What the 504 Gateway Time-Out Error Means

All of us have at some point encountered this annoying error when accessing a web page, without knowing exactly what is happening and what we can do to solve it. In this article we are going to explain what the error 504 Gateway Time-Out, what their homes are and what solutions exist.

The first thing to clarify is that the aforementioned message, which appears on our computer screen, is a HTTP status code which warns us that a certain server has not received a response from another server when trying to load a web page or complete a request. This usually happens when a server acts as gateway or proxy and is unable to get a response from the original server.

This error can appear on any device that has an internet connection, from a desktop computer to a laptop, including a smartphone or tablet. The text displayed on the screen may be different, depending on the customization of each web page browser. These are some examples:

• 504 Gateway timeout
• Http504
• 504 Error
• Gateway Timeout (504)
• HTTP Error 504 – Gateway Timeout.

In any case, it is the same problem. Let us now analyze its causes and solutions,

Why does 504 Gateway Time-Out error occur?

Although the message we see on the screen classifies this error as a server failure, the truth is that there are many reasons that can cause this situation. Sometimes it is a momentary circumstance, while other times it is a more complex cause. These are the most common reasons:

server overload

It is one of the most common reasons. It is quite common that the destination server, that is, the one we want to access from our computer, is overloaded with too many requests. The more you receive, the slower you respond. And if it takes too long, the error message appears.

Other times the server is overloaded not because it has received too many requests, but because does not have sufficient resources to respond to them. In any case, the result is the same.

Connectivity problems between servers

In many cases, the late slow response of the original server is caused by a slow or overloaded connection to the proxy server. Or because interruptions in the connection between both servers.

Server misconfiguration

Proxy server configuration errors are other reasons that can lead to the unfortunate 504 Gateway Time-Out error and the blocking or delay of requests.

Likewise, sometimes, it is a timeout incorrectly configured which causes the failure. He timeout is the time limit for the server to receive a response. If it is assigned a value that is too low, slower requests are rejected by the server, which does not have the "patience" to handle them.

Outdated or misconfigured DNS

When changes have occurred to the records, resulting in bad configurations or DNS Without updating, the server cannot correctly resolve the domain to an IP address, blocking requests. Then the 504 Gateway Time-Out error also appears.

Code errors on the web

It also can locate the problem on the website or application you want to access, and not on the server. This happens, for example, when there are code errors that prevent queries from being made in the database or when a website depends on external resources to function, and they do not respond appropriately.

Solutions for 504 Gateway Time-Out Error

Let's move on to the solutions. These are sometimes in the hands of the end users themselves, but on other occasions it is the server administrators (who are usually also the owners of the websites) who are the only ones who can solve the problems. Let's look at both cases:

What can the end user do?

When the problems are not at the source, that is, in the server or the Proxy, you can try to solve the 504 Gateway Time-Out error by trying one of these actions:

• Check Internet Connection. It is something quite obvious, but many times the most basic thing is overlooked.
• Refresh the Page. If it is a temporary error, you can reload it after a few seconds to check that the error has disappeared.
• Clear cache and cookies.
• Try to access through another network or another device, in order to rule out local problems.
• Contact website technical support to report the error and request help.

What can the site and server administrator do?

Obviously, he is the one who has the key to solving problems that directly or indirectly affect the server and that often cause the 504 Gateway Time-Out error. These are some of the possible actions:

• Verify connectivity between the proxy server and the main serverthrough tools like ping.
• Improve server capacity, providing it with more and better resources.
• Increase Timeout Values, and thus give the requests a little more time to be completed.
• Review and reset Proxy and Firewall settings, which could be blocking or slowing down requests.