How to stop Claude Code's unattended retry mode from waiting out a distant usage limit reset

When you run Claude Code unattended, such as in CI or overnight jobs, with retry watchdog mode (CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG=1), a session that hits a usage limit waits out the rest of the window until the limit resets. Version 2.1.301, released October 15, adds CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG_MAX_USAGE_LIMIT_WAIT_MS: set it alongside the watchdog and a request at a usage limit that resets too far away ends instead of waiting.

export CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG=1
export CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG_MAX_USAGE_LIMIT_WAIT_MS=<max wait>

The value format and default aren't documented yet: the variable is only in the changelog, not the environment variable reference. The similarly named CLAUDE_CODE_RETRY_WATCHDOG_MAX_WAIT_MS takes the maximum time to wait out 429 and 529 errors as whole milliseconds (1800000 is 30 minutes). The new variable also ends in _MS, but confirm the unit once it is documented.