Error guide
410 Gone
The resource existed and has been permanently removed — a deliberate, final version of 404.
A 410 Gone says the resource used to exist here and has been deliberately and permanently removed. Where a 404 is agnostic about history, a 410 is a positive statement: this is not a mistake, it is not coming back, stop asking.
It is almost never produced by accident, because a server has no way of knowing that a path used to exist — a 410 has to be configured deliberately. So if you are seeing one, someone decided.
The practical difference is in how automated clients treat it. Search engines generally drop a 410 from their index faster than a 404, and well-behaved clients stop retrying. That makes it the right answer for a retired API version, a deleted account's public page, or content removed for legal reasons, where you want the removal to propagate quickly.
Common causes
- A deliberate configuration serving 410 for retired paths.
- An API version that has been sunset and now answers 410 rather than 404.
- A content management system marking an item as permanently removed.
- A bulk removal — accounts, listings, legacy content — implemented as 410 to speed de-indexing.
How to diagnose it
- Confirm it is intentional by finding the rule or code that emits it; an unexpected 410 is a configuration error, not a routing accident.
- Check whether the affected paths are broader than intended — a pattern rule can catch more than it was written for.
- If the content should return, remove the rule: a 410 that persists for something restored will keep it out of search results.
Whose fault is it? The server's side
Not a fault at all in the normal case — it is the server answering correctly and deliberately. It is only a defect when the removal was not intended, or when the rule matches more paths than it should.
What monitoring sees
A monitor should never see a 410 for a URL you still publish, so one appearing is a real signal that a removal rule is matching something it should not. Uptimely records the code on the check, so a 410 is distinguishable from a 404 in the check history rather than both appearing as a generic failure.
Related error guides
Terms used on this page
Questions
Is 410 better than 404 for deleted pages?
Only when the removal is permanent. Search engines drop a 410 faster, which is what you want for retired content and sunset APIs, and exactly what you do not want for anything you might restore.
Do I need to serve 410 for old URLs?
No. 404 is a perfectly correct answer and needs no configuration. 410 is worth the effort when you specifically want fast de-indexing or want automated clients to stop retrying.
One of the Uptimely HTTP and network error guides, written for the person who operates the server rather than the one refreshing the page. Something here read wrong to you? Email support@getuptimely.com.