--- title: "Temporary errors in Pipelines" slug: "temporary-errors-in-pipelines" updated: 2026-04-24T15:20:09Z published: 2026-04-24T15:20:09Z --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.quickbase.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Temporary errors in Pipelines Pipelines sometimes displays temporary errors when it communicates with Quickbase services or APIs. These errors are also known as transient errors, which means the issue is short-lived and usually resolves automatically because Pipelines retries the operation. This article explains when these errors appear and what they mean for users: - [Quickbase is experiencing technical difficulties](/v1/docs/temporary-errors-in-pipelines#quickbase-is-experiencing-technical-difficulties) - [Quickbase is temporarily unavailable](/v1/docs/temporary-errors-in-pipelines#quickbase-is-temporarily-unavailable) - [Quickbase app is experiencing unusually heavy traffic](/v1/docs/temporary-errors-in-pipelines#quickbase-app-is-experiencing-unusually-heavy-traffic) ## Quickbase is experiencing technical difficulties The error message `Quickbase is experiencing technical difficulties. We'll retry shortly.` is displayed when Pipelines encounters temporary communication issues with Quickbase servers. ### When this error appears This message is shown when any of the following example conditions are detected during communication with Quickbase: #### HTTP server errors (5xx status codes) | Status code | Description | | --- | --- | | 500 | Internal Server Error—Quickbase server encountered an unexpected condition | | 502 | Bad Gateway—An upstream server returned an invalid response | | 503 | Service Unavailable—Quickbase servers are temporarily overloaded or down for maintenance | | 504 | Gateway Timeout—Quickbase server didn't respond in time | | Any 5xx | Any server-side error from Quickbase infrastructure | #### Resource locked (423 status code) The 423 Locked status indicates the resource being accessed is currently locked. This can happen when: - Quickbase is performing maintenance on a table/app - A database operation is temporarily blocking access - Concurrent operations conflict with each other #### Unexpected response content types This occurs when Quickbase returns a response that doesn't match the expected format (JSON, XML, CSV, plain text, or binary download), such as: - An HTML error page (often from CDN/proxy layers like Cloudflare) - Unexpected `Content-Type` headers - Malformed responses #### Network/connectivity issues - Connection timeouts - DNS resolution failures - SSL/TLS handshake failures - Connection resets or interruptions - Proxy connection failures ### How to resolve the issue 1. Wait and monitor—In most cases, the automatic retries will succeed 2. Check Quickbase status—Visit [Quickbase's status page](https://quickbasestatus.status.page/) to see if there are known issues 3. Retry manually—If the pipeline run ultimately fails, try running it again later ### Automatic retry behavior When this error occurs, Pipelines automatically retries the operation: - Multiple retry attempts are made with exponential backoff - The system waits progressively longer between retries - The operation is only marked as failed after all retry attempts are exhausted ## Quickbase is temporarily unavailable The error message `Quickbase is temporarily unavailable. We'll retry shortly.`appears when Pipelines encounters temporary issues with machine-to-machine (M2M) authentication between Pipelines and Quickbase. ### When this error appears #### Quickbase API response (error code 22—sign-in required) - This error code indicates that Quickbase could not validate the authentication credentials provided in the request. For example, using App ID / Table ID in a step from a realm where the user is not-authenticated. #### Tokenless account authentication issues - A temporary ticket has expired and needs to be refreshed - Session synchronization issues between Pipelines and Quickbase servers - Authentication headers are not properly recognized due to timing issues #### Machine-to-machine (M2M) authentication failures - Clock Desync—The timestamp in the M2M authentication headers doesn't match the server's expected time window - Mismatch—Temporary issues with shared synchronization between services ### Why this error occurs This error typically indicates one of these scenarios: 1. Temporary session expiration—The authentication session between Pipelines and Quickbase servers has expired and needs renewal 2. Server-side timing issues—Brief synchronization problems between Quickbase's authentication systems 3. Maintenance windows—Quickbase authentication services may be temporarily unavailable during maintenance ### How to resolve the issue 1. Wait and monitor—In most cases, the automatic retries will succeed 2. Re-run the pipeline—If the pipeline fails, re-running it often resolves the issue 3. Check account status—Ensure your Quickbase account is active and in good standing ### Automatic retry behavior When this error occurs, Pipelines will automatically retry the operation: - This is classified as a transient error, meaning Pipelines will automatically retry the operation - The system waits progressively longer between retries - The operation is only marked as failed after all retry attempts are exhausted ## Quickbase app is experiencing unusually heavy traffic The error message, `Quickbase app is experiencing unusually heavy traffic. We'll retry shortly.` , appears when Pipelines encounters rate limiting from Quickbase. It indicates that too many requests are being made to the Quickbase API in a short period of time, and Quickbase is asking Pipelines to slow down. ### What causes rate limiting #### Quickbase-side rate limits | Scenario | Description | | --- | --- | | API rate limits | Quickbase enforces per-realm and per-app API call limits | | Concurrent requests | Too many simultaneous requests to the same app/table | | Large data operations | Bulk operations that consume significant server resources | | Peak usage times | Higher traffic across the Quickbase platform | | Realm resource limits | Your realm may have specific quotas configured | #### Pipeline-side rate limits | Scenario | Description | | --- | --- | | High-frequency pipelines | Pipelines running very frequently (e.g., every minute) | | Large batch operations | Processing many records in rapid succession | | Multiple concurrent pipelines | Several pipelines accessing the same Quickbase app simultaneously | | Loop operations | Pipeline loops that make many API calls per iteration | ### Why this error occurs This error typically indicates: - High API usage—Your pipelines are making many Quickbase API calls - Shared realm limits—Other users or apps in your realm are consuming API quota - Temporary Quickbase congestion—Platform-wide high traffic periods - Aggressive pipeline schedules—Pipelines running too frequently ### How to resolve the issue 1. Wait and monitor—In most cases, the automatic retries will succeed 2. Re-run the pipeline—If the pipeline fails, re-running it often resolves the issue 3. Review pipeline design—If the issue occurs repeatedly, adjust pipeline schedules or batch sizes ### Automatic retry behavior - Most rate limiting issues resolve automatically - Pipeline execution continues once limits reset ### Best practices to avoid rate limiting #### Pipeline design - Batch operations—Use bulk record steps instead of individual record operations - Reduce frequency—Space out pipeline runs (e.g., every 5 minutes instead of every minute) - Consolidate pipelines—Combine multiple small pipelines into fewer larger ones