HTTP graceful shutdown is all about giving both clients and servers a polite heads-up before dropping connections—ideal for wrapping up pending requests, thwarting malicious traffic, or simply freeing resources in a controlled manner. In this Backend Engineering Show episode, Hussein breaks down how HTTP/1.1 uses the Connection header and HTTP/2 leans on the GOAWAY frame to facilitate these graceful goodbyes.
Along the way he tackles the why (resource cleanup and safety), digs into the cost and mechanics of shutting down connections, and even timestamps key sections—HTTP/1.1 shutdown at 6:46, HTTP/2 GOAWAY at 17:40, and a final recap at 23:40—perfect for anyone looking to polish their backend networking chops.
Watch on YouTube
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