HTTP Graceful Shutdown (The Backend Engineering Show)

In this episode, Hussein Nasser breaks down why you’d ever want to close an HTTP connection “politely”—from cleaning up resources and avoiding rogue clients to simply keeping your system healthy. He shows how HTTP/1.1 uses the Connection header to wind things down, then dives into HTTP/2’s GOAWAY frame, unpacking the cost, the quirks in Chromium’s implementation, and real-world best practices.

Chapters include a quick intro, the “why” behind shutdowns, step-by-step guides for both protocols, and a tidy wrap-up. Bonus links point you to Chromium source code, GitHub issues, related courses on networking, databases and Node.js internals, plus all the usual Hussein must-watch playlists.

Watch on YouTube