Slow Performance, Timeouts, or "General Failure Error Code 3600/3800" After Upgrade (SFTP/SSH Transfer Failures)

This article describes what the error code 3600/3800 means. It is a general failure code which indicates an issue outside of the MOVEit server.

Aug 17, 2026
Knowledge

Title

URL Name

What-does-General-Failure-Error-code-3800-Mean

Article Number

000191528

Environment

Product: MOVEit Automation, MOVEit Transfer Version: All Supported Versions OS: All Supported Windows Platforms Component: SFTP/SSH Hosts, Task Execution, Network

Question/Problem Description

Symptoms — Is This Article for You?

You are experiencing one or more of these symptoms in MOVEit Automation:

Task performance degradation:

Tasks that previously completed in minutes or a few hours now take many hours or 20+ hours
Task run times increased dramatically after a recent MOVEit Automation or Transfer upgrade
Tasks are timing out and failing where they previously ran without issue
Multiple SFTP/SSH tasks across different remote hosts are affected

Task log errors:

$ Logging /path/to/file.zip to size 0 err 3600 Timeout.
Failed to retrieve file /path/to/file.zip from host.example.com on try 1 of 1: Timeout.
SFTP: error: 1118:Invalid SSH packet length., local N/A, remote N/A
General Failure - Error code 3800
$ Logging /path/to/file.txt to Destination/Filepath size 0 err 3800 Interrupted.
Did NOT complete task against '/path/to/file.txt' on 'SSH Host Example'
Task "TaskName": Encountered [N] errors

Side effects of repeated failures:

Timestamp for "collect new files" is not updating, causing the same files to download over and over
Growing file backlogs — each day the number of files that need to be retrieved increases
Hundreds or thousands of duplicate files accumulating

ℹ️ Quick reference: Error code 3600 = download failure. Error code 3800 = upload failure. Both indicate something failed at the network/transport level during the file transfer.

Steps to Reproduce

Clarifying Information

Important — Before You Begin

Prerequisite Checklist:

✅ Identify affected tasks: Note the Task ID(s) and approximate timestamps of recent failed/slow runs. You will need these for log analysis.
✅ Gather the right logs: For task-specific issues, collect task-level debug logs (not just the system-wide MOVEitC log). See: How to gather task specific All Debug logs for MOVEit Automation for instructions.
✅ Know your version: Confirm both your current MOVEit Automation version and the version you upgraded from. Check the Automation web admin interface for the current version; the previous version can sometimes be found from the downloaded installer filename or a pre-upgrade VM snapshot.
✅ Check if the issue started after an upgrade: If tasks were working fine before an upgrade and broke immediately after, this narrows the root cause to SSH library changes or host compatibility — not a general network outage.

Common Misunderstandings:

"The update broke my tasks, so it's a MOVEit bug." — Error codes 3600/3800 come from the network/transport layer, not from MOVEit application logic. However, a MOVEit upgrade can change the underlying SSH library used for SFTP connections, which may introduce incompatibilities with older remote SFTP hosts.
"The timeout means my server is too slow." — A timeout (err 3600) typically indicates a network-level issue or a problem with the remote host, not the Automation server's CPU/memory performance.
"Increasing the retry count is just a bandage." — While increasing retries does not fix the root cause, it is the recommended first step to restore task completion while the underlying network/host issue is investigated.

Error Message

Error 1 — Task Log (Download Timeout — Most Common) $$ Logging /path/to/file.zip to size 0 err 3600 Timeout. → Error code 3600 indicates a download failure. The Timeout suffix means the transfer did not complete within the allowed time. Adjust retry count (Method A) and investigate network (Method B) if persistent. Error 2 — Task Log (Download Failure with Host Name) Task "TaskName": Failed to retrieve file /path/to/file.zip from host.example.com on try 1 of 1: Timeout. → This line precedes the 3600 error and names the specific remote host and file. "try 1 of 1" means the default retry count (1) was used — increase it via Host Override. Error 3 — Task Log (Upload Failure) General Failure - Error code 3800 $$ Logging /path/to/file.txt to Destination/Filepath size 0 err 3800 Interrupted. → Error code 3800 indicates an upload failure. "Interrupted" means the transfer was cut off mid-stream. Same troubleshooting approach as 3600, but focused on the upload path. Error 4 — Task Log (SSH Protocol Error) SFTP: error: 1118:Invalid SSH packet length., local N/A, remote N/A → An SSH-level protocol error indicating the remote host sent an unexpected or malformed packet. Often appears alongside 3600/3800 errors. May indicate SSH library incompatibility after a MOVEit upgrade or an issue with the remote SFTP server. Error 5 — Task Log (Upload Incomplete) Did NOT complete task against '/path/to/file.txt' on 'SSH Host Example' → Summary line confirming a file transfer did not complete. Check preceding log lines for the specific error code (3600 or 3800). Error 6 — Task Log (UNC Share / Local File Failure — Rare) Task "x": Failed to retrieve local file \\Share/FILE.PDF on try 1 of 1: A device attached to the system is not functioning. $$ Logging \\Share/FILE.PDF to size 0 err 3600 The semaphore timeout period has expired. → This variant indicates a problem reading from a local UNC network share, not a remote SFTP host. May indicate a corrupt file or a network storage issue. Investigate the specific file and the UNC share connectivity. Error 7 — Task Log (Error Count Summary) Task "TaskName": Encountered 148 errors → Summary line at task completion showing total errors. Cross-reference with individual error lines above to determine the dominant failure type. Error 8 — Task Log (Task Force-Stopped) Task "TaskName": Failed to stop task and script by user command. → Appears when a user or the scheduler attempts to stop a long-running task. Not an error in itself — it indicates the task was running so long that an intervention was attempted. ℹ️ NOTE: The size 0 in the $$ Logging lines means zero bytes were successfully transferred for that file. This confirms the transfer failed completely rather than partially.

Defect Number

Enhancement Number

Cause

Error codes 3600 (download) and 3800 (upload) originate from the network/transport layer, not from MOVEit application logic. The most common triggers are: (1) a network or firewall change affecting the path between the MOVEit server and the remote SFTP host, (2) an SSH/SFTP library change introduced by a MOVEit Automation upgrade that creates an incompatibility with older remote hosts — especially for large file transfers, or (3) intermittent network instability causing individual transfers to time out.

Resolution

Choose Your Method

Method	Best For	Trade-offs
Method A — Adjust Retry Count & Timeout Settings	Immediate relief for tasks timing out on SFTP downloads/uploads; restores task completion while root cause is investigated	Does not fix the underlying issue; tasks may still run slower than before
Method B — Network Investigation	Persistent errors even with retries increased; firewall changes suspected; multiple hosts affected	Requires network team involvement; may take time to identify root cause via packet capture

Method A — Adjust Retry Count & Timeout Settings (Immediate Relief)

Why this works: When SFTP transfers encounter transient network issues or SSH packet errors, a single retry attempt (the default) causes the entire file to fail. Increasing the retry count allows the task to recover from intermittent failures and complete the transfer.

Open the affected task in the MOVEit Automation web admin interface.
Navigate to the host's timeout settings: Go to the SSH/SFTP host configured at the task level → click Host Override → scroll to the Timeouts section.
Increase the retry count: Check Override Default Retry Count and set it to 3 (start here; increase to 5–10 if timeouts persist on high-volume tasks with many files).
Save and test: Save the task configuration, then either run the task manually or wait for the next scheduled run. Monitor the task log for reduced timeout errors.
Verify results: Confirm that:
- The task completes successfully
- The "collect new files" timestamp updates correctly (no more duplicate downloads)
- The file backlog begins to clear
⚠️ If you are already significantly backlogged (thousands of files accumulated over days of failures), the first successful run after fixing retries will be much longer than normal because it must process the full backlog. Subsequent runs should return to normal duration.

Method B — Network Investigation (Root Cause Analysis)

Why this is needed: Error codes 3600 and 3800 originate from the network/transport layer. If increasing retries does not resolve the issue, or if errors persist across multiple remote hosts, there is likely a network-path problem between the MOVEit server and the remote SFTP host(s).

Check for recent network or firewall changes: Ask your network team if any firewall rules, proxy configurations, or routing changes were made around the time the errors started. In past cases, a firewall change caused uploads/downloads to end prematurely.
Run a traceroute from the MOVEit Automation server to the remote SFTP host(s) experiencing failures. Look for packet loss, high latency, or unreachable hops.
Capture network traffic: Perform a packet capture (e.g., using Wireshark or netsh trace) during a failing task run. Look for:
- TCP RST (reset) packets from either side
- FIN ACK packets sent by the remote host prematurely
- SSH protocol errors or malformed packets
- Connection timeouts at the TCP level
See: How To: Perform a Packet Capture On Your Network for detailed instructions.
Share findings with your network team and/or the remote SFTP host administrator. Provide the traceroute output and packet capture file.
If the network team finds no issues, and the problem began immediately after a MOVEit upgrade, the root cause may be an SSH library incompatibility (see Cause section). Open a support case with Progress Technical Support and include:
- Task-level All Debug logs from a failing run
- Your current MOVEit Automation version and the version you upgraded from
- The remote SFTP host software/version if known
- Packet capture from a failing transfer

⚠️ Post-upgrade SSH library change: MOVEit Automation upgrades may change the underlying SSH/SFTP library (e.g., from WeOnlyDo to IPWorks). This can introduce incompatibilities with older remote SFTP servers, especially for tasks transferring large files (1+ GB). If you suspect this, mention it in your support case — Progress Technical Support can configure the host to use the previous SSH library.

Workaround

In very rare cases, a 3800 error may happen to SFTP tasks in MOVEit Automation due to connecting to an older SFTP host from a modern SFTP library, especially with tasks involving large files. If the above resolutions have been exhausted, and the network team has analyzed a packet capture and found nothing on the network or host end (such as the host detecting an issue for the data connection closing and sending a FIN ACK, even though the task log does not show this), please open up a support case with MOVEit Technical Support.

Notes

Troubleshooting — Common Issues After Adjusting Settings

Problem	Cause & Fix
"I increased retries to 3 but tasks still fail on every file"	The issue is likely persistent, not transient. Increase retries to 5–10 for high-volume tasks. If still failing, proceed to Method B (network investigation).
"Task completed but took 20+ hours instead of the usual 2–3 hours"	If retries are now succeeding, the extra time is from retry delays × number of files. This confirms a network-level issue is present — investigate via Method B while retries keep the task functional.
"Timestamp for collect new files isn't updating — downloading the same files over and over"	This happens when the task fails before completion. Once you resolve the timeout errors (via retries or network fix), the timestamp will update correctly and duplicates will stop.
"Backlog of files is growing every day"	Expected while tasks are failing. Once retries are configured and tasks complete successfully, the first run will process the full backlog. Subsequent runs will return to normal volume.
"I see 'Invalid SSH packet length' errors but no 3600/3800 code"	Error 1118 (Invalid SSH packet length) is an SSH protocol error that often co-occurs with 3600/3800 timeouts. It indicates the remote host sent a malformed or unexpected SSH packet. The same retry and network investigation steps apply.
"Errors happen on multiple different SFTP hosts, not just one"	If multiple remote hosts are affected simultaneously, the issue is likely on the MOVEit server side or its network path (firewall, proxy, NIC). Focus network investigation on the MOVEit server's outbound connectivity.
"This started right after upgrading — can I roll back?"	A full rollback is not recommended. Instead, contact Progress Technical Support — they can configure specific hosts to use the previous SSH library (WeOnlyDo) without rolling back the entire upgrade.
"I tried turning off unzipping to simplify, but downloads still fail"	Unzipping is a post-download step. The failure occurs during the SFTP transfer itself, so disabling post-processing will not help. Focus on retry settings and network investigation.
"Which log should I provide to support?"	For task-specific timeouts, provide the task-level debug log (not the system-wide MOVEitC log). See: How to gather task specific All Debug logs for MOVEit Automation.

References to other Documentation:
Progress Documentation > MOVEit Automation Web Admin Help > Advanced Topics > MOVEit Automation Error Codes - https://docs.progress.com/bundle/moveit-automation-web-admin-help-2026/page/MOVEit-Automation-Error-Codes.html

Progress article(s):
How To: Perform a Packet Capture On Your Network

Keyword Phrase

MOVEit Automation task slow after upgrade; task run times increased; error code 3600; error code 3800; General Failure; SFTP timeout; task timing out; err 3600 Timeout; err 3800 Interrupted; Invalid SSH packet length error 1118; Failed to retrieve file timeout; task takes longer after update; download failed timeout; upload interrupted; tasks taking 7-10 times longer; task runs 20 hours; MOVEit Automation SFTP error; duplicate files timestamp not updating; collect new files not updating; SSH packet error; task performance degradation after upgrade

Last Modified Date

8/17/2026 11:18 PM