The keep-alive header in HTTP indicates how long a persistent connection between the server and the client should be kept open.
A connection refers to the communication link between the client and server over TCP Protocol. A connection is established using a process called TCP handshake which involves an exchange of packets to ensure a reliable communication line. Once established data can be transmitted.
<pre><code class="lang-http">HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/json
Content-Length: 123
Connection: keep-alive
Keep-Alive: timeout=5
</code></pre>
It indicates that the connection will be kept open for 5sec and any subsequent requests sent during this time will use the same connection. This reduces the latency associated with setting up new connections.

The keep-alive header in HTTP indicates how long a persistent connection between the server and the client should be kept open.

A connection refers to the communication link between the client and server over TCP Protocol. A connection is established using a process called TCP handshake which involves an exchange of packets to ensure a reliable communication line. Once established data can be transmitted.

```http
HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Content-Type: application/json
Content-Length: 123
Connection: keep-alive
Keep-Alive: timeout=5
```

It indicates that the connection will be kept open for 5sec and any subsequent requests sent during this time will use the same connection. This reduces the latency associated with setting up new connections.

Keep alive Header