diff --git a/packages/review-editor/hooks/useFileSemanticChanges.ts b/packages/review-editor/hooks/useFileSemanticChanges.ts
index 6acb84de..627e2409 100644
--- a/packages/review-editor/hooks/useFileSemanticChanges.ts
+++ b/packages/review-editor/hooks/useFileSemanticChanges.ts
@@ -9,32 +9,60 @@ import { isOrphanChange } from '../dock/panels/semanticDiffShared';
 /**
  * Single shared fetch of the semantic diff, cached by the active patch so every
  * file-header badge reuses one request (sem already caches per-patch server-side).
+ *
+ * Failures are retried with backoff and never memoized — in PR mode the server
+ * parks this request while the checkout warms up (a clone that can take
+ * minutes), and a connection killed mid-wait must not pin every badge to empty
+ * for the rest of the session.
  */
 let cacheKey: string | null = null;
 let cachePromise: Promise<SemanticDiffResponse> | null = null;
 
+const RETRY_DELAYS_MS = [5_000, 15_000, 30_000];
+
+async function fetchSemanticDiff(): Promise<SemanticDiffResponse> {
+  const res = await fetch('/api/semantic-diff');
+  if (!res.ok) throw new Error('Semantic diff failed');
+  return res.json() as Promise<SemanticDiffResponse>;
+}
+
 function loadSemanticDiff(rawPatch: string): Promise<SemanticDiffResponse> {
   if (cacheKey === rawPatch && cachePromise) return cachePromise;
   cacheKey = rawPatch;
-  cachePromise = fetch('/api/semantic-diff')
-    .then((res) => {
-      if (!res.ok) throw new Error('Semantic diff failed');
-      return res.json() as Promise<SemanticDiffResponse>;
-    })
-    .catch((error): SemanticDiffResponse => ({
-      status: 'error',
-      reason: 'fetch-failed',
-      message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
-    }))
-    .then((data) => {
-      // Logged once per patch (the promise is cached) rather than per badge, so a
-      // systemic failure leaves a trace instead of every badge vanishing silently.
-      if (data.status !== 'ok') {
-        console.error('Failed to load semantic diff for file badges:', data.message ?? data.reason ?? data.status);
+
+  const attempt = async (): Promise<SemanticDiffResponse> => {
+    for (let i = 0; ; i++) {
+      let result: SemanticDiffResponse;
+      try {
+        result = await fetchSemanticDiff();
+      } catch (error) {
+        result = {
+          status: 'error',
+          reason: 'fetch-failed',
+          message: error instanceof Error ? error.message : String(error),
+        };
       }
-      return data;
-    });
-  return cachePromise;
+      // 'unavailable' means sem isn't installed — retrying won't change that.
+      if (result.status !== 'error' || i >= RETRY_DELAYS_MS.length) return result;
+      await new Promise((resolve) => setTimeout(resolve, RETRY_DELAYS_MS[i]));
+      if (cacheKey !== rawPatch) return result; // patch changed mid-retry; let the new fetch win
+    }
+  };
+
+  const promise = attempt().then((data) => {
+    // Logged once per patch (the promise is cached) rather than per badge, so a
+    // systemic failure leaves a trace instead of every badge vanishing silently.
+    if (data.status !== 'ok') {
+      console.error('Failed to load semantic diff for file badges:', data.message ?? data.reason ?? data.status);
+    }
+    if (data.status === 'error' && cacheKey === rawPatch && cachePromise === promise) {
+      cacheKey = null;
+      cachePromise = null;
+    }
+    return data;
+  });
+  cachePromise = promise;
+  return promise;
 }
 
 export interface FileSemanticChanges {
diff --git a/packages/server/annotate.ts b/packages/server/annotate.ts
index 4c99eea7..5cd36116 100644
--- a/packages/server/annotate.ts
+++ b/packages/server/annotate.ts
@@ -178,6 +178,9 @@ export async function startAnnotateServer(
       server = Bun.serve({
         hostname: getServerHostname(),
         port: configuredPort,
+        // Bun's default 10s idleTimeout kills AI SSE streams that stall
+        // between bytes (e.g. while a permission prompt waits on the user).
+        idleTimeout: 0,
 
         async fetch(req, server) {
           const url = new URL(req.url);
diff --git a/packages/server/goal-setup.ts b/packages/server/goal-setup.ts
index 57d9c99c..9854635a 100644
--- a/packages/server/goal-setup.ts
+++ b/packages/server/goal-setup.ts
@@ -110,6 +110,8 @@ export async function startGoalSetupServer(
       server = Bun.serve({
         hostname: getServerHostname(),
         port: configuredPort,
+        // Bun's default 10s idleTimeout kills long-running requests.
+        idleTimeout: 0,
 
         async fetch(req) {
           const url = new URL(req.url);
diff --git a/packages/server/index.ts b/packages/server/index.ts
index a2c68b0b..c3363e84 100644
--- a/packages/server/index.ts
+++ b/packages/server/index.ts
@@ -215,6 +215,9 @@ export async function startPlannotatorServer(
       server = Bun.serve({
         hostname: getServerHostname(),
         port: configuredPort,
+        // Bun's default 10s idleTimeout kills AI SSE streams that stall
+        // between bytes (e.g. while a permission prompt waits on the user).
+        idleTimeout: 0,
 
         async fetch(req, server) {
           const url = new URL(req.url);
diff --git a/packages/server/review.ts b/packages/server/review.ts
index f07d3008..91c93c14 100644
--- a/packages/server/review.ts
+++ b/packages/server/review.ts
@@ -657,6 +657,10 @@ export async function startReviewServer(
       server = Bun.serve({
         hostname: getServerHostname(),
         port: configuredPort,
+        // Bun's default 10s idleTimeout kills requests that legitimately park:
+        // PR-mode endpoints await the background checkout warmup (a clone that
+        // can take minutes) and AI SSE streams can stall between bytes.
+        idleTimeout: 0,
 
         async fetch(req, server) {
           const url = new URL(req.url);
diff --git a/packages/shared/pr-github.test.ts b/packages/shared/pr-github.test.ts
index 4dfc1c49..4f7d9713 100644
--- a/packages/shared/pr-github.test.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/pr-github.test.ts
@@ -197,6 +197,9 @@ describe("reconstructGhPatch", () => {
     expect(lines[0]).toBe("diff --git a/before.ts b/after.ts");
     expect(parseDiffGitHeader(lines[0])).toEqual({ oldPath: "before.ts", newPath: "after.ts" });
     expect(parseDiffMetadataPathLines(lines)).toEqual({ oldPath: "before.ts", newPath: "after.ts" });
+    // Pierre's parser classifies renames off the similarity line — a patched
+    // rename must carry a sub-100% score or it renders as a plain change.
+    expect(lines[1]).toBe("similarity index 99%");
   });
 
   test("pure rename (no patch field) emits a header-only section", () => {
@@ -204,7 +207,9 @@ describe("reconstructGhPatch", () => {
       { filename: "after.ts", previous_filename: "before.ts", status: "renamed" },
     ]);
 
-    expect(patch).toBe("diff --git a/before.ts b/after.ts\nrename from before.ts\nrename to after.ts\n");
+    expect(patch).toBe(
+      "diff --git a/before.ts b/after.ts\nsimilarity index 100%\nrename from before.ts\nrename to after.ts\n",
+    );
   });
 
   test("entry without patch (binary / per-file too large) doesn't corrupt the next file's section", () => {
@@ -272,6 +277,7 @@ describe("reconstructGhPatch", () => {
       { filename: "copy.ts", previous_filename: "orig.ts", status: "copied", patch: "@@ -1 +1 @@\n-a\n+b" },
     ]);
 
+    expect(patch).toContain("similarity index 99%");
     expect(patch).toContain("copy from orig.ts");
     expect(patch).toContain("copy to copy.ts");
     expect(patch.split("\n")[0]).toBe("diff --git a/orig.ts b/copy.ts");
diff --git a/packages/shared/pr-github.ts b/packages/shared/pr-github.ts
index 1ca1de80..095f854b 100644
--- a/packages/shared/pr-github.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/pr-github.ts
@@ -103,10 +103,17 @@ export function reconstructGhPatch(files: GitHubFileEntry[]): string {
     const isDeleted = f.status === "removed";
 
     let header = `diff --git ${headerPathToken("a", oldPath)} ${headerPathToken("b", newPath)}`;
-    if (f.status === "renamed") {
-      header += `\nrename from ${metadataPathToken(oldPath)}\nrename to ${metadataPathToken(newPath)}`;
-    } else if (f.status === "copied") {
-      header += `\ncopy from ${metadataPathToken(oldPath)}\ncopy to ${metadataPathToken(newPath)}`;
+    if (f.status === "renamed" || f.status === "copied") {
+      // Git always prints a similarity score before rename/copy lines, and
+      // diff parsers (e.g. Pierre's) key rename classification off it —
+      // without the line a rename renders as a plain change with no old path.
+      // The files API doesn't expose the score: a patch-less entry is by
+      // definition a 100% match; for patched entries emit a synthetic <100%
+      // value (consumers only branch on 100% vs not).
+      header += f.patch ? "\nsimilarity index 99%" : "\nsimilarity index 100%";
+      header += f.status === "renamed"
+        ? `\nrename from ${metadataPathToken(oldPath)}\nrename to ${metadataPathToken(newPath)}`
+        : `\ncopy from ${metadataPathToken(oldPath)}\ncopy to ${metadataPathToken(newPath)}`;
     }
     if (isNew) {
       header += "\nnew file mode 100644";
diff --git a/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.test.ts b/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.test.ts
index 9dedf08a..5904afbd 100644
--- a/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.test.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.test.ts
@@ -152,6 +152,38 @@ describe("fetchGlMR raw_diffs fallback", () => {
     expect(calls.some((c) => c.includes("/diffs?per_page=100"))).toBe(true);
   });
 
+  test("reconstructed renames carry a similarity line so parsers classify them as renames", async () => {
+    const entries = JSON.stringify([
+      {
+        old_path: "src/old.ts",
+        new_path: "src/new.ts",
+        new_file: false,
+        deleted_file: false,
+        renamed_file: true,
+        diff: "", // pure rename — GitLab sends an empty diff
+      },
+      {
+        old_path: "src/before.ts",
+        new_path: "src/after.ts",
+        new_file: false,
+        deleted_file: false,
+        renamed_file: true,
+        diff: "@@ -1 +1 @@\n-a\n+b\n",
+      },
+    ]);
+    const { runtime } = gitlabRuntime({
+      rawDiffs: { exitCode: 1, stderr: "404 Not Found" },
+      diffs: { exitCode: 0, stdout: entries },
+    });
+    const result = await fetchGlMR(runtime, REF);
+    expect(result.rawPatch).toContain(
+      "diff --git a/src/old.ts b/src/new.ts\nsimilarity index 100%\nrename from src/old.ts\nrename to src/new.ts",
+    );
+    expect(result.rawPatch).toContain(
+      "diff --git a/src/before.ts b/src/after.ts\nsimilarity index 99%\nrename from src/before.ts\nrename to src/after.ts",
+    );
+  });
+
   test("falls back when raw_diffs returns empty (oversized MR)", async () => {
     const { runtime, calls } = gitlabRuntime({
       rawDiffs: { exitCode: 0, stdout: "" },
diff --git a/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.ts b/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.ts
index ab8edb3e..e0125072 100644
--- a/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/pr-gitlab.ts
@@ -63,6 +63,10 @@ function reconstructPatch(diffs: GitLabDiffEntry[]): string {
 
     let header = `diff --git a/${displayOld} b/${displayNew}`;
     if (d.renamed_file) {
+      // Diff parsers (e.g. Pierre's) key rename classification off the
+      // similarity line; the API doesn't expose the score, so emit 100% for
+      // pure renames (empty diff) and a synthetic <100% otherwise.
+      header += d.diff.trim() === "" ? "\nsimilarity index 100%" : "\nsimilarity index 99%";
       header += `\nrename from ${d.old_path}\nrename to ${d.new_path}`;
     }
     if (d.new_file) {