416 Range Not Satisfiable

416

Range Not Satisfiable

Example HTTP Response

HTTP Response

HTTP/1.1 416 Range Not Satisfiable
Content-Range: bytes */5000

Common Causes

Range header exceeds file size
Invalid byte range requested
Seeking past end of resource

Technical Details

What does this mean?

You asked for pages 500-600 of a 100-page book! The server can't give you bytes that don't exist.

Technical Definition

The range specified by the Range header in the request cannot be fulfilled.

RFC Says

"The 416 (Range Not Satisfiable) status code indicates that none of the ranges in the request's Range header field overlap the current extent of the selected resource or that the set of ranges requested has been rejected due to invalid ranges or an excessive request of small or overlapping ranges."

Plain English:

416 means 'The byte range you requested doesn't exist in this resource.' This happens with range requests (like video streaming or download resumption) when you ask for bytes 1000-2000 of a file that's only 500 bytes long. The response should include a Content-Range header showing the actual size.

Common Misinterpretation

Only return 416 for actual range requests with a Range header. Make sure to include a Content-Range header in the response showing the actual size of the resource so clients can retry with a valid range.

View RFC Documentation

Code Snippets

Ready-to-use code for returning this HTTP status in your application:

Node.js

// Express.js
app.get('/example', (req, res) => {
  res.status(416).json({
    error: 'Range Not Satisfiable',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  });
});

// Native HTTP
const http = require('http');

http.createServer((req, res) => {
  res.writeHead(416, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' });
  res.end(JSON.stringify({
    error: 'Range Not Satisfiable',
    message: 'Your error message here'
  }));
}).listen(3000);

416 Range Not Satisfiable FAQ

What causes a 416 Range Not Satisfiable error?

Range header exceeds file size. Invalid byte range requested. Seeking past end of resource.

// Express.js app.get('/example', (req, res) => { res.status(416).json({ error: 'Range Not Satisfiable', message: 'Your error message here' }); }); // Native HTTP const http = require('http'); http.createServer((req, res) => { res.writeHead(416, { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' }); res.end(JSON.stringify({ error: 'Range Not Satisfiable', message: 'Your error message here' })); }).listen(3000);