How to Check API Endpoint Response Status on Linux Server

Step-by-step guide to check API endpoint response status. Monitor API availability, track HTTP status codes, and ensure reliable API service delivery.

Last updated: 2026-01-11

How to Check API Endpoint Response Status on Linux Server

Monitor API endpoint response status to track API availability, detect failures, and ensure reliable API service delivery. This guide shows you how to check API status and set up automated monitoring.

For comprehensive API monitoring, see API Endpoint Monitoring. For troubleshooting API issues, see API Endpoint Slow Response Times.

Why Checking API Status Matters

API endpoint availability is critical for application functionality. API failures can cause application errors, user experience issues, and business impact. Monitoring API status ensures reliable API service delivery.

Method 1: Check API Status with curl

Check HTTP Status Code

# Check API endpoint status
curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health

# Check API with timeout
curl --max-time 5 -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health

# Check API and display status
STATUS=$(curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health)
if [ "$STATUS" = "200" ]; then
  echo "API is healthy"
else
  echo "API returned status: $STATUS"
fi

Monitor Multiple API Endpoints

# Check multiple endpoints
for endpoint in /api/v1/health /api/v1/users /api/v1/posts; do
  STATUS=$(curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com$endpoint)
  echo "$endpoint: $STATUS"
done

Check API Response Time and Status

# Check status and response time
curl -o /dev/null -s -w "Status: %{http_code}\nTime: %{time_total}s\n" https://api.example.com/health

Method 2: Check API Status with HTTP Status Codes

Monitor API Health Endpoints

# Check health endpoint
curl -I https://api.example.com/health

# Check API version endpoint
curl -I https://api.example.com/api/v1/version

# Check API status endpoint
curl -I https://api.example.com/api/v1/status

Track API Status Over Time

# Monitor API status continuously
while true; do
  STATUS=$(curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health)
  echo "$(date): $STATUS"
  sleep 60
done

Method 3: Automated API Status Monitoring with Zuzia.app

Set up automated monitoring to track API status continuously and receive alerts when API endpoints fail or return error status codes.

Step 1: Add API Status Monitoring Command

  1. Log in to Zuzia.app Dashboard

    • Access your Zuzia.app account
    • Navigate to your server
    • Click "Add Scheduled Task"
  2. Configure API Status Check Command

    curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health
    
    • Set execution frequency (every 1-2 minutes)
    • Configure alerts when status code != 200

Step 2: Configure Alert Thresholds

  • Warning: Status code 4xx (client errors)
  • Critical: Status code 5xx (server errors)
  • Emergency: Status code 000 (connection failed)

Step 3: Monitor Multiple Endpoints

Add commands to monitor critical API endpoints:

# Monitor health endpoint
curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/health

# Monitor main API endpoint
curl -o /dev/null -s -w "%{http_code}" https://api.example.com/api/v1/data

Best Practices for API Status Monitoring

1. Monitor All Critical Endpoints

  • Track status for all production API endpoints
  • Include health check endpoints
  • Monitor authentication endpoints
  • Track critical business endpoints

2. Monitor API Status Continuously

  • Check API status regularly
  • Alert when status codes indicate errors
  • Monitor API availability trends
  • Optimize based on data

3. Set Up Comprehensive Alerts

  • Configure alerts for 4xx errors
  • Set up alerts for 5xx errors
  • Monitor API timeout errors
  • Alert on API unavailability
  • Review API status trends weekly
  • Identify error patterns
  • Optimize API configuration
  • Correlate API status with application changes

Troubleshooting API Status Issues

Step 1: Identify API Problems

When API endpoints return errors:

# Check API status
curl -I https://api.example.com/health

# Check API response
curl https://api.example.com/health

# Check API logs
tail -50 /var/log/api/error.log

Step 2: Resolve API Issues

Based on investigation:

  1. Fix API Errors:

    • Review API error logs
    • Fix application bugs
    • Update API configuration
  2. Optimize API Performance:

    • Optimize API endpoints
    • Improve error handling
    • Scale API infrastructure
  3. Improve API Monitoring:

    • Adjust monitoring thresholds
    • Improve error detection
    • Update monitoring procedures

FAQ: Common Questions About API Status Monitoring

How often should I check API status?

For production APIs, continuous automated monitoring is essential. Zuzia.app can check API status every few minutes, storing historical data and alerting you when API endpoints fail.

What HTTP status codes should I monitor?

Monitor all non-200 status codes. 4xx codes indicate client errors, 5xx codes indicate server errors, and 000 indicates connection failures. Set up alerts for all error status codes.

How do I monitor API status from multiple locations?

Use Zuzia.app's global agents or configure monitoring commands on servers in different geographic locations. This helps detect regional API issues and ensures global API availability.

Can API monitoring impact API performance?

API monitoring commands have minimal impact on API performance when done correctly. Use appropriate monitoring frequency and avoid monitoring during peak API usage periods.

Note: The content above is part of our brainstorming and planning process. Not all described features are yet available in the current version of Zuzia.

If you'd like to achieve what's described in this article, please contact us – we'd be happy to work on it and tailor the solution to your needs.

In the meantime, we invite you to try out Zuzia's current features – server monitoring, SSL checks, task management, and many more.

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