Timeout Bug

World not loading? Can't stay connected? Everyone frozen? Then it sounds like you have the infamous Timeout Bug™!

What is the timeout bug?

The timeout bug is one of MinecraftOnline's most pesky peculiarities, a glitch so devastating it can fully prevent you from connecting to the server! Generally, you know you have the timeout bug when you see one of the following:

• The chunks around you will load slowly, sporadically, or not at all, leaving you partially or completely in a "void world".
• Entities - such as players, dropped items, or minecarts - appear completely frozen, even when they're moving on the server's end.
• Chat loads very slowly, to the point you likely only will see the "welcome" message.
• You're disconnected from the server after about 20 seconds.
• Any interaction with the server (moving around, breaking blocks, etc) isn't saved after a few seconds of experiencing the bug.

What causes this?

There's no known cause for the timeout bug. Some have hypothesized it may be related to Hetzner outages, after multiple players have confirmed noticing issues connecting to Hetzner servers using the traceroute command. Others believe it may be related to the ISP or DNS used for your internet connection. The bug is known to persist across accounts, devices, operating systems, and even entire internet connections - for example, the bug can start for "Player1" on a Linux PC using Wi-Fi, and continue for "Player2" on a MacOS laptop using 5G.

The issue could also be caused by packet loss when the connection is routed through Arelion (formerly Telia Carrier), a Tier 1 network provider. This can be observed using traceroute, where timeouts and packet loss begin occurring as soon as certain hops within 'twelve99.net' are reached. Anecdotal evidence suggests that Arelion has been experiencing congestion and routing issues for years, which have remained unresolved.

Example Traceroute showing twelve99.net (Arelion) timeouts

tracert minecraftonline.com

Tracing route to minecraftonline.com [2a01:4f8:13a:1348::2]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

  1    <1 ms    <1 ms    <1 ms  REDACTED
  2    14 ms    15 ms    12 ms  REDACTED
  3    11 ms    10 ms    11 ms  REDACTED
  4    12 ms    11 ms    13 ms  REDACTED
  5   129 ms    16 ms    15 ms  2001:578:1:0:172:17:248:164
  6     *       24 ms     *     kanc-b2-link.ip.twelve99.net [2001:2035:0:dd5::1]
  7     *        *       24 ms  chi-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net [2001:2034:1:c8::1]
  8     *        *        *     Request timed out.
  9   108 ms     *        *     ldn-bb2-v6.ip.twelve99.net [2001:2034:1:ca::1]
 10     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 11     *        *        *     Request timed out.
 12   127 ms   130 ms   130 ms  hetzner-ic-383976.ip.twelve99-cust.net [2001:2035:0:2916::2]
 13   132 ms   137 ms   133 ms  core21.fsn1.hetzner.com [2a01:4f8:0:3::799]
 14   137 ms   131 ms   130 ms  ex9k1.dc4.fsn1.hetzner.com [2a01:4f8:0:3::5d2]
 15   131 ms   132 ms   132 ms  2a01:4f8:13a:1348::2

How can I fix it?

Unfortunately, there's no universal solution to the timeout bug. However, some people have had luck with one or more of the following solutions:

• Entering the Nether or End. The timeout bug will stop for the duration you're in another dimension, but it will continue when you return to the Overworld.
• Connecting to MinecraftOnline through the IPv6 address. (2a01:4f8:13a:1348::2)
• Resetting your internet through a router reset, flushing your DNS, or something similar.
• Allowing javaw.exe through the Windows Internet Firewall.
• If many players are experiencing the timeout bug at the same time - this has been documented on several occasions - it may be worth asking an admin to restart the server.
• If you have the technical skill you may have to setup a tunnel on a VPS or remote host (essentially self-hosting a VPN/proxy service) and connect to MinecraftOnline through it; hopefully bypassing Arelion.