What does HTTP status 408 (Request Timeout) mean?

 
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HTTP_STATUS_REQUEST_TIMEOUT

The timeout is about the inbound request, not the time spent executing application code. A server can close the connection after 408 because it no longer expects the remaining request bytes.

Check slow clients, idle keep-alive connections, upload rate, reverse-proxy read timeouts, and network interruptions. Retrying is appropriate only after confirming that the request was not processed.

RFC 9110: HTTP Semantics

Operational meaning of HTTP 408 for HTTP_STATUS_REQUEST_TIMEOUT

HTTP 408 (this result) is a client-error response. AllStat records its meaning as “408 Request Timeout”. Interpret it with the request method, selected representation, response headers, and the specification or product that defines the code; the number alone does not prove that application work completed.

Client and server handling

  • Treat this result as a condition visible at the request boundary; inspect authentication, syntax, preconditions, routing, and resource state before retrying.
  • preserve the response body and challenge or retry-related headers because they often carry the actionable reason.
  • automatic retry is safe only when the method and status contract allow it and the request has been corrected.

For telemetry, record HTTP 408, method, authority, route template rather than secrets, response headers relevant to caching or retry, latency, upstream identity, and whether the response originated at the application or an intermediary.


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