I have a script that connects to a MySQL database on a different server. The script processes large files which can take several hours to complete. However, partway through the execution, I get this error message:
Error 2006: MySQL server has gone away
I think this might be related to the wait_timeout configuration setting, but I’m not sure where I should modify it. Should I update this setting on my local machine where the script runs, or do I need to change it on the remote database server? Any guidance would be helpful.
totally agree! increasing the wait_timeout on the server can help. also, consider reconnecting periodically in your script. it’ll help avoid those annoying drops, especially when processing big files.
You need to change wait_timeout on the MySQL server itself, not your local machine. This setting controls how long the server waits before killing idle connections. If you don’t have admin access, that’s not always possible. Better options include using connection pooling or adding keep-alive queries to your script. You can run a simple SELECT 1 every few minutes while processing to keep the connection alive, or catch the 2006 error, reconnect automatically, and resume from where you left off.
Another trick: set interactive_timeout alongside wait_timeout since they work togther. But honestly, periodic pings beat relying on timeouts. Just run ‘SELECT 1’ every 30 mins during your processing loop.
Had this exact issue with a data migration script that ran 8+ hours. You can’t change wait_timeout from the client side - it’s server-only. Here’s what worked for me: I added a connection validation check before running queries. Wrapped everything in try-catch to detect the 2006 error and auto-reconnect when it hits. Breaking the work into smaller batches was huge though. Instead of one massive file, I processed 1000 records at a time with short pauses between batches. Keeps the connection from going idle too long and makes your script way more resilient to network hiccups.