AOL Help-"Gateway timed out - error 504" when accessing AOL® Mail

The following article may also be found in our Online Help area.

You may receive the message "Gateway timed out - Error 504" for any one of several reasons. After trying the first solution, check to see if you can access your mail without receiving the message. If you are still receiving the message "Gateway timed out - Error 504", continue using the suggested solutions until the problem is fixed.

Note: AOL® Mail on the Web is not designed for dial-up connections. AOL® members attempting to access AOL Mail on the Web through a dial-up connection either with the AOL® client or a third-party dial-up connection may encounter difficulties connecting with and using the AOL® Mail on the Web site. AOL Mail on the Web should not be used in concurrence with the AOL® client, either inside the client software or in another browser window while the client software is launched.

You may wish to print or save a copy of these instructions as this page may not remain visible as you go through the suggested steps.

Information You Need

You will need to know what version of the Microsoft® Windows® operating system is installed on your computer. If you do not know how to find this information, follow the instructions in the online help article entitled How to Determine Which Version of Windows® I Have.

Solutions

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Clear cache and cookies, then reset all the settings
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Use an alternate browser and try access with another computer
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Allow friendly URLs and disable pop-up blocking software
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Check if java applet scripting and cookies are enabled in Internet options
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Log out, then log back into AOL® Mail on the Web (AOL.com® or AIM®.com)

Clear cache and cookies, then reset all the settings in Internet options

Whenever you visit certain Web sites, they will store what is known as Temporary Internet Files and cookies on your computer to identify that Web site. Sometimes these Temporary Internet Files and cookies can cause the issue you are experiencing. Similarly your History list can also be a concern. The more days you have specified for pages to be saved on your history list, the more disk space is used on your computer. You can free up disk space by clearing this list. You can do this manually or you can use the one-click fix.

To clear cache, cookies and history, then reset all settings for Internet Explorer® 7.0:
1. Close any Internet browser windows that may be open on your computer.
2. Click the Start button, select All Programs, then click Internet Explorer.
3. In the upper right, click the Tools menu, then click Internet Options.
4. On the General tab, under the Browsing history section, click the Delete button.
5. Under the Temporary Internet Files section, click the Delete files button to clear the cache.
6. Click the Yes button to confirm.
7. Under the Cookies section, click the Delete cookies button, to clear cookies.
8. Click the Yes button to confirm.
9. Under the History section, click the Delete history button to clear history.
10. Click the Yes button to confirm.
11. In the lower right, click the Close button to close the Delete Browsing History window.
12. Click the Security tab, then click the Default level button.
13. Click the Advanced tab, click the Reset button, click the Reset button again, then click the OK button.
14. Click the Connections tab.
15. Click the LAN settings button.
16. Under the Proxy server section, click the Use a proxy server for your LAN (These settings will not apply to dial-up or VPN connections) box to clear it, then click the OK button.
17. Under the Dial-up and Virtual Private Network settings section, choose the Never dial a connection option by clicking it, then click the OK button.

To clear cache, cookies and history, then reset all settings for Internet Explorer 6.0:
1. Close any Internet browser windows that may be open on your computer.
2. Click the Start button, select Programs or All Programs, then click Internet Explorer.
3. Click the Tools menu, then click Internet Options.
4. On the General tab, under the Temporary Internet files section, click the Delete Files button to clear cache.
5. Click the Delete all offline content box to place a check mark in it, then click the OK button for confirmation.
6. Under the Temporary Internet files section, click the Delete Cookies button to clear cookies.
7. Click the OK button to confirm.
8. Under the History section, click the Clear History button to clear history.
9. Click the Yes button for confirmation.
10. Click the Programs tab, then click the Reset Web Settings button.
11. Click the Yes button, then click the OK button.
12. Click the Connections tab.
13. Click the LAN Settings button.
14. Under the Proxy server section, click the Use a proxy server for your LAN (These settings will not apply to dial-up or VPN connections) box to clear it, then click the OK button.
15. Under the Dial-up and Virtual Private Network settings section, choose the Never dial a connection option by clicking it, then click the OK button.

If you use Firefox® or Netscape® Browser 8.1 use these steps to clear your temporary files.

To clear the cache and cookies in Firefox:
1. Click the Start button, select Programs or All Programs, select Mozilla Firefox, then click the Mozilla Firefox icon.
2. In the toolbar, click the Tools menu, then click Clear Private Data.
3. Click the Cache and Cookies boxes to place a check mark in them, ensure the other options do not have any check marks in them by clicking them, then click the Clear Private Data Now button.

To clear the cache and cookies in Netscape® Navigator above 9.0:
1. Click the Start button, select Programs or All Programs, select Netscape Navigator, then click the Netscape Navigator icon.
2. In the toolbar, click the Tools menu, then click Clear Private Data.
3. Click the Cache and Cookies boxes to place a check mark in them, ensure the other options do not have any check marks in them by clicking them, then click the Clear Private Data Now button.

To clear the cache and cookies in Netscape below 9.0:
1. Click the Start button, select Programs or All Programs, select Netscape, then click Netscape Browser.
2. On the toolbar, click the Tools menu, then click Options.
3. Click the Privacy button.
4. In the Cache section, click the Clear button.
5. Click the OK button.
6. In the Cookies section, click the Clear button.
7. Click the OK button.
8. Click the OK button to close out the Options window.

Use an alternate browser and try access with another computer

Try to access your AOL mail on the web using a different browser like the Mozilla Firefox that you can download for free at http://www.mozilla.com/. Click the Download Firefox-Free button, then follow the onscreen instructions.

Try to access your AOL mail on the web using a different computer (ideally at different location).

Note: If you are experiencing these difficulties with an account converted or migrated from a netscape.net address to an aim.com or aol.com address, please report the success of this workaround to us using the Netscape(NS)® mail migration message boards at http://messageboards.aol.com/aol/en_us/articles.php?boardId=565467& func=3& channel=People%20Connection.

Allow friendly URLs and disable pop-up blocking software

If you are using a firewall, allow the following friendly URLs: (*.aol.com, *.aim.com, registration.aol.com, webmail.aol.com, and mail.aol.com). For additional support configuring third party firewalls, please contact the firewall manufacturer.

In order to address this issue, please disable your pop-up blocking software. Alternatively, you could add a Website such as AOL.com to the "white list" of domains accepted by your pop-up blocker software. If you are unsure how to disable your pop-up blocking software or add a domain to the "white list", please contact the vendor of your pop-up blocking software for assistance or simply reference the Help guide included with your software.

Note: Most pop-up blockers also allow you to hold down the Shift key as you click Website links. This disables pop-up blocking on a one-time basis.

Check if java applet scripting and cookies are enabled in Internet options

To enable Java™ and cookies:
1. Click the Start button, click Programs or All Programs, then click Internet Explorer.
2. Click the Tools menu, then click Internet Options.
3. Click the Security tab.
4. Click the Internet icon, then click the Custom Level or the Custom level button.
5. Scroll down to the Scripting section, then under Active scripting choose the Enable option by clicking it, then under the Scripting of Java applets section choose the Enable option by clicking it, then click the OK button.
6. Click the Privacy tab.
7. Click the Advanced button.
8. Click the Override automatic cookie handling box to place a check mark in it, choose the two Accept options by clicking them, then click the OK button.
9. Click the OK button.

Log Out, Then Log Back into AOL Mail on the Web (AOL.com® or AIM®.com)

If mail cannot be retrieved from AOL Mail on the Web, logging out of AOL Mail on the Web and logging back in will usually correct the issue.

To log out and log back into AOL Mail on the Web:
1. Click the Sign Out [E-mail address] link to log out of AOL Mail on the Web.

Note: The Sign Out [E-mail address] link will show the E-mail address used to sign on and is subject to change accordingly.

2. Click the Mail link.
3. In the E-mail address: box, type your AOL® E-mail address or AIM® E-mail address.

Note: Log in using the E-mail address you wish to read mail from.

4. In the Password: box, type your password, then click the Sign In button to sign on to AOL Mail on the Web.