[tor-bugs] #29426 [Obfuscation/Snowflake]: proxy-go instances receiving 504 errors from broker

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#29426: proxy-go instances receiving 504 errors from broker
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 Reporter:  cohosh                 |          Owner:  (none)
     Type:  defect                 |         Status:  new
 Priority:  High                   |      Milestone:
Component:  Obfuscation/Snowflake  |        Version:
 Severity:  Normal                 |     Resolution:
 Keywords:  snowflake              |  Actual Points:
Parent ID:                         |         Points:
 Reviewer:                         |        Sponsor:  Sponsor19
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Comment (by dcf):

 I might have misinterpreted the ticket. I read the title as "'''clients'''
 receiving 504 errors from broker".

 The 504 code itself isn't an error. That's the way the broker indicates to
 a client that no proxy is available, or to a proxy that no clients are
 available (`StatusGatewayTimeout` is 504):
  * https://gitweb.torproject.org/pluggable-
 transports/snowflake.git/tree/broker/broker.go?id=bf82ef519230682820edefa1cd4f64262b4ce5aa#n138
  * https://gitweb.torproject.org/pluggable-
 transports/snowflake.git/tree/broker/broker.go?id=bf82ef519230682820edefa1cd4f64262b4ce5aa#n180
 I think the intention behind using status code 504 was a kind of REST
 thing, but IMO it was a questionable decision to use an "internal server"
 error code to stand for a common occurrence, and could stand to be
 redesigned. It's really confusing.

 The dearth of proxies I noted in comment:1 is a (possibly recurring)
 problem, but if you run proxy-go and it logs `broker returns: 504`, that
 in itself isn't an error.

--
Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/29426#comment:2>
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