5xx Server error
HTTP 500 Internal Server Error
A generic error: the server ran into an unexpected condition that kept it from fulfilling the request. It says nothing about the cause; that is in the server’s own error log.
Defined in RFC 9110, section 15.6.1(opens in a new tab)
//_01 Uptime checks
Is 500 up or down for a monitor?
Uptimecheck HTTP monitor
Default settings
Down. It is outside the default 200–399 range, so a monitor reports an outage once a second check confirms it. If 500 is the answer you expect from that URL, add it to the monitor’s expected status codes.
Is it down? checker
Free, at /is-it-down/
Down. A 5xx means the server, or something in front of it, failed to answer.
//_02 Causes and fixes
Why you see 500 and what to do
Typical causes
- An uncaught exception or fatal error in the application, often right after a deploy or plugin update.
- A broken configuration, such as an invalid .htaccess rule.
- Wrong file permissions, a full disk or a database that won’t answer.
If you run the site
- Read the application and web server error logs at the time of the error.
- Roll back the last deploy or update if the errors started with it.
- Show a helpful error page, but keep the 500 status.
If you’re a visitor
- Reload in a minute; it is a problem on the site’s side.
Know the moment your site stops answering as it should
An Uptimecheck monitor requests your page as often as every minute, checks the status code against the ones you expect, confirms a failure with a second check and then alerts you.
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Questions
What does HTTP 500 mean?
A generic error: the server ran into an unexpected condition that kept it from fulfilling the request. It says nothing about the cause; that is in the server’s own error log.
Does an uptime monitor count 500 as down?
Down. It is outside the default 200–399 range, so a monitor reports an outage once a second check confirms it. If 500 is the answer you expect from that URL, add it to the monitor’s expected status codes.
Downtime is obsolete.
Set up your first monitor in under a minute, or look around the live demo first.
14-day free trial · No credit card required