1

This is my first day actively participating on StackExchange but I've experienced at least two outages today. Is it always like this?

Edit: This just made me curious about whether it was a known issue that stack exchange is bumping up against scalability concerns similar to Twitter, Facebook, etc.

5
  • I got the messages too, but that was maintenance, not outage.
    – user2567
    Commented Mar 9, 2011 at 22:07
  • IMO maintenance is done during off hours. Anything that affects the customers ability to us a site is an outage
    – Evan
    Commented Mar 10, 2011 at 15:56
  • 5
    what is off hours on a website with global audience?
    – user2567
    Commented Mar 10, 2011 at 16:04
  • I dunno, like I said I'm new here but after 6pm new answers slowed down exponentially.
    – Evan
    Commented Mar 10, 2011 at 18:32
  • The post-6pm slow down is probably because people went home from work.
    – StuperUser
    Commented Mar 11, 2011 at 16:16

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
1

Outages happen, but in the year-plus that I have been using StackOverflow and the related sites extensively, I have only seen them go down for more than a minute or two on one occasion that I can remember.

Given the incredible amount of traffic that these sites handles, I'd say that their responsiveness and uptime are remarkable.

2
  • Thank you, all I was asking about is frequency. Two outages in one day just made me curious about whether it was a known issue that stack exchange is bumping up against scalability concerns similar to Twitter, Facebook, etc.
    – Evan
    Commented Mar 10, 2011 at 18:36
  • There was a notice when I checked stackoverflow earlier in the day, apologizing in advance for possible interruption due to a server move. Later I got an error when browsing the site with a cute picture of a kitten (cat?) trying to use a laptop/mouse. I'd give them credit for the way they handled it.
    – hardmath
    Commented Mar 13, 2011 at 16:59
0

The sites are occasionally taken offline for maintenance purposes. Sometimes it's just one site, sometimes more than one. The outage typically does not last long, though. Revisit in a while and chances are the site will be back up.

0

You must visit when I visit. I've probably experience close to 10 outages this year already. Most are more than a few minutes as well.

I guess for some of us, we fall into the 'slow-zone' where they deem it is the best window.

Although, with websites such as this being globally orientated, maybe more work needs to go into being able to do migrations, maintenance and hardware upgrades while keeping the site functioning.

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .