# PHP Fatal error: Maximum execution time of 30 seconds exceeded

**Code:** `Maximum execution time` · **Category:** PHP · **Seen on:** PHP

The script ran longer than `max_execution_time` and PHP stopped it.

## Meaning

PHP limits CPU time per request (default 30s; unlimited on CLI). Long imports, slow external calls or infinite loops hit it.

## Common causes

- Slow database queries
- Synchronous calls to slow external APIs
- Large imports/exports in a web request
- Infinite loops

## Quick fix

1. Move long tasks to CLI/cron or a queue
2. Optimize the slow query/API call
3. `set_time_limit(120)` for known-long scripts
4. Check the FPM/proxy timeouts too, or you’ll get a 504 instead

## Detailed fix by platform

### PHP

1. php.ini: `max_execution_time = 120`. For FPM also `request_terminate_timeout` in the pool config.

## Code examples

### Run long work from the CLI (no time limit) via cron

```bash
# crontab -e  → every 5 minutes, process the import queue
*/5 * * * * /usr/bin/php /var/www/app/bin/process-imports.php >> /var/log/imports.log 2>&1
```

### Raise the limit only around a known-long block

```php
set_time_limit(300);          // resets the timer to 300s from now
generateYearlyReport();
set_time_limit(30);           // back to normal
```

Also raise the PHP-FPM `request_terminate_timeout` and proxy timeouts, or you will get a 504 instead.

## How to diagnose

1. **Location** — Which file/line was executing when the limit hit (it is in the message)?
2. **Bottleneck** — Time the DB queries and external HTTP calls in that request
3. **Limits** — Compare max_execution_time, FPM request_terminate_timeout and proxy timeouts
4. **Placement** — Should this work run in a queue/cron instead of a web request?

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Source: [WhatIsMyError](https://whatismyerror.com/errors/php/maximum-execution-time-exceeded)