Fortnite servers down: Matchmaking error irks fans; how long is downtime, when will servers be back and how to fix issue
Fortnite servers are down as Chapter 7, Season 4 (v42.00) update releases today and matchmaking was disabled before the scheduled downtime. Epic Games’ Fortnite had posted about the upcoming update slated for August 20.

“[ R E A L I T Y . . . R E B O O T S / / A U G U S T . . 2 0 ],” they’d written.
Those familiar with the game posted about matchmaking being disabled and noted that servers would soon face downtime. “Matchmaking is now disabled in preparation for the v42.00 update downtime! Servers will go offline in 30 minutes,” one wrote. Another added “The #Fortnite Ch7, Season 4 (v42.00) update releases today, downtime begins in 30 minutes! Matchmaking is now being disabled.”
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However, not everyone was aware of what’s going on and many reported outages with Fortnite, rather than a scheduled downtime. At the time of writing, Downdetector reports on Fortnite outage spiked to over 500 and hover over 300 as of now. The outage tracking site noted gamers were facing issues since 1:54am ET.
Fortnite down: Users complain of matchmaking error
Fortnite users complained they were facing matchmaking errors. “#Fortnite is Down-time now, this code means u cant play at all so yea i cant even sleep either,” one noted, sharing a screenshot.
Another added “NOOOOOOOO Fortnite locked down before I could get v bucks to buy the rest of the DJ bonus pass skins the payment page kept crashing over the last couple hours, she’s my fave character, I’m gutted.” Yet another said “Fortnite servers are down and you know what that means the season is officially over update is live and overdrive kicks off in a few hours.”
How long are Fortnite servers down? When will game resume
Fortnite servers are expected to be down for 4-6 hours as they roll out the ‘Override’ update. As per reports, server maintenance officially began at 2:00am ET and thus, Fortnite servers are expected to be back between 6:00am ET and 8:00am ET.
Gamers also posted similar information on X. “The servers are completely down. The game is essentially out of service for 5-6 hours,” one wrotewhile another added “Fortnite service will be down for 5 hours.”
Fortnite matchmaking error: How to fix issue
While matchmaking is currently disabled for scheduled server maintenance, here’s how gamers can try and fix the issue if they keep facing the same problem once servers are back up.
If one faces Matchmaking Error #1, they should check the server status first. If servers are up and running, gamers should restart the game and launcher, toggle matchmaking region or fill settings, or flush the DNS on PC.