Fixes

How to Fix Bad Request – Request Too Long: HTTP Error 400 [Fixed Completely]

Nowadays, more than half of the world’s population is utilizing the facility of internet. The internet has become an essential part of our lives and it is used for educational as well as for recreational purposes. Although people enjoy Unlimited Internet Bundles and fast browsing, but sometimes they report certain glitches while browsing. A recent issue reported by several users was a bad request – request too long issue, that arises on a system when a user tries to access the desired website. This error message is also known as “HTTP error 400″ and if you have encountered this issue on your system there is no need to worry because we have gathered some effective solutions that will help in getting rid of this particular error.

bad request-request too long error msg
Bad Request Error

What Causes the 400 bad request Error on your screen?

After doing in-depth research on this specific error we have gathered some possible causes that can trigger bad request – request too long error. The most prominent ones are indexed below:

  • Invalid Cookies: Invalid cookies are the backbone of this error. Sometimes while accessing the website invalid cookies might be stored in the history of the browser and afterward prohibit him/her from accessing the website
  • Invalid URL: It may be possible that you’ve typed the invalid or wrong domain name in the search bar that can cause this error to appear on the screen. It is always advised to check whether the correct URL is entered in the search bar.
  • Outdated DNS Records: The DNS records might have stored some links that lead to an incorrect IP address instead of correct ones when the user is accessing the desired websites, hence resulting in the bad request – request too long error. Hence, flushing your DNS clears the DNS cache by deleting all the entries and invalid records and forces your computer to repopulate those addresses the next time you try to access a particular website.
  • Heavy File Size: If you’re using a Wifi and not an Ethernet cable then for sure it would affect the Uploading rate. When a user tries to upload a heavy file the server fails to accept it and the bad request – request too long error appears on the screen. Therefore, it is suggested to reduce the file size before uploading it on the browser.

Before you Start:

It is better to try some basic troubleshooting steps before heading towards the more complex and elaborated ones.

  1. Check the spelling of the website typed in the search bar, make sure that appropriate and correct spelling are entered.
  2. Refresh the page by pressing the “F5” button or by clicking on the “Circular arrow” icon present at the top left corner of the page.
    Refreshing the Page
    Refreshing Page
  3. Try to refresh the webpage multiple times and check whether 400 bad request error is rectified.

Fix bad request – request too long error on your browser:

Solution 1: Clear Cache and Files

  1. Open your browser, click on the “Three dots” icon located at the top right corner, and select “Settings”.
    Open Settings
    Opening Settings
  2. Scroll down and click on the “Advanced” option.
    Choose Advanced option
    Choosing Advanced Option
  3. Select the “Clear Browsing Data” option present under the “Privacy and security” heading.
    Clear browsing data
    Clear browsing data
  4. Set the “Time Range” to “All time” and check the “Cached images and files” box and hit the “Clear data” button.
    Clearing data to fix bad request-request too long error
    Clearing Data
  5. Wait for a few seconds till the cache images and files are cleared and afterward close all the tabs, launch the website, and check whether the http error 400 persists.

Solution 2: Clear Cookies

For Mozilla Firefox:

  1. Launch your browser and click on the “Three lines” icon present at the top right corner and select “Options”.
    Choose Options
    Selecting Options
  2. Select “Privacy and Security” from the window in front of you, scroll down and locate “Cookies and site data” and choose “Manage Data”.
    Click on Manage data to get rid of bad request-request too long error
    Clicking Manage Data
  3. Now type the URL of the desired website in the search box, select all the “Cookies” and click on “Remove all”. 
    Remove cookies to get rid of bad request-request too long error
    Removing cookies
  4. Now hit the “Save Changes” button and check whether the bad request-request too long error still persists.

For Google chrome:

  1. Open your browser, click on the “Three dots” icon located at the top right corner and select “Settings”.
    Open Settings to fix bad request-request too long error
    Opening Settings
  2. Scroll down and click on the “Advanced” button located at the end of the page.
    Click on advanced button
    Choose Advanced Button
  3. Select the “Cookies and site data” option present under the “Privacy and security” heading.
    Click on Cookies and site data to fix bad request-request too long issue
    Choosing Cookies and site data
  4. Scroll down and click on the “See all cookies and site data” option.
    See Cookies
    See all Cookies and site data
  5. Type the URL of the desired website in the search box, select all the cookies, and hit the “Delete” button.
    Remove cookies
    Removing all cookies
  6. Close all the tabs, launch the website, and check whether the error 400 still persists.

Alternative Method:

  • Directly click on the lock icon in the address bar’s area.
  • In the menu under cookies, there will be a link showing how many cookies are present.
  • Click on that link and remove all cookies that are present.

Solution 3: Clear cookies while closing tabs

  1. Open your chrome browser, click on the “Three dots” icon present at the top right corner and select “Settings”.
    Open Settings to fix bad request - request too long error
    Opening Settings
  2. Scroll down until you reach the bottom and click on the “Advanced” button.
    Choose advanced option to fix bad request - request too long issue
    Choose the Advanced button
  3. Under the “Privacy and Security” section, select “Cookies and site data”.
    Choose cookies and site data to get rid of bad request - request too long error
    Click on Cookies and site data
  4. Scroll down and click on “Always clear cookies when windows are closed” option and click “Add”.
    Click on add button
    Choose Add button
  5. Enter the website domain and click on “Add”.
    Click on Add button
    Choose Add button
  6. Close all the tabs, launch the website now, and check whether the bad request – request too long error persists.

Solution 4: Flush DNS

  1. Press “Windows key + R” to open the run box and type “Command prompt“. Right-click on it and choose “Run as administrator” option.
    Choose Run as administrator to resolve bad request - request too long issue
    Clicking on Run as Administrator
  2. Enter the following commands one by one in the command window and hit enter to execute them:
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /flushdns
Flush DNS
Flushing DNS

Solution 5: Restore Browser to its default Settings

  1. Open your browser, click on the “Three dots” icon present on the top right corner and select “Settings”.
    Open Settings
    Opening Settings
  2. Scroll down and click on the “Advanced” tab located at the end of the page.
    Choose Advanced tab
    Choose Advanced Tab
  3. Scroll down till you locate Reset and clean up option and click on “Restore settings to their original defaults”.
    Restore Settings
    Restoring settings
  4. Click on “Reset settings” in order to change the settings to default.
    Reset settings
    Reset Settings
  5. Close all the tabs, launch the website from the browser and check if the 400 bad request error is resolved.

Solution 6: Uninstall new extensions or Plugins

  1. Open your browser, click on the “Three dots icon” present at the top right corner.
  2. From the drop-down menu, select “More tools” and then click on the “Extensions”.
    Choose Extensions to fix bad request - request too long error
    Choose Extensions
  3. Now scroll down and select the “Recently Downloaded Extensions” and remove them by clicking on the “Remove” button.
    Removing extensions
    Removing Extensions
  4. Now, launch the website and verify whether the http error 400 still exists.

Solution 7: Use Incognito Mode

  1.  Open your browser and click on the “Three dots” icon present at the top right corner.
  2. Now select “New incognito window” from the drop-down menu.
    Click on Incognito window to fix bad request - request too long issue
    Choosing New Incognito Window
  3. When the incognito window appears in front of you, type “URL” in the search bar and hit Enter to check whether the website works fine in this mode or not.

Workaround:

If you encounter this error while uploading any sort of file, try to compress the file if your browser allows it. If you have made any recent changes in your system revert back to changes where everything worked fine. If the issue is still not fixed contact Google Chrome Help or if you think the problem is at your end contact the internet service provider and wait until they resolve the issue.

Hopefully, the error would’ve gone by now but if it still exists, make sure to contact us to get it resolved.

Alan Adams

Alan is a hardcore tech enthusiast that lives and breathes tech. When he is not indulged in playing the latest video games, he helps users with technical problems that they might run into. Alan is a Computer Science Graduate with a Masters in Data Science.
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