Affected: Server-side SDKs using Big Segments
Symptoms
When evaluating feature flags using the variationDetail method in server-side SDKs with Big Segments, the evaluation reason may include bigSegmentsStatus: "STALE".
Cause
A bigSegmentsStatus value of "STALE" means the SDK is set up to evaluate Big Segments, but it cannot confirm that the membership data in the Big Segment store is up to date.
This can happen when the Big Segment integration and the SDK are not aligned on the same project, environment, database, or namespace settings. In this case, the SDK can connect to the store, but the store’s metadata is either missing or older than the configured stale threshold.
The SDK will still evaluate flags using the last known Big Segment membership data, but it reports “STALE” to indicate that the data may be outdated.
Solution
Use the following steps to identify and correct the cause of a "STALE" Big Segments status.
1. Verify a Big Segment store integration exists for the correct environment
In the LaunchDarkly UI:
Go to Settings, and click on the Integrations tab.
Locate the Redis Big Segment store or DynamoDB Big Segment store integration.
Confirm that:
The project matches the project containing the flag and segment.
The environment matches the environment the SDK is evaluating against.
If the integration is scoped to a different project or environment, edit the integration to point to the correct project and environment, or delete and recreate the integration with the correct settings.
2. Validate the SDK’s Big Segments configuration
In your server-side SDK configuration, please confirm the following:
-
Confirm the persistent store connection (Redis, DynamoDB, etc.) points to the same database or table used by your Big Segment integration or Relay Proxy.
If the SDK and the integration/Relay are connected to different key spaces (for example, different Redis databases or DynamoDB tables), the SDK may connect successfully but won’t see any Big Segment metadata. In that case, it can report
bigSegmentsStatus: "STALE".
-
Ensure the key prefix/namespace matches the environment’s client-side ID and is consistent across the SDK and the Big Segment integration or Relay Proxy.
If the integration or Relay writes data using the client-side ID as the prefix, but the SDK is configured with a different prefix (for example, the SDK key or a custom value), the SDK will read from a namespace that never receives Big Segment updates. This results in missing or outdated metadata and can cause
bigSegmentsStatus: "STALE".
3. Confirm the Big Segment store is healthy and syncing
Check the integration details in the LaunchDarkly UI:
Verify the integration reports a healthy status.
Confirm recent successful syncs are visible.
If you are using the Relay Proxy with a persistent store instead of a direct integration, review Relay Proxy logs for:
Connectivity issues to Redis or DynamoDB.
The configured Big Segments stale threshold (
bigSegmentsStaleThreshold).
Once the integration is correctly scoped and syncing, and the SDK is configured with the correct store and prefix, evaluations should no longer report bigSegmentsStatus: "STALE".