Apply this guide to your situation
This answer covers “[AI-018] The inference queue grows faster than it is processed”. Read it with the summary and confirm that the symptom and service match what you are experiencing. Available options can vary by plan and account setup.
- Before changing anything, note what you expected, what happened and roughly when. Check whether the issue affects one page or the whole service.
- Save the full error message and note recent changes. Hide passwords, access codes, personal data and keys before sharing screenshots or logs.
- If a step requires administrator access, restarting services or editing server files, stop if you do not administer that server. Send support the service name, error and checks you have already made.
L3 technical diagnosis
User symptoms
Jobs wait longer, expire and then retry even though the runtime remains active.
Observed code or message
Growing queue depth / internal `429` / timeout before inference beginsLikely root cause
Sustained arrivals exceed available tokens/second; large prompts and retries multiply work. An unbounded queue without TTL can exhaust storage and memory.
Likely-cause and resolution matrix
Follow a branch only when evidence supports it. A symptom may have more than one cause; do not change layers by guesswork.
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Prerequisites
- Authorised access to the involved runtime, provider or automation.
- A test environment and synthetic data; never use customer prompts for diagnostics.
- A technical owner who can approve network, secret, GPU or resource changes.
Important warnings
- Do not expose local inference endpoints or webhooks without appropriate authentication, TLS and limits. Never put API keys, private prompts or personal data in commands, screenshots or logs.
- Commands are diagnostic references. Production changes, Docker/firewall rules and credential rotation require service-owner authorisation.
Step-by-step walkthrough
1. Confirm the symptom and scope
# Redis example: aggregate queue length; confirm queue name first
redis-cli LLEN 'ai:queue:pending'
redis-cli INFO memory | grep used_memory_humanGrowing queue depth / internal `429` / timeout before inference begins
2. Correct the responsible component
3. Verify and close exposure
The check confirms the expected result without exposing services or data.
Troubleshooting & Solutions
Growing queue depth / internal `429` / timeout before inference begins
Root cause: Sustained arrivals exceed available tokens/second; large prompts and retries multiply work. An unbounded queue without TTL can exhaust storage and memory.
Resolution: Set queue bounds, concurrency based on memory/GPU, TTL and retry caps. Fail fast or use an approved model/fallback when capacity is exceeded; support cancellation and fair tenant priority.
Rollback and recovery plan
Restore the last approved configuration, stop the affected workflow and revoke any exposed credential. If real data was processed through an unauthorised path, retain minimal redacted records and follow the internal incident-response process.
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