API API Error Handling and Debugging 2

Question 1

What does a 408 Request Timeout status code mean?

Accepted Answer

The client didn't send a request within the server's timeout period

Answer

408 Request Timeout means the server waited for the client to complete the request but the client didn't send it within the allowed time.

Question 2

What is 'error propagation' in microservices API testing?

Accepted Answer

How errors from one service flow through and affect dependent services

Answer

Error propagation describes how failures in one microservice cascade through API calls to dependent services, a key concern in distributed systems testing.

Question 3

What is 'retry logic' in API client design?

Accepted Answer

Automatically retrying failed requests with transient errors

Answer

Retry logic automatically re-attempts API requests that fail with transient errors (like 503 or network failures) using strategies like exponential backoff.

Question 4

What is 'exponential backoff' in API retry strategies?

Accepted Answer

Increasing the wait time between retries exponentially after each failure

Answer

Exponential backoff doubles the wait time after each failed retry (1s, 2s, 4s, 8s...), reducing load on a struggling server.

Question 5

What does a 409 Conflict status code indicate in REST APIs?

Accepted Answer

The request conflicts with the current state of the resource

Answer

409 Conflict indicates the request couldn't be completed because it conflicts with the current resource state, such as duplicate resource creation.

API - Testing Practice Test

API - Testing Practice Test

API API Error Handling and Debugging 2