Changes / Box / [Medium] Issues with File Requests
Box: Major incident: [Medium] Issues with File Requests
Summary
Box reported major impact to File Request, with users potentially experiencing delayed metadata updates when uploading files. The incident started 2026-07-23 09:45 UTC and was resolved 2026-07-23 11:42 UTC, lasting 1 h 56 min; Box confirmed full functionality was restored.
Machine-written from the diff below (Sol; type: incident degradation). Check the diff before relying on it.
Major incidentLabel: degradation (model (Jev), 99%)Changed Detected Source: stspg.io (opens in new tab)
What changed
Before: not present
After: [Medium] Issues with File Requests
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After: major
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After: postmortem
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After: 2026-07-23 09:45 UTC
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After: 2026-07-23 11:42 UTC
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After: Box Web Application - Sharing (Shared Links), Sharing (Shared Links)
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After: We are investigating an ongoing issue affecting metadata updates using File Request. We will provide more information as soon as it is available.
Users of this service may face delays in metadata updates while attempting to upload files using File Request.
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After: The underlying cause of the issue has been identified and efforts are underway to restore stability. Box continues remediation efforts to fully restore the metadata functionality of File Requests.
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After: After further monitoring, this incident is now considered resolved. Box services have been restored to full functionality. Please contact Box Support at https://support.box.com/ if you continue to experience any issues.
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After: We recently addressed an issue affecting metadata updates using File Request in Box. We would like to take the opportunity to further explain the issue and the steps we have taken to keep similar issues from happening in the future.
Between 09:10 AM PDT on July 22, 2026 and 03:36 PM PDT on July 23, 2026, some users may have experienced delays in metadata updates while uploading files using File Request. The issue occurred when repeated attempts to process a subset of unsuccessful metadata events reduced available processing capacity and delayed other events. We restored the metadata functionality of File Requests by limiting unnecessary retries, reducing processing idle time, and improving the handling of failures that would not succeed when retried. In addition, we are improving retry behavior, monitoring, and response procedures for similar asynchronous processes.
# Analysis
At the time of the issue, the system automatically retried failed file processing. During an extended period of failures, these retries consumed most of the system's capacity, causing files to pile up in a queue. As processing slowed, more files encountered issues that retries could not resolve, further increasing the delay.
We restored normal processing by temporarily reducing retry attempts, removing redundant retries, and allowing permanent failures to fail without being repeatedly processed. We continued monitoring the service before confirming that full functionality had been restored.
# Corrective Actions
The following corrective actions have been completed or are planned:
* Completed changes to limit retries and stop repeatedly processing failures that cannot be resolved through retries.
* Applying the same, improved retry handling to other asynchronous processes, preventing similar occurrences from happening to other File Request features.
* Improving alerting and response procedures for processing backlogs and retained unsuccessful events to ensure that temporary issues can later be retried safely.
We are continuously working to improve Box and want to make sure we are delivering the best product and user experience we can. We hope we have provided some clarity here and we would be happy to answer any questions you may still have regarding this matter.
Sincerely,
The Box Team
First version of this incident archived by Rewindex. View the live incident (opens in new tab).
History of this incident
| When (UTC) | Change | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| Major incident: [Medium] Issues with File Requests (this change) Box reported major impact to File Request, with users potentially experiencing delayed metadata updates when uploading files. The incident started 2026-07-23 09:45 UTC and was resolved 2026-07-23 11:42 UTC, lasting 1 h 56 min; Box confirmed full functionality was restored. | Major incident |