How Uptime Works
Understand uptime checks and response monitoring.
Monitoring Method#
SlyDuck checks your site's availability using HTTP HEAD requests followed by GET requests if needed:
- HEAD Request: Fast initial check to verify the site responds
- GET Request: Full page load if HEAD fails or returns unexpected status
Checks run periodically throughout the day to ensure consistent monitoring coverage.
Check Frequency
Uptime checks run every 5 minutes for all projects, giving you 288 data points per day.
Status Levels#
Your site can be in one of these states:
- Online (Green): Site is responding with 2xx or 3xx status codes
- Degraded (Yellow): Site is slow but responding, or returning 4xx errors
- Offline (Red): Site is not responding or returning 5xx errors
What Triggers Each Status
- 2xx responses: Online
- 3xx redirects: Online (redirect is followed)
- 4xx errors: Degraded (client error)
- 5xx errors: Offline (server error)
- Timeout: Offline
- Connection refused: Offline
SSL Certificates#
SlyDuck automatically monitors your SSL certificate and tracks:
- Certificate issuer
- Expiration date
- Days until expiry
- Certificate validity
SSL Warnings
You'll see warnings when:
- 30 days: Gentle reminder to renew soon
- 7 days: Urgent warning, renew now
- Expired: Critical alert, site may show security warnings to visitors
SSL Expiry
An expired SSL certificate will cause browsers to show security warnings to your visitors. Most hosting providers offer auto-renewal — make sure it's enabled.
Response Times#
SlyDuck records the response time for each uptime check, letting you track performance over time:
- Fast: Under 500ms
- Normal: 500ms - 2s
- Slow: Over 2s
Response times are displayed in the uptime chart and included in exports.