# Recent server timeout errors — anyone else getting them? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [December 7, 2019, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514 "2019-12-07T16:13:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2019, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/41 "2019-12-08T21:44:13Z")
> [@Turble](#): > > It seems that when there are a lot of posts on a board vBulletin just sometimes gets bogged down. I’ve seen it happen on other boards like when the poker forums at [twoplustwo.com](http://twoplustwo.com) became popular and we started seeing the same time-outs there. The solution for those other boards was to switch away from vBulletin. Given the decrease in board usage and the increase in available server power this is unlikely. Unless there are bad actors attempting to swamp the server system. (Not necessarily our part of it, but the server farm it is part of.) Given what I’ve seen, once such an attack is detected and fought off, the server admins are loathe to talk about it since that might accidentally spill info the attackers could use to mount a more effective attack. So a “Something happened and it was taken care of.” is often the most we will hear. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/42 "2019-12-09T01:33:39Z")
I had two periods of the things today. Unlike my personal norm if I hit refresh I usually got to the page I wanted. Compared to say a year or more ago, this was nuttin. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/43 "2019-12-09T04:39:05Z")
I just got an error, at 2036 hrs Sun 08 Dec, in the usual place for me: from my Subscriptions page, selecting to view the latest post in the Trivia Dominoes thread game. ETA: At 2040 hrs, doing the same thing — no error. ---
**Author:** ![atimnie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atimnie/32/11_2.png) [@atimnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atimnie)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/44 "2019-12-09T16:44:19Z")
Still getting serious delays on the replies, up to 20 seconds before the page even starts to redirect, and twice as long before the page fully loads. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/45 "2019-12-10T01:41:12Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Given the decrease in board usage and the increase in available server power this is unlikely. Unless there are bad actors attempting to swamp the server system. (Not necessarily our part of it, but the server farm it is part of.) > > Given what I’ve seen, once such an attack is detected and fought off, the server admins are loathe to talk about it since that might accidentally spill info the attackers could use to mount a more effective attack. > > So a “Something happened and it was taken care of.” is often the most we will hear. We don’t even know if that happened. I do note that this install is over ten years old now. And it has been worked on a lot in that time and generally beaten like a rented mule in between any maintenance or upgrade that might have occured in that time. It’s much more likely that it’s just wore out. (Like most of us.) In our earliest days and for a long time thereafter the big problem was that whatever server capacity we had quickly got eaten up; we were endlessly trying to reach a point where there was enough pipe for everybody but as soon as the pipe got bigger demand just surged and we were back to where we started or worse, sometimes within a very short time. I vividly remember everyone being all proud about a spiffy new server and promises that “This will fix EVERYTHING, it’s so big!” and in six weeks demand had risen so high the server was thrashing around like an orca. Six weeks. I don’t think this is the issue nowadays but there are occasional hiccups; some days are worse than others. We apologize for them and appreciate you hanging in there with us as we look for ways to improve. Jenny your humble TubaDiva Administrator ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/46 "2019-12-10T08:02:06Z")
We’re hangin’ in, thanks again Jenny. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2019, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/47 "2019-12-11T19:23:36Z")
**Does this happen all the time?** No, but frequently. **Does it happen every day?** Yes, for the past few days. Not before then. **Does it happen multiple times per day?** Yes. **Does it seem to happen more at certain times of the day?** Not that I’ve noticed. I’ve also had it respond after several seconds, but when it does, the page loads very quickly. It doesn’t look to me like a throughput problem. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2019, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/48 "2019-12-11T20:11:32Z")
I rarely had troubles before about a week ago. It happens to me more in the morning (Chicago time) and evening than in the afternoon. I can count on it happening at least once per half-hour or so when I’m on the Board. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2019, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/49 "2019-12-12T01:05:38Z")
Like **Kent** , I’ve been experiencing these errors for about a week. In my case, they seem to be random, never happening at any specific time of day. They happen when I try to open a forum, when I try to open a thread, and when I try to preview a post. But weirdly, when I actually click Submit to post, I rarely get them. Interestingly, when I get the “Wait 30 seconds” message, I’ll often try again immediately; and things will work just fine. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2019, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/50 "2019-12-12T06:04:55Z")
Interesting — now, @2158hrs PST: 1. tried to load the latest Trivia Dominoes post from my Subscriptions page: slow loading, then got error 2. tried again, again slow loading, then got error 3. navigated to Thread Games subforum and from there tried to load the latest Trivia Dominoes post: it loaded quickly and properly ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2019, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/51 "2019-12-13T08:10:59Z")
getting slow loading/error nonsense again too. ---
**Author:** ![margin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/65b543/32.png) [@margin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/margin)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2019, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/52 "2019-12-14T16:39:28Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Frequently, yesterday and today. > > **504 Gateway Time-out > 502 Bad Gateway > Error: Server Error. The server encountered a temporary error and could not complete your request. Please try again in 30 seconds.** > > Are you also getting them? I keep getting logged out, often mid-comment. I mean, constantly. ---
**Author:** ![atimnie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atimnie/32/11_2.png) [@atimnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atimnie)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2019, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/53 "2019-12-14T17:14:03Z")
As bad as it’s been for me, I have never been logged out. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/54 "2019-12-17T13:24:33Z")
I do have one login issue, but it may just be cookie related. If I access the board by clicking a link in an email, I’m automatically logged in, but if I just open the board in a browser I have to log in manually. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/55 "2019-12-17T17:52:51Z")
I’m getting a lot of slow responses and timeouts over the last week or so. Is anyone looking in to this? ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/56 "2019-12-17T17:57:06Z")
Yes. Just about every other click on the site. ---
**Author:** ![GreysonCarlisle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a87d85/32.png) [@GreysonCarlisle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreysonCarlisle)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/57 "2019-12-17T18:03:46Z")
Almost nothing _but_ timeouts today. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/58 "2019-12-17T18:13:18Z")
Just a few minutes ago I couldn’t get on the message board at all. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/59 "2019-12-17T20:46:21Z")
I get an error message saying server timeout, try again in 30 seconds, but when I do, I’m told it’s a duplicate post. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514/60 "2019-12-17T21:44:13Z")
Ditto. Extremely slow [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/recent-server-timeout-errors-anyone-else-getting-them/844514.md?page=4)