The HTTP error 413 Request Entity Too Large indicates that the client request exceeds the server's configured size limitations.

Common Causes

  • Uploading excessively large files
  • POST requests containing oversized data payloads
  • Server configuration imposing strict request size limits

Solutions

For end users: Reduce the size of files being uploaded.

For server administrators: Adjust Nginx configuration settings.

Edit the nginx.conf file, adding or modifying within either the http or server block:

The client_max_body_size directive in Nginx controls the maximum allowed client request body size, serving as protection against oversized uploads. Default value is 1m when unspecified.

client_max_body_size 10m;

This example sets the maximum request body size to 10MB - requests exceeding this limit will trigger the 413 error.

Supported units for client_max_body_size:

  • Unitless (default bytes)
  • k or K: Kilobytes
  • m or M: Megabytes
  • g or G: Gigabytes

Remember to restart Nginx after making configuration changes.