Error · too_large (download)
“File is larger than 600 MB”
When X reports a file bigger than 600 MB, our proxy answers with HTTP 413 instead of streaming it. Depending on your browser you'll see a failed download or a short message with this text.
Updated
Download only content you own or have permission to use. Public posts only; we store no videos. Responsible use
Error details
- Message on screen
- “File is larger than 600 MB”
- Internal code
- too_large (download)
- Where it appears
- MP4 download through our proxy (after you press a quality button)
- HTTP status
- 413 from /api/download
- Does retrying help?
- No. Pick a lower quality.
How to fix it
- Pick 720p or lower. The 720p rendition is usually a quarter of the 1080p size.
- Check the size first. When X provides it, the result card shows the size next to each quality.
- Use the direct URL. “Copy direct URL” gives you X's own media link, which you can download with a desktop download manager.
What this message means
The limit protects the service: each download streams through our server from X's CDN. We read the size X announces before sending anything, so the refusal is instant and nothing partial is saved.
In practice only long, high-bitrate videos reach it. At X's common 1080p bitrate of about 10 Mbit/s, 600 MB is roughly eight minutes of video; at 720p (about 2.2 Mbit/s) it is over half an hour.
Why it happens
- Long 1080p upload. Premium accounts can post long videos; their top rendition gets very large.
- Long progressive replay. Some replays come as one large MP4 rather than HLS segments.
Which videos get that big
Ordinary post videos rarely come close: X limits upload length for most accounts, and its encodes are compressed. The files that cross 600 MB are long live replays in 1080p and long uploads from accounts allowed to post extended videos. Before streaming anything, our download step reads the size X announces; when it is above 600 MB the request stops at once with a 413 status, so you don't wait for a transfer that would be cut off.
Each quality button shows the file size when X reports it, so you can compare options before clicking. Dropping from 1080p to 720p typically cuts the size by more than half, which brings most long replays back under the limit.
The limit applies per file, not per post: a post with several videos can download each of them separately as long as each file stays below 600 MB.
If you need the full-resolution copy
- Use the link icon next to the quality to copy the direct URL, then download it with a tool that has no size cap, such as curl, wget or a download manager.
- For a replay, the copied URL is an HLS playlist;
ffmpeg -i '<URL>' -c copy replay.mp4saves it without re-encoding. - If it is your own broadcast, X's account archive includes your uploaded media.
Questions people ask
Why 600 MB?
It keeps one request from tying up the proxy for too long. Most clips are far below it.
Do live replays hit this limit?
Replays from HLS are stitched on the fly without an announced size, so this check doesn't apply to them.
Will you raise the limit?
Possibly; it's a setting, not a technical wall.
Related pages
Background reading
- How X compresses your uploads, and the settings that survive it bestWhat X's re-encoding does to your video, which details suffer most, and a practical checklist of resolution, frame rate, bitrate and upload habits for the best result.
- X video formats explained: HLS, bitrates, and why 1080p isn't always thereA technical but readable tour of how X serves video, from MP4 variants and m3u8 playlists to bitrate ladders, and why the quality you get depends on the upload.