What is Request Timed Out? -Reason and Solution

Request Timed Out is one of the common ping replies while pinging to a remote computer from your computer to troubleshoot a network connectivity problem.

The ping reply Request Timed Out means there is no reply from the destination host for your ping packets. Your computer waited for the reply to the ping packets you sent but failed to receive any.

It can happen due to multiple reasons. In this article, I will explain the possible reasons to get a ping error message Request Timed Out and how to fix it.

To get a better understanding of this error, have a look at the screenshot attached below.



On Command Prompt, I ping the IP address 4.2.2.2, and you can see the reply I received.

C:\corenetworkz>ping 4.2.2.2

Pinging 4.2.2.2 with 32 bytes of data:
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.
Request timed out.

Ping statistics for 4.2.2.2:
    Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 0, Lost = 4 (100% loss),

C:\corenetworkz>

Before explaining how to fix the ping reply Request Timed out, we will see the reasons to get it.

Possible Reasons for the Ping Error Message Request Timed Out

1. Incorrect Network Adapter Settings on your PC
   
   
2. Destination host might be down
   
   
3. There might be no route back to your computer
   
   
4. Firewall installed on the destination host may be blocking ICMP request
   
   
5. Your device does not have Internet access

Now you know the reasons behind the ICMP error message Request Timed Out.

To fix this issue on your device, you must find out the exact reason behind the Request Timed Out message from the list of reasons.

So, I recommend you follow the troubleshooting guide I created to fix the Request Timed Out ping reply.

How to Troubleshoot Request Timed Out Message

To troubleshoot and fix request Timed Out message, follow the steps below.

1. Ping the Localhost to Check your Network Adapter:
   
   The first step to troubleshooting the 'Request Timed Out' error message is to ping the localhost and check whether you are getting a proper reply from it.
   
   Open command prompt and type ping 127.0.0.1. Press the enter key.
   
   
   
   
   If you receive a proper reply from the localhost IP (127.0.0.1), the network adapter is fine.
   
   If you are not getting a proper reply, do the following steps.
   
   
   
   1. Disable the Firewall and repeat the process:
      
      Wrong settings on the firewall can cause Request Timed Out error message.
      
      
   2. Uninstall and Reinstall TCP/IP suite:
      
      To do this step, follow the link below.
      Uninstall and Reinstall TCP/IP Suit On Your Computer
      
   
   
2. Ping Default Gateway :
   
   The default gateway is the IP address of your modem. You can get the default gateway using the ipconfig command.
   
   
3. Power Cycle the Network
   
   If you are getting Request Timed Out message from default gateway, you should power cycle the entire network. To do this, follow the steps provided in the link below.
   
   How to Power Cycle a Network
   
   
4. Run tracert
   
   Learn How to Use Tracert Command
   
   Ping the next hop until the error message comes again.

There are many other ping error messages which look similar to the Request Timed Out. If you are interested in advanced learning, I suggest you read them.

I have added the links to some of them below.

1. Ping Error Message Destination Host Unreachable
2. Ping Error code 2 - Reason and fix
3. PING: Transmit failed. General Failure - Reasons and Solution
4. How to Fix Destination Net Unreachable Error Message?

About The Author:

Alex George is a Cisco and Microsoft certified Network Engineer. He has been working in the Network Engineering field since 2006.

He has CCNA and MCSE certifications.

The author's area of specialization is wireless and Cybersecurity.