5 Hour Session Limit

[xtomyjeex]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Question

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Copilot in GitHub

Body

I am getting this error,

[Conversations Information] [CopilotClient] Copilot Internal User response: Conversations.Abstractions.Auth.CopilotUserData
[Conversations Information] [CopilotModels] Environment variable COPILOT_USE_DEFAULTPROXY found: False
[Conversations Information] Copilot auth status: OK. Copilot badge status: Active
[Conversations Error] [CopilotClient] Failed to talk to Copilot: {"error":{"message":"Sorry, you've exceeded your 5 hour session limits. Please review our Terms of Service.","code":"user_global_rate_limited:pro"}}

[Conversations Warning] [CopilotClient] Issue with setting up the connection to 'https://api.githubcopilot.com/chat/completions', if you are using a proxy, check if HTTPS_PROXY is set correctly. https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/fundamentals/networking/http/httpclient#http-proxy
[Conversations Error] [Conversations] Unhandled exception in AskInConversationAsync: System.Exception: Error occurred while invoking intent 'Generic'.
{"error":{"message":"Sorry, you've exceeded your 5 hour session limits. Please review our Terms of Service.","code":"user_global_rate_limited:pro"}}

I have only used 31% of my Tokens and it is showing total of $5.20 of usage. But I am not able to use Github Co-Pilot inside Visual Studio 2022.

How long I will be blocked?

[ShirazPirzada]

Same issue here , not even used for 5 hours , got this error within 1 hour.

[DMIRABALM73]

Same issue today with Pro subscription, a big debuff

[gabrielaradighieri]

same

[Dajyarekun]

I'm in the same situation. I'm really worried. Even though I was within my April spending limit, I couldn't use the service until the very end.

[xtomyjeex]

These errors have nothing to do with your monthly quota. This is rate limitation based on your usage.
I think this makes it unusable for actual developers with timelines to be met.

[sesa821933-source]

I got this error within 15 minutes of usage today

[Gecko51]

The session limit and the monthly token quota are two completely separate things. The 31% usage you see is your monthly premium request budget -- hitting the session wall has nothing to do with that number.

The user_global_rate_limited:pro error is a rolling time-based cap, not a usage cap. It resets on its own, usually within a few hours. There's no way to manually clear it.

That said, getting blocked after 15-60 minutes on a Pro plan is not normal behavior. The 5-hour limit is supposed to be a ceiling, not something you'd hit in under an hour of regular use. Multiple people reporting the same thing here suggests this might be a broader issue right now rather than something specific to individual accounts.

File a ticket at support.github.com with the error log you posted and the exact timestamps -- when the session started, when it got blocked, and what your usage looked like at that point. Be specific about the timeline. That's what support needs to investigate whether there's a rate limit misconfiguration or a service-side issue affecting Pro users.

[xtomyjeex]

The session limit and the monthly token quota are two completely separate things. The 31% usage you see is your monthly premium request budget -- hitting the session wall has nothing to do with that number.

The user_global_rate_limited:pro error is a rolling time-based cap, not a usage cap. It resets on its own, usually within a few hours. There's no way to manually clear it.

That said, getting blocked after 15-60 minutes on a Pro plan is not normal behavior. The 5-hour limit is supposed to be a ceiling, not something you'd hit in under an hour of regular use. Multiple people reporting the same thing here suggests this might be a broader issue right now rather than something specific to individual accounts.

File a ticket at support.github.com with the error log you posted and the exact timestamps -- when the session started, when it got blocked, and what your usage looked like at that point. Be specific about the timeline. That's what support needs to investigate whether there's a rate limit misconfiguration or a service-side issue affecting Pro users.

Appreciate your response. I also think this is an issue either way system. I have worked for longer times without any issue. This one stopped working after less than 2 hours. And they are also not telling when it will be restored. We are working with tight deadlines and it has left me in the middle of some code changes. This is ridiculous. Documentation says you will get warning. In my case there was no warning at all.

[xtomyjeex]

I meant to write “Issue with the system”

[ALONEARIF25]

I did find the same issue, I was working on a new project, I havent coded today, this was the first session today, and within like 3 hours, it got stopped even I was using Codex. Previously I used to code for 5hrs non stop but didnt get rate limited. This is not cool.

[hamidelbagir]

What's the point of premium subscription?!
Hit the issue within 30 mins of use today :/
Really disappointing :( .. probably time to look for other options.

[paulostradioti]

I think the AI bubble is finally bursting.

[edika99]

Same problem here. It's the first time I see this error and I'm on Copilot Pro+. That's not the way this tool should work.

[thearjunl]

Confirming the same — the session limit and token quota are separate counters, so your 31% usage being intact doesn't prevent the time-based block from triggering.
The block resets on its own within a few hours. In the meantime, file a ticket at support.github.com with your timestamps — especially if you were blocked under 2 hours, that's abnormal and worth flagging.
The lack of a warning before getting cut off mid-session is a real UX gap. Worth mentioning that in the ticket too.

[addshore]

I have slowly been watching myself tick closer to session limits today for the first time on a Pro plan, and concerningly quickly

Immediately after that reset I started getting warnings about the weekly limits

The sad part is the lack of transparency around the limit itself, how quickly you are approaching it, and actual numerical values.
Just showing a % is pretty useless

[Anes201]

absolutely vile

[Gecko51]

For the "how long will I be blocked" part, since that hasn't really been answered directly:

The rolling window for user_global_rate_limited:pro typically clears within 3 to 6 hours from when you first hit it, not exactly 5 hours on the dot. If you retry after 3 hours and still get blocked, it means more of your session usage is still inside the rolling period, wait another hour or two.

A few things worth checking while you wait, because a lot of people getting blocked in under an hour turns out to be background usage they didn't realize was counting:

• Multiple VS 2022 / VS Code windows open, each with Copilot Chat active, all count against the same session pool. Close the ones you're not actively using.
• Agent Mode and auto-retry loops can chew through the session fast. If any background agents are running, kill them.
• Copilot CLI and Copilot in the browser (github.com chat) share the same session pool as the IDE. Any chat sessions earlier in the day stack into the same window.

Switching to a lighter model in settings (GPT-4o mini, etc.) does not get around the session limit, since the cap is on sessions not model tokens. What it does do is slow down how fast you burn the monthly premium request budget, which is a separate meter.

The lack of a countdown or warning before the cut-off is a real gap. Worth filing at github.com/github/feedback instead of just commenting here, the feedback repo is where product actually tracks these.

[Ni-zav]

We have provided more details about changes to Copilot Individual Plans in this discussion, which may be updated if new information becomes available.

If you hit unexpected limits or these changes just don’t work for you, you can cancel your Pro or Pro+ subscription and receive a refund for the time remaining on your current subscription.

To request a refund, go to Settings → Billing and licensing → Licensing, select Manage subscription, then choose Cancel and refund "subscription". (The phrasing varies slightly depending on your subscription ). This option will be available until May 20.

To keep conversations all in one place and to ensure you receive timely updates, we’ll be closing this post and recommend you subscribe to the discussion linked above.

[Ni-zav]

Right now, the behavior feels more like a session lock than a predictable limit.

i do agree on some degree, although it is more of a sudden warning with threats of session lock, since we can only see session/weekly limit when it is reached 50 percent, and no way to see metered usages of this.

[frostaura]

Nice one github, thanks for the clear instructions. Took me about a minute to get a refund after you pointed it out to me.

You’re looking at your latest GitHub Free tier user here.

[anburocky3]

Looks like cursor brought Github Copilot team to drive customers from github to cursor platforms.

[DMIRABALM73]

This explanation is like: Get out of here, you filthy Muggles!!!

Expecting politeness at this stage is unrealistic. Over the last several weeks, the handling of these changes has left a significant portion of users feeling ignored and disrespected.
If there is any uncertainty about the scale of the issue, social media and community forums clearly reflect the level of dissatisfaction.

[mbrennan376]

I have been a developer using pretty much exclusively Microsoft tools for the past 30 years. I also use Azure pretty much exclusively. I liked their integration and support. One of the best things about them is how supportive they have been to the developer community.

I don't recall them ever telling developers to just go away before. Seems like an interesting strategy, wonder if it will pay off.

Now I have to start looking more at alternatives to Microsoft tools. Similarly it will likely push me towards other cloud services and technologies and away from relying on Azure which is probably a good thing. Thanks Microsoft!

[Syipmong]

once my subscription expires, i'm never gonna renew again, worse update from github and vscode

[moonlune]

I think the current restrictions are way too cumbersome! Monthly limits, weekly limits, hourly limits—all these complicated and opaque policies! I don’t understand the point of setting such complex rules. When it comes to development work, people’s busy and idle periods don’t follow a smooth, even curve—they’re always fluctuating. It’s just that, due to different working hours across various locations, the overall average appears relatively consistent. Moreover, if usage is higher during one period, it will inevitably decrease during another due to overall quota limits!

[dtnguyen-cmd]

Something’s off with the 5-hour session limit. I just started working on development less than an hour ago.

[xtomyjeex]

That is correct. I started at 7:00 am today. It is 8:30 am now and already it has completed 5 hours and I am not able to use it any more.
No warnings!! Just abrupt stop!

[prakashdiwakar]

Same here even with less than 2 hrs of uses now I suddenly got error as "Sorry, you've exceeded your 5 hour session limits. Please review our Terms of Service.", I have pro subscription.

[Luziferri]

Same here, with like 1 hour

[zheng1xiao]

It‘s really shit，fucking copilot

[ksamatha]

For the past two days, I have been encountering a weekly_limit error. Even when the system starts working, after approximately 2 hours it shows the message: ‘You’ve exceeded your 5-hour session limit.’

This behavior is significantly impacting productivity. In many cases, completing the task manually would be faster than relying on AI-assisted tools such as Copilot. These limitations reduce the practical value of AI coding assistants and disrupt development workflows.

The issue is directly affecting my project timeline. Limitations like these can lead to user frustration, and it appears that many users are already disengaging due to these constraints.

It would be helpful to have more consistent session handling or clearer usage limits to ensure reliable development support

[SebastianKruseWago]

I just got the Pro plan assigned this week. Used it once this morning and now getting this BS message? Who has designed such crap?

[xtomyjeex]

I shifted to ChatGpt for development. I find it much faster than Copilot. Keeping Copilot for now but didn't have to use it yet! 😃

[TombRaiderLegend]

I asked 4 questions and got this error. Unfortunetaly I downgraded my Copilot Pro+ to Copilot Pro and now I hardly can use Copilot anymore. Worst downgrade ever!

[Zaid-maker]

Worst update to be pushed out honestly as a PRO user

[ShirazPirzada]

Well seeing its not resolved yet! I'm not renewing the subscription.

[widyanirwadi]

Happened to me as well, then I'm probably will not be renewing the subscription.

[benmizrahi]

is there any update on this?

[xtomyjeex]

Yes, they said, if you don't like it or it doesn't work for you get a refund for the unused portion of subscription. Offer is valid till May 20th. .

[mbrennan376]

same issue. It is making copilot pretty useless

[techbuzzz]

Same issue. It's blocked all work which I delegate to copilot. It's really useless. Sorry, you've exceeded your 5 hour session limits

[prakashdiwakar]

In my case many time it get stuck without giving any info , and even cancel button doesn't work. Then I need to restart the visual studio again and then only I am able to manually cancel the chat request. Adn then you get 5hr error even uses if 1 hr only. So frustrating.

[supersonical]

This is horrendous, i have not even been up and running for 1,5H and got hit with the session limit.

[quandaledinglesewy-dev]

bruh i got rate limited after 50 minutes😭😭💔

[xtomyjeex]

Best idea is not to rely on Copilot in Visual Studio. Just use it when you need to review entire solution (If you have to). Use Claude or ChatGPT with VS.Code.
You can use ChatGPT or Grok prompts outside the IDE. That also works.

[mihaipruna]

I have been using Copilot to refactor a .NET legacy code base in Visual Studio, I am thinking of switching to VSCode and a local model like Qwen 3, but I am not sure how it would work in my case

[okuneyegabriel]

Jesus efffing Christ! What is really happening? Y'all got us all fired up to use AI and y'all not ready for us! Now I finally get comfortable with using AI and now I got to wait for a week for a reset after just a few hours! Is the AI bubble about to burst? Need to short these cr**ps.

[lele394]

Sorry, you have been rate-limited. Please wait a moment before trying again. Learn More

Server Error: Sorry, you've exceeded your 5 hour session limits. Please review our Terms of Service. Error Code: user_global_rate_limited:edu

Well that's new, I still have budget on copilot and everything. I pay for a service and now I'm being rate limited for it?

Hold on, are you actually rate limiting people? or are you hiding downtime as "rate limit"?

[xtomyjeex]

This was the reply from GitHub!!!

We have provided more details about changes to Copilot Individual Plans in this discussion, which may be updated if new information becomes available.

If you hit unexpected limits or these changes just don’t work for you, you can cancel your Pro or Pro+ subscription and receive a refund for the time remaining on your current subscription.

To request a refund, go to Settings → Billing and licensing → Licensing, select Manage subscription, then choose Cancel and refund "subscription". (The phrasing varies slightly depending on your subscription ). This option will be available until May 20.

To keep conversations all in one place and to ensure you receive timely updates, we’ll be closing this post and recommend you subscribe to the discussion linked above.

[lele394]

There's no way...

See people!!! They get you hooked on using AI then pull the plug. Ugh, lesson learned. Only rely on local inference for AI stuff, these companies will take it away or make it unaffordable at some point.

I can't risk becoming dependent on AI tools if Microslop can just turn it off whenever they want. Absolutely outrageous.

[TombRaiderLegend]

This was the reply from GitHub!!!

We have provided more details about changes to Copilot Individual Plans in this discussion, which may be updated if new information becomes available.

If you hit unexpected limits or these changes just don’t work for you, you can cancel your Pro or Pro+ subscription and receive a refund for the time remaining on your current subscription.

To request a refund, go to Settings → Billing and licensing → Licensing, select Manage subscription, then choose Cancel and refund "subscription". (The phrasing varies slightly depending on your subscription ). This option will be available until May 20.

To keep conversations all in one place and to ensure you receive timely updates, we’ll be closing this post and recommend you subscribe to the discussion linked above.

Their "Request a refund" is pure BS. They just want to attract more current users with their so called "Cancel and get refund".

I did that and I still get this issue. On top of that, I lost access to all my AI agents and when I wanted to upgrade to Pro+ (or Pro) again, then its not longer possible.

Pure BS from GitHub!

[DMIRABALM73]

Same issue here too, so whats next?

[lele394]

Stop paying for Pro I suppose. I'll go back to coding manually with occasional help of local AI. I can't use a product the company shows they can take away whenever they feel like it.