoutMs to 5_000 for both tests, giving a 20s give-up window instead of 8s
• Extract named options objects (queueTestOptions, reconnectOptions) for clarity and consistency between setupAliceAndBob and restartKernelAndReloadVat calls
• Restructure the reconnection test to establish the connection first (completing URL redemption), then stop kernel2 before sending the test message — eliminating both the URL redemption race and the non-deterministic message delivery race
• Remove unnecessary delay() calls that were masking the underlying timing issue

Testing

Both tests pass reliably after the fix. Verified by running the full remote-comms.test.ts E2E suite twice — all 67 E2E tests pass across all 11 test files (including both previously-flaky tests).

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

---

Note

Low Risk
Low risk: changes are limited to E2E test timing/configuration and message sequencing; main risk is masking real regressions by increasing timeouts or altering test ordering.

Overview
Stabilizes remote-comms.test.ts E2E coverage by introducing per-test option objects that override ackTimeoutMs (to 5_000) and related rate-limit settings, and then using those same options consistently across setupAliceAndBob and restartKernelAndReloadVat.

Reworks the "reconnect without exhausting retries" test to first establish a connection (complete URL redemption), then stop the remote kernel and queue the message while it’s definitely offline, removing race-prone delays and making the queued-message reconnection behavior deterministic.

^{Reviewed by Cursor Bugbot for commit 11d93ec. Bugbot is set up for automated code reviews on this repo. Configure here.}

[github-actions]

Coverage Report

Status	Category	Percentage	Covered / Total
🔵	Lines	78.59% 🟰 ±0%	8630 / 10981
🔵	Statements	78.4% 🟰 ±0%	8766 / 11181
🔵	Functions	76.13% 🟰 ±0%	2019 / 2652
🔵	Branches	76.27% 🟰 ±0%	3714 / 4869

File Coverage

No changed files found.

Generated in workflow #4253 for commit 11d93ec by the Vitest Coverage Report Action

[rekmarks]

LGTM!