the database system is not yet accepting connections

Symptoms

A statement failed with SQLSTATE 57P03 (cannot_connect_now), reported at severity FATAL. This is a Operator Intervention condition: PostgreSQL emits the message the database system is not yet accepting connections.

• The client receives SQLSTATE 57P03 (cannot connect now).
• The operation is rejected at FATAL level; the statement does not complete.
• The server adds a DETAIL line with specifics (see below).

What the server log shows

FATAL:  the database system is not yet accepting connections
DETAIL:  Consistent recovery state has not been yet reached.
HINT:  To enable hot standby, close write transactions with more than n subtransactions on the primary server.

Why PostgreSQL raises this

Class 57 (Operator Intervention) is raised when an administrator action or server lifecycle event interrupts the session — shutdown, cancellation, or a forced termination.

As described in PostgreSQL’s Section 19.6 Error Handling and Appendix A (PostgreSQL Error Codes), SQLSTATE 57P03 carries the condition name cannot_connect_now in class Operator Intervention. (Paraphrased — see the linked reference for the exact wording.)

Common causes

• The administrator cancelled the query or terminated the backend.
• The server is shutting down or in recovery.
• A statement or idle-in-transaction timeout fired.

How to fix it

1. Retry once the server is available again.
2. Investigate why the backend was cancelled/terminated.
3. Tune the relevant timeout if cancellations are unintended.

Version applicability

This message is present in PostgreSQL 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19.

Related & next steps

• SQLSTATE 57P03 — Cannot Connect Now (full reference)
• PostgreSQL error code index

Reference: PostgreSQL Section 19.6 Error Handling.