Timeouts

Open source Agents run under several independent timeouts. Find the error your run failed with in Timeout errors, then raise the matching setting.

Defaults

Limit	Default	Where to change it
Agent action runtime (`ai.agent`, `ai.action`, `ai.preset_agent`)	`7200` seconds (2 hours)	The action’s `Timeout`
Chat turn	`7200` seconds (2 hours)	Fixed. Only a lower deployment ceiling changes it
Shortest explicit agent timeout	`1800` seconds (30 minutes)	Fixed. A ceiling below `1800` lowers it
Agent timeout ceiling	`10800` seconds (3 hours)	`TRACECAT__AGENT_SANDBOX_TIMEOUT`
Model response read timeout	`600` seconds (`300` in the Helm chart)	`TRACECAT__LLM_PROXY_READ_TIMEOUT`
Registry tool call	`300` seconds	Fixed. `TRACECAT__EXECUTOR_CLIENT_TIMEOUT` can lower it
MCP integration response	`30` seconds, up to `300`	The MCP integration’s `Timeout (seconds)`
MCP tool discovery	`20` seconds per server, `60` seconds total	Fixed
Workflow run	Unlimited	The workflow’s `Timeout`, or the workspace’s `Default workflow timeout`

Subagents run inside their parent agent’s run and share its timeout. Time spent waiting for a tool approval doesn’t count toward the agent timeout, and the resumed run gets the full timeout again.

Raise an agent action’s timeout

Open the action

Open the workflow in the builder and select the ai.agent, ai.action, or ai.preset_agent action.

Set the timeout

Select the Control flow tab and enter the runtime in seconds under Timeout. New agent actions start with the 7200 second default.

Save the action

At run time, Tracecat clamps the value between 1800 seconds and the deployment ceiling. It never rejects a value.

In a workflow definition, set retry_policy.timeout:

- ref: investigate_alert
  action: ai.preset_agent
  retry_policy:
    timeout: 10800
  args:
    preset: alert-triage
    user_prompt: |
      Investigate this alert:

      ${{ TRIGGER.alert }}

Values above the ceiling run at the ceiling. To let agents run longer than 10800 seconds, raise the ceiling first.

Raise the agent timeout ceiling

TRACECAT__AGENT_SANDBOX_TIMEOUT caps every agent action and chat turn. A ceiling below 1800 seconds also lowers the default and the shortest explicit timeout to the ceiling.

Docker Compose
Helm
Terraform (EKS)
AWS Fargate

Set the variable in .env, then recreate the services:

TRACECAT__AGENT_SANDBOX_TIMEOUT=14400

docker compose up -d

Set tracecat.agentSandboxTimeout in your values file:

tracecat:
  agentSandboxTimeout: 14400

The agent executor’s agentExecutor.gracefulShutdownTimeout (ceiling plus 60) and agentExecutor.terminationGracePeriodSeconds (drain timeout plus 60) follow the ceiling when left empty. If you set either explicitly, keep gracefulShutdownTimeout at least the ceiling plus 60, or the chart fails to render. See Kubernetes.

Set agent_sandbox_timeout on the EKS module. It maps to tracecat.agentSandboxTimeout and must be at least 1800:

agent_sandbox_timeout = 14400

Set agent_sandbox_timeout on the Fargate module:

agent_sandbox_timeout = "14400"

See AWS Fargate.

On Docker Compose and Fargate, the agent executor’s drain timeout TRACECAT__AGENT_EXECUTOR_GRACEFUL_SHUTDOWN_TIMEOUT also defaults to the ceiling plus 60 seconds.

Chat turns

Each turn in workspace chat, preset chat, or a channel runs for up to 7200 seconds. You can’t set a per-chat timeout. A ceiling below 7200 shortens chat turns to the ceiling.

Model response timeout

TRACECAT__LLM_PROXY_READ_TIMEOUT sets how long the agent’s LLM proxy waits for the next byte from the model provider or gateway. It applies to each model request, not to the whole run, so raise it for slow reasoning models or self-hosted gateways that stream slowly.

Deployment	Setting	Default
Docker Compose	`TRACECAT__LLM_PROXY_READ_TIMEOUT` in `.env`	`600`
Helm	`agentExecutor.llmProxyReadTimeout`	`300`
AWS Fargate	`llm_proxy_read_timeout`	`600`

See Custom LLM providers for gateway errors.

Tool call timeouts

Each registry action an agent calls as a tool runs with the default action timeout of 300 seconds. TRACECAT__EXECUTOR_CLIENT_TIMEOUT caps each call and can only shorten it. To run longer work from an agent, call a workflow or a custom action that starts the work and returns. MCP integrations have their own Timeout (seconds), between 1 and 300, default 30. Open MCP servers from the sidebar, click Add MCP server or edit an existing server, and set it under Advanced.

Tool discovery gives each MCP server at most 20 seconds, or the integration’s timeout if shorter, and 60 seconds for all servers in one run.

Workflow timeouts

The workflow timeout bounds the whole workflow run, including agent actions and the time spent waiting for approvals. A long-running agent fails when the workflow times out, even if the agent’s own timeout hasn’t elapsed. Open the workflow and set Timeout (seconds) on the Workflow tab of the side panel. Click an empty spot on the canvas if an action is selected. 0 means unlimited.

Workspace settings take precedence over each workflow’s timeout:

Unlimited workflow timeout on: Workflows run with no timeout, and each workflow’s Timeout (seconds) is ignored. New workspaces start with this on.
Default workflow timeout set: Every workflow in the workspace uses this value.
Neither set: Each workflow uses its own Timeout (seconds).

Open Settings from the sidebar, then select Workflows under Workspace.

Timeout errors

Error	Limit	Fix
`Agent execution timed out after <n>s`	Agent action runtime or chat turn	Raise the action’s `Timeout`, then the ceiling if needed
`Model response timed out after <duration> without receiving data`	Model response read timeout	Raise `TRACECAT__LLM_PROXY_READ_TIMEOUT`
`Gateway timeout`	Model response read timeout on a non-streaming request	Raise `TRACECAT__LLM_PROXY_READ_TIMEOUT`
`Action execution timed out after 300s`	Registry tool call	Move the long-running work into a workflow
Workflow run status is timed out	Workflow timeout	Raise the workflow or workspace timeout

See Actions for how timeout and max_attempts apply to every action.
See Human-in-the-loop for how approval waits interact with timeouts.
See Environment variables for every deployment setting on this page.

Overview

Building automations

Building agents

Building custom integrations

Defaults

Raise an agent action’s timeout

Raise the agent timeout ceiling

Chat turns

Model response timeout

Tool call timeouts

Workflow timeouts

Timeout errors

​Defaults

​Raise an agent action’s timeout

​Raise the agent timeout ceiling

​Chat turns

​Model response timeout

​Tool call timeouts

​Workflow timeouts

​Timeout errors

​Related pages

Defaults

Raise an agent action’s timeout

Raise the agent timeout ceiling

Chat turns

Model response timeout

Tool call timeouts

Workflow timeouts

Timeout errors

Related pages