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Routeway uses standard HTTP response codes to indicate the success or failure of an API request. Error responses contain a detailed JSON body that mirrors the OpenAI error schema, making it easy to parse errors programmatically.

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Error Response Schema

All API errors return a standard JSON object containing an error payload: 
{
  "error": {
    "message": "Invalid or missing API key",
    "type": "invalid_request_error",
    "code": 401,
    "tip": "Ensure your API key is correctly passed in the Authorization header: Bearer <KEY>",
    "trace_id": "req_01j0x7p6..."
  }
}

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Fields

FieldTypeDescription
messagestringA human-readable description of the error.
typestringThe category of error (e.g., invalid_request_error, rate_limit_error, api_error).
codeinteger/stringThe HTTP status code or a custom error code.
tipstringAn optional helpful suggestion to quickly resolve the error.
trace_idstringA unique identifier for the request, useful when contacting support.

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HTTP Status Codes

Status CodeError TypeDescription
400invalid_request_errorBad Request - Invalid JSON body, missing required parameters, or invalid parameters.
401authentication_errorUnauthorized - Missing or incorrect API key, or the key has been revoked.
403permission_errorForbidden - The key lacks permissions for the requested model or endpoint.
404invalid_request_errorNot Found - The requested endpoint does not exist.
422invalid_request_errorUnprocessable Entity - Schema validation failed, or the input tokens exceeded the model’s limit.
429rate_limit_errorToo Many Requests - You have exceeded your tier rate limits or custom key limits.
500api_errorInternal Server Error - An unexpected error occurred on Routeway’s servers.
502provider_errorBad Gateway - The downstream AI provider (e.g., Anthropic, DeepSeek) returned an error or timed out.

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Catching Errors in Code

Since Routeway uses OpenAI-compatible responses, the official OpenAI SDKs will automatically parse and throw structured exceptions. 
const { OpenAI } = require("openai");

const client = new OpenAI({
  base_url: "https://api.routeway.ai/v1",
  api_key: process.env.ROUTEWAY_API_KEY,
});

async function run() {
  try {
    const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
      model: "gpt-4o-mini",
      messages: [{ role: "user", content: "Hello!" }],
    });
  } catch (error) {
    if (error instanceof OpenAI.APIError) {
      console.error(`Status: ${error.status}`); // e.g., 401
      console.error(`Message: ${error.message}`);
      console.error(`Type: ${error.type}`);
    } else {
      console.error("Non-API Error:", error);
    }
  }
}

run();