How to handle timeouts in cURL

Unresponsive servers or slow networks can cause requests to hang, consuming resources and blocking other operations. Setting timeouts ensures that delays do not stall scripts indefinitely.

cURL offers --connect-timeout for initial handshakes and --max-time for overall request duration. Adjusting these limits keeps workflows efficient and responsive despite unreliable conditions.

Adopting timeouts improves reliability and prevents wasted time. By enforcing clear limits, developers can handle failures gracefully, trigger retries, or switch to alternative endpoints as needed.

1. Open a terminal.
2. Use --connect-timeout to limit connection attempts.

   $ curl --connect-timeout 5 "https://www.example.com/"

   If the server does not respond within 5 seconds, cURL stops trying.

3. Set --max-time to bound the total request duration.

   $ curl --max-time 10 "https://www.example.com/largefile"

   Stop after 10 seconds if data transfer is too slow.

4. Combine both options for granular control.

   $ curl --connect-timeout 3 --max-time 20 "https://www.example.com/api"

   Short connection timeout but a longer total timeout handles slow but reachable servers.

5. Test and refine timeout values to match network conditions.

   Adjusting values optimizes reliability and responsiveness.