411 HTTP Response Status Code Definition: Example, Usage, Methods

The 411 HTTP Status Code indicates that the request is Length Required. The 411 HTTP Status Code is sent by the server as a response when it refuses to accept a message without a content-length header, for whatever reason. A server simply may or may not accept content without a Content-Length header. The difference between the 411 HTTP Status Code and the 400 HTTP Status Code is that the 400 HTTP Status Codes could not understand the request due to invalid syntax, whereas the 411 HTTP Status Code required client error response code indicates that the server refuses to accept the request if the Content-Length header is not specified.

What does 411 HTTP Status Code Mean?

The 411 HTTP Status Code indicates that the server will not accept the request if the Content-Length is not specified. If the client includes a valid Content-Length header field in the request message containing the length of the message body, the request is repeated.

How to Use 411 HTTP Status Code for a Website?

To use the 411 HTTP Status Code in a website, the web developer must set an “NSInputStream” object as the request body via the property “HTTPBodyStream” for the request, as “NSURLConnection” can no longer evaluate the length of the body itself.  As a result, “NSURLConnection” employs a specific “transfer mode,” namely “chunked transfer encoding.” This transfer mode should be able to transmit anybody and does not require, and should not contain a Content-Length header. Unfortunately, the server does not support this type of transfer.

How to Check 411 HTTP Status Code?

To check the 411 HTTP Status Code, use Fiddler or Firebug. There are literally hundreds of other tools and plug-ins available for viewing raw HTTP data. In Mozilla Firebug, for example, you can go to Net and press F5 to refresh the page. Simply open a web browser and press F12 to launch developer tools, then navigate to the Network tab, which displays all Status Codes, whether the page was cached, and so on.

Which HTTP Method is used with 411 HTTP Status Code?

There is only one HTTP method used with the 411 HTTP Status Code which is the GET HTTP method. If the request message contains a valid Content-Length header field containing the length of the message body, the GET HTTP method is used to request the 411 HTTP Status Code. The GET HTTP method asks for a representation of the given resource. The GET HTTP method requests should only retrieve data. 

There are multiple related HTTP Response Headers with 411 HTTP Status Code. The following related HTTP Response Headers are listed below. 

  • Content-Length HTTP Header: The Content-Length HTTP Header specifies the size of the message body sent to the recipient in bytes.
  • Transfer-Encoding HTTP Header: The Transfer-Encoding HTTP Header defines the type of encoding that will be used to safely transfer the payload body to the user.

What are the Browsers Compatibility of 411 HTTP Status Code?

The 411 HTTP Status Code is compatible with all browsers including Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari, and Webview Android. 

What are the other Similar Status Codes to the 411 HTTP Status Code?

There are other similar HTTP Status Codes to 411 HTTP Status Code. The following HTTP Status Codes are listed below.

  • 400 Bad Request HTTP Status Codes: Due to incorrect syntax, the server was unable to understand the request. The 400 HTTP Status Codes is similar to the 411 HTTP Status Code which is also a client error response.
  • 401 Unauthorized HTTP Status Code: Although the HTTP standard specifies “unauthorized,” this response means “unauthenticated” semantically. That is, in order to receive the requested response, the client must authenticate itself. The 401 HTTP Status Code is similar to the 411 HTTP Status Code which is also a client error response.
  • 405 Method Not Allowed HTTP Status Code: The server is aware of the request method but the target resource does not support it. For instance, an API may not permit the use of DELETE to delete a resource. The 405 HTTP Status Code is similar to the 411 HTTP Status Code which is also a client error response.
  • 406 Not Acceptable HTTP Status Code: The 406 HTTP Status Code is similar to the 411 HTTP Status Code which is also a client error response. The 406 HTTP Status Code response is sent when the web server does not find any content that meets the user agent’s criteria after performing server-driven content negotiation.
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411 HTTP Response Status Code Definition: Example, Usage, Methods

by Holistic SEO time to read: 3 min
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