1# GraphQL Analytics API Gotchas & Troubleshooting
2 
3## Rate Limits
4 
5| Limit | Value |
6|-------|-------|
7| GraphQL queries per user | **Default 300 per 5 minutes** (max 320, at least 1/sec) |
8| General API rate limit | 1200 requests per 5 minutes (shared across all API calls) |
9| Zone scope per query | Up to **10 zones** |
10| Account scope per query | Exactly **1 account** |
11 
12The GraphQL rate limit is separate from the general API limit. Exceeding either results in `HTTP 429` and blocks all API calls for 5 minutes. Enterprise customers can contact support to raise limits.
13 
14### "429 Too Many Requests"
15 
16**Cause:** Exceeded rate limit.
17 
18**Solution:** Batch multiple datasets into single queries, cache results, increase intervals between queries. Use `{ viewer { budget } }` to monitor remaining budget.
19 
20## Sampling & Data Accuracy
21 
22### Adaptive Bit Rate (ABR) Sampling
23 
24Datasets with `Adaptive` in the name use adaptive sampling:
25- Results are **statistically representative**, not exact
26- Same query may return **slightly different numbers** each run
27- Higher traffic = higher sampling rate = more accurate
28- `sampleInterval` dimension shows the ratio (1 = no sampling, 10 = ~1-in-10 sampled)
29 
30For high-confidence numbers, use `confidence(level: 0.95)` to get estimate bounds. For exact counts, use rollup nodes (`httpRequests1hGroups`, `httpRequests1dGroups`) which are pre-aggregated without sampling.
31 
32### Rollup vs. Adaptive
33 
34| Feature | Rollup (`*1hGroups`, `*1dGroups`) | Adaptive (`*AdaptiveGroups`) |
35|---------|-----------------------------------|-----------------------------|
36| Sampling | No (pre-aggregated) | Yes (ABR) |
37| Flexibility | Fixed time buckets | Any granularity |
38| Dimensions | Fewer | Many more |
39| Accuracy | Exact | Statistical estimate |
40 
41## Common Errors
42 
43### "Access denied" / "authentication error"
44 
45**Cause:** Token lacks required permission or wrong scope.
46 
47**Solution:** Account-scoped queries need **Account Analytics: Read**. Zone-scoped queries need **Zone Analytics: Read**. Verify: `curl -s https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/user/tokens/verify -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"`
48 
49### "field not found" / "Cannot query field"
50 
51**Cause:** Wrong dataset name, nonexistent field, or wrong scope (zone vs. account).
52 
53**Solution:** Names are case-sensitive camelCase (`httpRequestsAdaptiveGroups`). Zone datasets go under `zones(...)`, account datasets under `accounts(...)`. Use introspection to verify.
54 
55### "filter is required" / empty results
56 
57**Cause:** Missing required time range filter or incorrect zone/account tag.
58 
59**Solution:** Always include `datetime_gt` / `datetime_lt` (or `_geq` / `_leq`).
60 
61### "limit is required" / "limit exceeds maximum"
62 
63**Cause:** Missing `limit` or exceeding node's max page size.
64 
65**Solution:** Always specify `limit`. Max varies by dataset (typically 10,000 for groups, 100 for raw events). Check via settings query.
66 
67### "query is too complex" / "query exceeds budget"
68 
69**Cause:** Too many fields, datasets, or too broad a time range.
70 
71**Solution:** Reduce time range, request fewer dimensions/metrics, break into smaller queries. Monitor `cost` and `budget` in responses.
72 
73### 200 Response with Errors
74 
75GraphQL returns HTTP 200 even on failures. **Always check `response.errors`:**
76 
77```json
78{ "data": null, "errors": [{ "message": "filter is required for httpRequestsAdaptiveGroups" }] }
79```
80 
81## Plan-Based Availability
82 
83Not all datasets are available on all plans. Higher plans get more datasets, longer retention (`notOlderThan`), wider time ranges (`maxDuration`), more fields, and larger page sizes.
84 
85### "node is not available" / "node is disabled"
86 
87**Cause:** Dataset not on your plan, or product not enabled.
88 
89**Solution:** Check `settings { <nodeName> { enabled } }`. Some datasets require specific subscriptions (e.g., Network Analytics requires Magic Transit/Spectrum).
90 
91## DateTime & Timezone Handling
92 
93- All times are **UTC only** (ISO 8601: `"2025-01-15T10:30:00Z"`)
94- `Date` type: `"2025-01-15"` (used in `date_geq`/`date_leq` for storage datasets)
95- `Time` type: `"2025-01-15T10:30:00Z"` (used in `datetime_gt`/`datetime_lt`)
96- Filters are start-inclusive: events that start within the window are included
97 
98## Performance Tips
99 
100- **Narrow time ranges** are faster and cheaper
101- **Select only needed dimensions** — each additional dimension increases cost
102- **Use rollup nodes** (`*1dGroups`) for simple daily totals without dimension breakdowns
103- **Batch datasets** into one query instead of separate HTTP requests
104 
105## See Also
106 
107- [README.md](README.md) - Overview, decision tree, dataset index
108- [api.md](api.md) - Query structure, aggregation fields, filtering operators
109- [configuration.md](configuration.md) - Authentication, client setup, introspection queries
110- [patterns.md](patterns.md) - Common query patterns (time-series, top-N, per-product)
111