curl Exit Code 28 in CI: Operation Timed Out
curl exit code 28 means the operation timed out - a connect or transfer exceeded curl's timeout budget.
A step exiting 28 from curl took too long. This is one of the most common transient network failures in CI.
What it means
Exit 28 is curl's CURLE_OPERATION_TIMEDOUT. The connection or data transfer did not complete within --connect-timeout/--max-time (or the default).
Common causes
- A slow or overloaded upstream server.
- Network congestion or packet loss.
- A too-tight timeout for a large download.
How to fix it
Add sensible --connect-timeout/--max-time and --retry flags, or raise the budget for large transfers. Because timeouts are usually transient, Latchkey auto-retries this mechanical failure class instead of failing the build.
Reading exit codes in CI
- A shell reports
128 + Nwhen a process is terminated by signal N: 137 is SIGKILL (usually the out-of-memory killer), 143 is SIGTERM, 130 is SIGINT. - Exit code 137 in a container almost always means the kernel killed it for memory. Nothing in the application log will explain it.
- A pipeline reports the exit status of its LAST command unless
pipefailis set, which is how a failing command piped toteeproduces a green build. - Some tools use non-zero codes for non-failure outcomes. Check the tool documentation before treating any non-zero code as an error.
Frequently asked questions
curl Exit Code 28 in CI: Operation Timed Out?
A step exiting 28 from curl took too long. This is one of the most common transient network failures in CI.
What it means?
Exit 28 is curl's CURLE_OPERATION_TIMEDOUT. The connection or data transfer did not complete within --connect-timeout/--max-time (or the default).
How to fix it?
Add sensible --connect-timeout/--max-time and --retry flags, or raise the budget for large transfers. Because timeouts are usually transient, Latchkey auto-retries this mechanical failure class instead of failing the build.
Related guides
CI Exit Codes: What Each One Actually Tells YouExit codes you see in CI logs and what each indicates, including why 137 is never an application error and
curl Exit Code 35 in CI: SSL/TLS Handshake Failurecurl exit code 35 means an SSL/TLS handshake failed - a protocol, cipher, or certificate negotiation problem.
curl Exit Code 56 in CI: Failure Receiving Network Datacurl exit code 56 means a failure receiving network data - the connection was reset or dropped mid-transfer.