fix(backoffice): stop retrying /token after a definitive refresh failure

When the refresh token is rejected with invalid_grant, every queued or
subsequent API request would previously fire its own doomed /token call
(observed 18+ in a row) before the user was finally logged out.

- UmbAuthClient now distinguishes definitive OAuth rejections (400/401
  with an error body) from transient failures (network errors, 5xx)
- UmbAuthContext latches the session as dead on a definitive rejection,
  times the user out once, and short-circuits further refresh attempts
  until a new session is established (login, peer tab, re-auth)
- Transient failures do not latch, so a network blip can still recover

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.8 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/auth.context.test.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 import { UmbAuthContext } from './auth.context.js';
-import { expect } from '@open-wc/testing';
+import { aTimeout, expect } from '@open-wc/testing';
 import { customElement } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/external/lit';
 import { UmbControllerHostElementMixin } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/controller-api';
 
@@ -168,4 +168,76 @@ describe('UmbAuthContext', () => {
 			expect(url).to.contain('/umbraco/logout');
 		});
 	});
+	describe('Refresh failure handling', () => {
+		let fetchCalls: Array<string>;
+		let fetchResponder: () => Response;
+		let channel: BroadcastChannel;
+		const realFetch = window.fetch;
+
+		const invalidGrantResponse = () =>
+			new Response(JSON.stringify({ error: 'invalid_grant', error_description: 'The token is no longer valid.' }), {
+				status: 400,
+				headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
+			});
+
+		beforeEach(() => {
+			fetchCalls = [];
+			window.fetch = ((input: RequestInfo | URL) => {
+				fetchCalls.push(input.toString());
+				return Promise.resolve(fetchResponder());
+			}) as typeof window.fetch;
+			channel = new BroadcastChannel('umb:auth');
+		});
+
+		afterEach(() => {
+			window.fetch = realFetch;
+			channel.close();
+		});
+
+		it('does not call /token again after a definitive invalid_grant failure', async () => {
+			fetchResponder = invalidGrantResponse;
+
+			expect(await context.validateToken()).to.be.false;
+			expect(await context.validateToken()).to.be.false;
+
+			expect(fetchCalls).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+		});
+
+		it('times the user out on a definitive invalid_grant failure', async () => {
+			fetchResponder = invalidGrantResponse;
+			let timeOutCalls = 0;
+			context.timeOut = () => {
+				timeOutCalls++;
+			};
+
+			await context.validateToken();
+
+			expect(timeOutCalls).to.equal(1);
+		});
+
+		it('retries /token after a transient network failure', async () => {
+			fetchResponder = () => {
+				throw new TypeError('Failed to fetch');
+			};
+
+			expect(await context.validateToken()).to.be.false;
+			expect(await context.validateToken()).to.be.false;
+
+			expect(fetchCalls).to.have.lengthOf(2);
+		});
+
+		it('attempts /token again once a new session is established', async () => {
+			fetchResponder = invalidGrantResponse;
+			await context.validateToken();
+			expect(fetchCalls).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+
+			// A peer tab (or completed re-authentication) establishes a new session
+			const now = Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000);
+			channel.postMessage({ type: 'sessionUpdate', accessTokenExpiresAt: now + 60, expiresAt: now + 240 });
+			await aTimeout(50);
+
+			await context.validateToken();
+			expect(fetchCalls).to.have.lengthOf(2);
+		});
+	});
 });

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/auth.context.ts

@@ -51,6 +51,12 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 	#session = new UmbObjectState<UmbAuthSession | undefined>(undefined);
 	readonly session$ = this.#session.asObservable();
 
+	// Set when a refresh was definitively rejected by the server (e.g. invalid_grant).
+	// Distinguishes "no session yet" from "session is dead" so concurrent and subsequent
+	// API requests don't each fire their own doomed /token call. Cleared when a new
+	// session is established (login, peer tab, completed re-authentication).
+	#sessionDead = false;
+
 	// True only during the synchronous #updateSession() call inside the lock callback.
 	// Prevents re-entrant /token calls when session$ observers fire synchronously
 	// (e.g. keepUserLoggedIn=true with short expiresIn triggers #onSessionExpiring
@@ -177,6 +183,7 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 					// Peer broadcast already-computed timestamps, so set the session
 					// directly. We still go through the `#inSessionUpdateCallback` guard
 					// so observers triggered re-entrantly skip a redundant /token call.
+					this.#sessionDead = false;
 					this.#inSessionUpdateCallback = true;
 					try {
 						this.#session.setValue({
@@ -425,6 +432,7 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 		// Ask existing tabs for their session state (avoids a /token call for new tabs)
 		const peerSession = await this.#requestSessionFromPeers();
 		if (peerSession) {
+			this.#sessionDead = false;
 			this.#session.setValue(peerSession);
 			this.#isAuthorized.setValue(true);
 			return;
@@ -474,16 +482,15 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 	 * @returns True if the refresh was successful, otherwise false.
 	 */
 	async makeRefreshTokenRequest(): Promise<boolean> {
+		// A previous refresh was definitively rejected — retrying cannot succeed
+		// until a new session is established.
+		if (this.#sessionDead) return false;
+
 		// Fallback for environments without Web Locks (some enterprise/kiosk browsers)
 		if (!navigator.locks) {
 			console.warn('[UmbAuth] navigator.locks is not available — token refresh coordination disabled.');
 			if (this.#isAccessTokenValid()) return true;
-			const response = await this.#client.refreshToken();
+			return this.#performRefresh();
-			if (response) {
-				this.#updateSession(response.expiresIn, response.issuedAt);
-				return true;
-			}
-			return false;
 		}
 
 		// Capture the session before entering the lock queue. Inside the lock we check
@@ -501,17 +508,35 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 		if (this.#inSessionUpdateCallback) return true;
 
 		return navigator.locks.request('umb:token-refresh', async () => {
+			// A queued caller may have latched the session as dead while we waited for the lock
+			if (this.#sessionDead) return false;
 			if (this.#session.getValue() !== sessionBefore && this.#isAccessTokenValid()) return true;
 
-			const response = await this.#client.refreshToken();
+			return this.#performRefresh();
-			if (response) {
-				this.#updateSession(response.expiresIn, response.issuedAt);
-				return true;
-			}
-			return false;
 		});
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Performs the actual refresh request and applies the result.
+	 * A definitive rejection (e.g. `invalid_grant`) marks the session as dead and times the
+	 * user out, so the re-authentication flow starts instead of every subsequent API request
+	 * firing its own doomed refresh attempt. Transient failures (network errors, 5xx) leave
+	 * the session state untouched so a later attempt can retry.
+	 * @returns {Promise<boolean>} True if the refresh succeeded, otherwise false.
+	 */
+	async #performRefresh(): Promise<boolean> {
+		const result = await this.#client.refreshToken();
+		if (result.response) {
+			this.#updateSession(result.response.expiresIn, result.response.issuedAt);
+			return true;
+		}
+		if (result.fatal) {
+			this.#sessionDead = true;
+			this.timeOut();
+		}
+		return false;
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Checks if the current session is still valid.
 	 * @returns True if the session has not expired.
@@ -540,6 +565,9 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 	 * - Otherwise: returns immediately with no network call.
 	 */
 	async #ensureTokenReady(): Promise<void> {
+		// The session is dead and re-authentication is already in progress — let the request
+		// proceed (and 401) so the interceptor queues it for replay after re-authentication.
+		if (this.#sessionDead) return;
 		if (!this.#isAccessTokenValid()) {
 			await this.validateToken();
 			return;
@@ -782,6 +810,7 @@ export class UmbAuthContext extends UmbContextBase {
 		// The access_token lives for 1/4 of the refresh_token lifetime.
 		// Multiply to get the full session expiry.
 		const expiresAt = issuedAt + expiresIn * TOKEN_EXPIRY_MULTIPLIER;
+		this.#sessionDead = false;
 		this.#inSessionUpdateCallback = true;
 		try {
 			this.#session.setValue({ accessTokenExpiresAt, expiresAt });

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/controllers/auth-session-timeout.controller.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,133 @@
+import { UmbAuthContext } from '../auth.context.js';
+import type { UmbModalAuthTimeoutConfig } from '../modals/umb-auth-timeout-modal.token.js';
+import { UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController } from './auth-session-timeout.controller.js';
+import { aTimeout, expect } from '@open-wc/testing';
+import { customElement } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/external/lit';
+import { UmbControllerHostElementMixin } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/controller-api';
+import { UmbContextProvider } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/context-api';
+import { UMB_MODAL_MANAGER_CONTEXT } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
+
+@customElement('test-auth-session-timeout-host')
+class UmbTestAuthSessionTimeoutHostElement extends UmbControllerHostElementMixin(HTMLElement) {}
+
+describe('UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController', () => {
+	let hostElement: UmbTestAuthSessionTimeoutHostElement;
+	let context: UmbAuthContext;
+	let controller: UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController;
+	let channel: BroadcastChannel;
+	let openedModals: Array<UmbModalAuthTimeoutConfig>;
+	let closedModalKeys: Array<string>;
+	let timeOutCalls: number;
+	const realDateNow = Date.now;
+
+	beforeEach(() => {
+		hostElement = new UmbTestAuthSessionTimeoutHostElement();
+		document.body.appendChild(hostElement);
+
+		openedModals = [];
+		closedModalKeys = [];
+		timeOutCalls = 0;
+
+		const mockModalManager = {
+			// getHostElement is required for the context consumer to accept the instance
+			getHostElement: () => hostElement,
+			open: (_host: unknown, _token: unknown, args: { data: UmbModalAuthTimeoutConfig }) => {
+				openedModals.push(args.data);
+				return { onSubmit: () => new Promise(() => {}) };
+			},
+			close: (key: string) => {
+				closedModalKeys.push(key);
+			},
+		};
+		const provider = new UmbContextProvider(
+			hostElement,
+			UMB_MODAL_MANAGER_CONTEXT,
+			mockModalManager as unknown as typeof UMB_MODAL_MANAGER_CONTEXT.TYPE,
+		);
+		provider.hostConnected();
+
+		context = new UmbAuthContext(hostElement, 'http://localhost', '/umbraco', false);
+		context.timeOut = () => {
+			timeOutCalls++;
+		};
+
+		// The controller is not instantiated by UmbAuthContext in test environments, so create it manually.
+		controller = new UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController(context);
+
+		channel = new BroadcastChannel('umb:auth');
+	});
+
+	afterEach(() => {
+		Date.now = realDateNow;
+		channel.close();
+		controller.destroy();
+		context.destroy();
+		document.body.innerHTML = '';
+	});
+
+	/**
+	 * Injects a session into the auth context via the cross-tab BroadcastChannel,
+	 * the same way a peer tab would share a refreshed session.
+	 * @param accessTokenExpiresInSeconds Seconds until the access token expires.
+	 * @param sessionExpiresInSeconds Seconds until the full session (refresh token) expires.
+	 */
+	async function injectSession(accessTokenExpiresInSeconds: number, sessionExpiresInSeconds: number) {
+		const now = Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000);
+		channel.postMessage({
+			type: 'sessionUpdate',
+			accessTokenExpiresAt: now + accessTokenExpiresInSeconds,
+			expiresAt: now + sessionExpiresInSeconds,
+		});
+		// Wait for the BroadcastChannel message to be delivered and observed
+		await aTimeout(50);
+	}
+
+	it('opens the timeout modal when the session enters the warning zone', async () => {
+		await injectSession(5, 10);
+
+		expect(openedModals).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+		expect(openedModals[0].remainingTimeInSeconds).to.be.greaterThan(0);
+		expect(openedModals[0].remainingTimeInSeconds).to.be.at.most(10);
+		expect(timeOutCalls).to.equal(0);
+	});
+
+	it('does not time out when "Stay logged in" successfully refreshes the session', async () => {
+		context.validateToken = async () => true;
+		await injectSession(5, 10);
+
+		expect(openedModals).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+		openedModals[0].onContinue();
+		await aTimeout(10);
+
+		expect(timeOutCalls).to.equal(0);
+	});
+
+	it('times out when "Stay logged in" fails to refresh the session', async () => {
+		context.validateToken = async () => false;
+		await injectSession(5, 10);
+
+		expect(openedModals).to.have.lengthOf(1);
+		openedModals[0].onContinue();
+		await aTimeout(10);
+
+		expect(timeOutCalls).to.equal(1);
+	});
+
+	it('times out instead of opening the modal when the warning timer fires after the session expired (e.g. after system sleep)', async function () {
+		this.timeout(5000);
+
+		// Session expires in 17s, warning buffer is 15s, so the warning timer is scheduled 2s out.
+		await injectSession(5, 17);
+		expect(openedModals).to.have.lengthOf(0);
+
+		// Simulate system sleep / background-tab throttling: the wall clock jumps past the
+		// session expiry while the scheduled timer has not fired yet.
+		Date.now = () => realDateNow() + 60_000;
+
+		// Wait for the real 2s timer to fire (with slack for slow CI agents).
+		await aTimeout(2500);
+
+		expect(openedModals).to.have.lengthOf(0);
+		expect(timeOutCalls).to.equal(1);
+	});
+});

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/controllers/auth-session-timeout.controller.ts

@@ -2,6 +2,15 @@ import type { UmbAuthContext } from '../auth.context.js';
 import { UMB_MODAL_AUTH_TIMEOUT } from '../modals/umb-auth-timeout-modal.token.js';
 import { UmbControllerBase } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/class-api';
 
+/**
+ * Safety margin (in seconds) subtracted from the client-computed session expiry.
+ * The client stamps the session timing when the token response is received, which is
+ * slightly later than when the server issued it — so the client's expiry estimate is
+ * always a little optimistic. Treating the session as expired this much earlier ensures
+ * a "Stay logged in" click near the end of the countdown still reaches the server in time.
+ */
+const EXPIRY_SAFETY_MARGIN_IN_SECONDS = 5;
+
 export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 	#host: UmbAuthContext;
 	#timeoutId?: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout>;
@@ -58,6 +67,7 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 	/**
 	 * Schedules a check for when the session enters the warning zone (buffer before expiry).
 	 * Uses adaptive buffer: 25% of session lifetime, clamped between 5s and 60s.
+	 * @param {number} expiresAt The unix timestamp (in seconds) when the session expires.
 	 */
 	#scheduleCheck(expiresAt: number) {
 		this.#scheduledExpiresAt = expiresAt;
@@ -67,7 +77,7 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 
 		if (secondsUntilExpiry <= 0) {
 			// Already expired
-			this.#onSessionExpiring(0, expiresAt);
+			this.#onSessionExpiring(expiresAt);
 			return;
 		}
 
@@ -77,17 +87,18 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 
 		if (secondsUntilWarning <= 0) {
 			// Already in the buffer zone
-			this.#onSessionExpiring(secondsUntilExpiry, expiresAt);
+			this.#onSessionExpiring(expiresAt);
 		} else {
-			this.#timeoutId = setTimeout(() => this.#onSessionExpiring(buffer, expiresAt), secondsUntilWarning * 1000);
+			this.#timeoutId = setTimeout(() => this.#onSessionExpiring(expiresAt), secondsUntilWarning * 1000);
 		}
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Called when the session is expiring or has expired.
 	 * Decides whether to auto-refresh, show the timeout modal, or time out.
+	 * @param {number} originalExpiresAt The session expiry (unix timestamp in seconds) this check was scheduled for.
 	 */
-	async #onSessionExpiring(secondsRemaining: number, originalExpiresAt: number) {
+	async #onSessionExpiring(originalExpiresAt: number) {
 		// Guard: if the session was refreshed since we scheduled this check, skip.
 		// We compare expiresAt rather than using isSessionValid() because this fires
 		// during the buffer zone (before full expiry), when the session is still "valid".
@@ -95,13 +106,15 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 
 		if (this.#host.keepUserLoggedIn) {
 			console.log('[Auth] Session expiring, auto-refreshing (keepUserLoggedIn=true)');
-			const success = await this.#tryValidateToken();
+			await this.#tryValidateToken();
-			if (!success) {
-				this.#host.timeOut();
-			}
 			return;
 		}
 
+		// Recompute the remaining time from the wall clock — the scheduled timer may have
+		// fired late (system sleep, background-tab timer throttling), in which case the
+		// session can already be expired even though it was valid when the timer was set.
+		const secondsRemaining = originalExpiresAt - Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000) - EXPIRY_SAFETY_MARGIN_IN_SECONDS;
+
 		if (secondsRemaining <= 0) {
 			console.log('[Auth] Session fully expired');
 			this.#host.timeOut();
@@ -120,9 +133,9 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 
 	async #openTimeoutModal(remainingTimeInSeconds: number): Promise<void> {
 		const contextToken = (await import('@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal')).UMB_MODAL_MANAGER_CONTEXT;
-		const modalManager = await this.getContext(contextToken);
 
 		try {
+			const modalManager = await this.getContext(contextToken);
 			const modal = modalManager?.open(this, UMB_MODAL_AUTH_TIMEOUT, {
 				modal: {
 					key: 'auth-timeout',
@@ -147,9 +160,20 @@ export class UmbAuthSessionTimeoutController extends UmbControllerBase {
 		}
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Forces a token refresh against the server.
+	 * Times the user out when the refresh fails (e.g. the refresh token has expired),
+	 * so the re-authentication flow starts instead of leaving the user in a session
+	 * that will be rejected on the next API call.
+	 * @returns {Promise<boolean>} True if the refresh succeeded, otherwise false.
+	 */
 	async #tryValidateToken(): Promise<boolean> {
 		try {
-			return await this.#host.validateToken();
+			const success = await this.#host.validateToken();
+			if (!success) {
+				this.#host.timeOut();
+			}
+			return success;
 		} catch (error) {
 			console.error('[Auth] Error validating token:', error);
 			this.#host.timeOut();

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/modals/manifests.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
-import type { ManifestModal } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
 import UmbAppAuthModalElement from './umb-app-auth-modal.element.js';
 import UmbAuthTimeoutModalElement from './umb-auth-timeout-modal.element.js';
+import type { ManifestModal } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
 
 export const manifests: Array<ManifestModal> = [
 	{

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/modals/umb-app-auth-modal.element.ts

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
-import { UmbModalBaseElement } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
-import type { UmbModalAppAuthConfig, UmbModalAppAuthValue } from './umb-app-auth-modal.token.js';
 import { UMB_AUTH_CONTEXT } from '../auth.context.token.js';
+import type { UmbModalAppAuthConfig, UmbModalAppAuthValue } from './umb-app-auth-modal.token.js';
+import { UmbModalBaseElement } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
 import { customElement, html } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/external/lit';
 
 import '../components/umb-auth-view.element.js';

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/modals/umb-app-auth-modal.token.ts

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
-import { UmbModalToken } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
 import type { UmbUserLoginState } from '../types.js';
+import { UmbModalToken } from '@umbraco-cms/backoffice/modal';
 
 export type UmbModalAppAuthConfig = {
 	userLoginState: UmbUserLoginState;
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@ export type UmbModalAppAuthConfig = {
 export type UmbModalAppAuthValue = {
 	/**
 	 * An indicator of whether the authentication was successful.
-	 * @required
 	 */
 	success?: boolean;
 };

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/modals/umb-auth-timeout-modal.element.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+import type { UmbAuthTimeoutModalElement } from './umb-auth-timeout-modal.element.js';
+import './umb-auth-timeout-modal.element.js';
+import { aTimeout, expect } from '@open-wc/testing';
+
+describe('UmbAuthTimeoutModalElement', () => {
+	let element: UmbAuthTimeoutModalElement;
+	let expiredCalls: number;
+	const realDateNow = Date.now;
+
+	beforeEach(() => {
+		expiredCalls = 0;
+		element = document.createElement('umb-auth-timeout-modal');
+		element.data = {
+			remainingTimeInSeconds: 30,
+			onLogout: () => {},
+			onContinue: () => {},
+			onExpired: () => {
+				expiredCalls++;
+			},
+		};
+	});
+
+	afterEach(() => {
+		Date.now = realDateNow;
+		element.remove();
+	});
+
+	it('counts down once per second', async () => {
+		document.body.appendChild(element);
+		await aTimeout(1200);
+
+		expect(expiredCalls).to.equal(0);
+		// Allow for a slow event loop having delivered an extra tick
+		expect(element.shadowRoot?.textContent).to.match(/2[89]/);
+	});
+
+	it('expires based on the wall clock, not the tick count (e.g. after system sleep)', async () => {
+		document.body.appendChild(element);
+
+		// Simulate system sleep / background-tab throttling: the wall clock jumps past the
+		// deadline while the countdown interval has not been firing.
+		Date.now = () => realDateNow() + 60_000;
+
+		// Wait for a single interval tick — it should detect the deadline has passed.
+		await aTimeout(1200);
+
+		expect(expiredCalls).to.equal(1);
+	});
+});

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/modals/umb-auth-timeout-modal.element.ts

@@ -25,12 +25,22 @@ export class UmbAuthTimeoutModalElement extends UmbModalBaseElement<UmbModalAuth
 	}
 
 	#startCountdown() {
+		// Guard against a leaked interval if the element is reconnected
+		if (this.#interval) {
+			clearInterval(this.#interval);
+		}
 		this._remainingTimeInSeconds = this.data?.remainingTimeInSeconds ?? 60;
+		// Count down against an absolute deadline rather than the number of ticks — interval
+		// timers are paused/throttled during system sleep and in background tabs, which would
+		// otherwise leave the countdown showing time that has already passed.
+		const deadline = Date.now() + this._remainingTimeInSeconds * 1000;
 		this.#interval = setInterval(() => {
-			if (this._remainingTimeInSeconds > 0) {
+			const secondsLeft = Math.ceil((deadline - Date.now()) / 1000);
-				this._remainingTimeInSeconds--;
+			if (secondsLeft > 0) {
+				this._remainingTimeInSeconds = secondsLeft;
 			} else {
 				clearInterval(this.#interval);
+				this._remainingTimeInSeconds = 0;
 				// Timer expired — notify the controller so it can call timeOut() and
 				// open the re-auth popup. Submit (not reject) so the catch block is
 				// not triggered.

src/Umbraco.Web.UI.Client/src/packages/core/auth/umb-auth-client.ts

@@ -44,6 +44,12 @@ export interface UmbTokenEndpointResponse {
 	issuedAt: number;
 }
 
+export interface UmbTokenRequestResult {
+	response?: UmbTokenEndpointResponse;
+	/** True when the server definitively rejected the grant (e.g. `invalid_grant`) — retrying cannot succeed. */
+	fatal?: boolean;
+}
+
 /**
  * Minimal PKCE + token endpoint client.
  * All token values are `[redacted]` with cookie auth — this client only tracks session timing.
@@ -129,7 +135,7 @@ export class UmbAuthClient {
 		});
 		/* eslint-enable @typescript-eslint/naming-convention */
 
-		return this.#performTokenRequest(body);
+		return (await this.#performTokenRequest(body)).response;
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -139,7 +145,7 @@ export class UmbAuthClient {
 	 * the real token from the httpOnly cookie. The parameter must be present
 	 * (OpenIddict's pipeline requires it) but the value is ignored by the handler.
 	 */
-	async refreshToken(): Promise<UmbTokenEndpointResponse | undefined> {
+	async refreshToken(): Promise<UmbTokenRequestResult> {
 		/* eslint-disable @typescript-eslint/naming-convention */
 		const body = new URLSearchParams({
 			client_id: this.#clientId,
@@ -184,7 +190,7 @@ export class UmbAuthClient {
 		this.#state = undefined;
 	}
 
-	async #performTokenRequest(body: URLSearchParams): Promise<UmbTokenEndpointResponse | undefined> {
+	async #performTokenRequest(body: URLSearchParams): Promise<UmbTokenRequestResult> {
 		try {
 			const response = await fetch(this.#endpoints.tokenEndpoint, {
 				method: 'POST',
@@ -195,7 +201,7 @@ export class UmbAuthClient {
 
 			if (!response.ok) {
 				console.error('[UmbAuthClient] Token request failed:', response.status, response.statusText);
-				return undefined;
+				return { fatal: await this.#isDefinitiveRejection(response) };
 			}
 
 			const json = await response.json();
@@ -205,10 +211,28 @@ export class UmbAuthClient {
 			}
 			const issuedAt = json.issued_at ?? Math.floor(Date.now() / 1000);
 
-			return { expiresIn, issuedAt };
+			return { response: { expiresIn, issuedAt } };
 		} catch (error) {
+			// Network errors are transient — the request may succeed on a later attempt
 			console.error('[UmbAuthClient] Token request error:', error);
-			return undefined;
+			return {};
+		}
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * An OAuth error response (e.g. `invalid_grant` for an expired or revoked refresh token)
+	 * means the grant itself was rejected — retrying with the same token cannot succeed.
+	 * Other statuses (5xx, 429) are treated as transient.
+	 * @param {Response} response The non-OK token endpoint response.
+	 * @returns {Promise<boolean>} True when the failure is a definitive rejection.
+	 */
+	async #isDefinitiveRejection(response: Response): Promise<boolean> {
+		if (response.status !== 400 && response.status !== 401) return false;
+		try {
+			const json = await response.json();
+			return typeof json?.error === 'string';
+		} catch {
+			return false;
 		}
 	}
 }