Bolt
deployment
Vercel Serverless Function Timeout - API Routes Taking Too Long
API routes that work fine locally timeout on Vercel. Long-running tasks like file processing, bulk database operations, or external API calls exceed the timeout limit.
Requests return 504 Gateway Timeout and logs show the function was killed.
Error Messages You Might See
504 - Gateway Timeout
FETCH_ERROR: request timeout
Function timeout after 30s
Vercel Serverless Function Error: timed out
Common Causes
- Function execution time exceeds timeout (default 30s, max 60s on Pro)
- Waiting for slow external API calls without timeout
- Database query not optimized or hitting connection limits
- Large file processing happening synchronously
- Missing async/await causing hanging requests
How to Fix It
Upgrade to Vercel Pro for 60s limit (free tier is 30s max)
Add timeout to external calls: fetch(url, { timeout: 10000 })
Use background jobs for long tasks - trigger async processing, return immediately
Optimize DB queries: add indexes, use pagination for large result sets
Consider moving heavy lifting to cron jobs or separate worker services
Real developers can help you.
Basel Issmail
’m a Senior Full-Stack Developer and Tech Lead with experience designing and building scalable web platforms. I work across the full development lifecycle, from translating business requirements into technical architecture to delivering reliable production systems.
My work focuses on modern web technologies, including TypeScript, Angular, Node.js, and cloud-based architectures. I enjoy solving complex technical problems and helping teams turn product ideas and prototypes into working platforms that can grow and scale.
In addition to development, I often collaborate closely with product managers, business analysts, designers, and QA teams to ensure that solutions align with both technical and business goals.
I enjoy working with startups and product teams where I can contribute both as a hands-on engineer and as a technical partner in designing and delivering impactful software.
zipking
I am a technologist and product builder dedicated to creating high-impact solutions at the intersection of AI and specialized markets. Currently, I am focused on PropScan (EstateGuard), an AI-driven SaaS platform tailored for the Japanese real estate industry, and exploring the potential of Archify.
As an INFJ-T, I approach development with a "systems-thinking" mindset—balancing technical precision with a deep understanding of user needs. I particularly enjoy the challenge of architecting Vertical AI SaaS and optimizing Small Language Models (SLMs) to solve specific, real-world business problems. Whether I'm in a CTO-level leadership role or hands-on with the code, I thrive on building tools that turn complex data into actionable value.
Luca Liberati
I work on monoliths and microservices, backends and frontends, manage K8s clusters and love to design apps architecture
Mehdi Ben Haddou
- Founder of Chessigma (1M+ users) & many small projects
- ex Founding Engineer @Uplane (YC F25)
- ex Software Engineer @Amazon and @Booking.com
Victor Denisov
Developer
Kingsley Omage
Fullstack software engineer passionate about AI Agents, blockchain, LLMs.
AUXLE
I am a Full Stack Developer experienced in building Websites, Web apps and Cross Platform Mobile Apps for Startups and Companies.
Daniel Vázquez
Software Engineer with over 10 years of experience on Startups, Government, big tech industry & consulting.
Sage Fulcher
Hey I'm Sage! Im a Boston area software engineer who grew up in South Florida. Ive worked at a ton of cool places like a telehealth kidney care startup that took part in a billion dollar merger (Cricket health/Interwell health), a boutique design agency where I got to work on a ton of exciting startups including a photography education app, a collegiate Esports league and more (Philosophie), a data analytics as a service startup in Cambridge (MA) as well as at Phillips and MIT Lincoln Lab where I designed and developed novel network security visualizations and analytics. I've been writing code and furiously devoted to using computers to make people’s lives easier for about 17 years. My degree is in making computers make pretty lights and sounds. Outside of work I love hip hop, the Celtics, professional wrestling, magic the gathering, photography, drumming, and guitars (both making and playing them)
Antriksh Narang
5 years+ Experienced Dev (Specially in Web Development), can help in python, javascript, react, next.js and full stack web dev technologies.
You don't need to be technical. Just describe what's wrong and a verified developer will handle the rest.
Get HelpFrequently Asked Questions
What's the maximum timeout on Vercel?
Free: 30s. Pro: 60s. Enterprise: up to 5min
How do I handle long-running tasks?
Trigger them asynchronously. Save a job record to DB, return immediately, process in background
Should I wait for all async tasks?
No! Return response to user, then run cleanup/processing. Use background jobs for long tasks