408Request Timeout
408 Request Timeout means the server did not receive a complete request message within the time it was prepared to wait. It is a client-side timeout, not a gateway timeout.
What does it mean?
The client may repeat the request if it is still in transit. If the connection is no longer usable, a new connection will be used.
Do not confuse 408 with 504 Gateway Timeout. 504 means a gateway did not get a timely response from an upstream server; 408 means the origin server did not get a complete request from the client.
When does it happen?
- A slow or unstable client connection.
- A large upload that takes longer than the server's header or body timeout.
- A keep-alive connection sits idle for too long.
- A server or load balancer timeout is set too aggressively.
How do you fix it?
If you run the server
- Retry idempotent requests; do not blindly retry non-idempotent ones.
- Check the timeout budget at the client, load balancer, and origin.
- Return a clear error and close the connection if the request is incomplete.
If you are just visiting
- Reload the page or retry the upload.
- If it keeps happening, check your connection and try a smaller upload.
