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python requests timeout exception

Narkw Brahma

Narkw Brahma

• 1 min read

Handling Python Requests Timeout Exception

As a Python developer, I have faced situations where my requests to a server take longer than expected, and eventually, the connection times out. This is a common problem that can occur due to various reasons, such as network congestion, server overload, or slow internet connection. However, Python offers various options to handle this timeout exception and prevent it from affecting the application's performance.

Using Timeout Parameter in Requests

The Timeout parameter in the Requests module allows developers to specify the maximum time for the request to wait for a response from the server. If the server fails to respond within the specified time, the request will terminate and raise a timeout exception. Here's how to use the Timeout parameter:

import requests

url = 'https://example.com'
timeout = 5 # set timeout to 5 seconds

try:
    response = requests.get(url, timeout=timeout)
    response.raise_for_status() # raise an exception for 4xx or 5xx status codes
except requests.exceptions.Timeout:
    print('Request timed out!')
except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
    print('An error occurred:', e)

Using Retry Mechanism

Another way to handle timeout exceptions is to use a retry mechanism that retries the request after a specified interval until it gets a successful response. This approach is helpful when dealing with intermittent network issues, such as a slow internet connection. Here's how to use the Retry mechanism:

from requests.adapters import HTTPAdapter
from requests.packages.urllib3.util.retry import Retry

url = 'https://example.com'
retries = Retry(total=5, backoff_factor=0.1, status_forcelist=[ 500, 502, 503, 504 ])

session = requests.Session()
session.mount('https://', HTTPAdapter(max_retries=retries))

try:
    response = session.get(url)
    response.raise_for_status()
except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
    print('An error occurred:', e)

Conclusion

In conclusion, Python Requests Timeout exception is a common problem that developers face while sending requests to a remote server. However, Python offers multiple ways to handle this exception and prevent it from affecting the application's performance. While using the Timeout parameter is a straightforward and effective way to prevent the exception, using the retry mechanism handles intermittent network issues gracefully. It's up to the developer to choose the best approach based on their use case.

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