diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 7afa0ce..b80e16c 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -18,9 +18,6 @@ Needs Go 1.25+.
 # HTTP download with 16 connections
 got -x16 -s16 https://example.com/big.iso
 
-# let got pick the connection count from the file size
-got --auto-split https://example.com/big.iso
-
 # resume an interrupted download
 got -c https://example.com/big.iso
 
@@ -47,7 +44,6 @@ Run `got --help` (or `--help=all`) for every option.
 | `-c, --continue` | resume a partial download | false |
 | `-x, --max-connection-per-server` | connections to one server (1–16) | 1 |
 | `-s, --split` | split a download into N connections | 5 |
-| `--auto-split` | choose connections from file size (overrides `-x`/`-s`) | false |
 | `-j, --max-concurrent-downloads` | downloads at once | 5 |
 | `--max-overall-download-limit` | global speed cap | 0 (off) |
 | `--checksum` | verify the finished file: `TYPE=DIGEST` (sha-256, sha-1, …) | |
diff --git a/bt/bt.go b/bt/bt.go
index 114b5e7..390131f 100644
--- a/bt/bt.go
+++ b/bt/bt.go
@@ -392,7 +392,9 @@ func (d *Download) awaitInfo(ctx context.Context, t *torrent.Torrent) error {
 	case <-ctx.Done():
 		return ctx.Err()
 	case <-deadline:
-		return fmt.Errorf("timed out fetching metadata after %s", d.opts.MetaTimeout)
+		// Wrap DeadlineExceeded so the exit-code mapping classifies it as a timeout
+		// (2) via errors.Is, rather than matching on the message text.
+		return fmt.Errorf("timed out fetching metadata after %s: %w", d.opts.MetaTimeout, context.DeadlineExceeded)
 	}
 }
 
diff --git a/cli/option.go b/cli/option.go
index 91b3d56..afd2ddc 100644
--- a/cli/option.go
+++ b/cli/option.go
@@ -81,7 +81,6 @@ var options = []Opt{
 	{Long: "max-connection-per-server", Short: 'x', Kind: Int, Default: "1", Min: 1, Max: 16, Help: "max connections to one server (1-16)", Tag: Basic},
 	{Long: "split", Short: 's', Kind: Int, Default: "5", Min: 1, Help: "split a download into N connections; actual connections are min(max-connection-per-server, split), and -x defaults to 1", Tag: Basic},
 	{Long: "min-split-size", Short: 'k', Kind: Size, Default: "20M", Min: 1 << 20, Max: 1 << 30, Help: "do not split a piece smaller than SIZE (1M-1024M)", Tag: Basic},
-	{Long: "auto-split", Kind: Bool, Default: "false", Help: "got-only: pick the connection count from file size (one per min-split-size, up to 16); overrides -x/-s", Tag: HTTP},
 	{Long: "force-sequential", Short: 'Z', Kind: Bool, Default: "false", Help: "download each command-line URI as its own file instead of mirroring them", Tag: HTTP},
 	{Long: "max-tries", Short: 'm', Kind: Int, Default: "5", Min: 0, Help: "max retries per segment (0 = unlimited)", Tag: HTTP},
 	{Long: "timeout", Short: 't', Kind: Int, Default: "60", Min: 1, Help: "connection timeout in seconds", Tag: HTTP},
diff --git a/httpdl/httpdl.go b/httpdl/httpdl.go
index 07e0bc4..c041f09 100644
--- a/httpdl/httpdl.go
+++ b/httpdl/httpdl.go
@@ -57,8 +57,7 @@ type Config struct {
 	Split            int // --split: total connections across all mirrors
 	MaxConnPerServer int // --max-connection-per-server: per-host connection cap
 	MinSplit         int64
-	AutoSplit        bool // --auto-split (got-only): pick the connection count from file size
-	Tries            int  // 0 = unlimited
+	Tries            int // 0 = unlimited
 	Timeout          time.Duration
 	FileAlloc        string // none | prealloc | trunc | falloc
 	Continue         bool
@@ -120,7 +119,7 @@ type Config struct {
 // connections.
 type Download struct {
 	uris     []string // mirror list; uris[0] is the primary (naming + resume key)
-	maxConns int      // manual segment-worker cap = min(split, len(uris)*max-connection-per-server); --auto-split derives its own count per file in segmented()
+	maxConns int      // segment-worker cap = min(split, len(uris)*max-connection-per-server)
 	cfg      Config
 	client   *http.Client
 	limit    []*rate.Limiter
@@ -216,17 +215,10 @@ func New(uris []string, cfg Config) *Download {
 	if perHost < 1 {
 		perHost = 1
 	}
-	// The transport must allow as many concurrent connections per host as we may
-	// actually open. --auto-split scales up to maxAutoConns per host once the file
-	// size is known (in segmented), so raise the cap to that ceiling when it is on.
-	connCap := perHost
-	if cfg.AutoSplit {
-		connCap = maxAutoConns
-	}
 	tr := &http.Transport{
 		Proxy:                 http.ProxyFromEnvironment,
-		MaxConnsPerHost:       connCap,
-		MaxIdleConnsPerHost:   connCap,
+		MaxConnsPerHost:       perHost,
+		MaxIdleConnsPerHost:   perHost,
 		ResponseHeaderTimeout: cfg.Timeout,
 		TLSHandshakeTimeout:   connectTimeout,
 		DialContext:           dialContext,
@@ -671,13 +663,7 @@ func (d *Download) probe(ctx context.Context, uri string) (probeResult, error) {
 // segmented downloads total bytes over d.maxConns workers, with per-segment
 // resume from the control file.
 func (d *Download) segmented(ctx context.Context, out string, total int64, etag, lastmod string) error {
-	// --auto-split picks the connection count from the file size now that total is
-	// known; otherwise use the manual cap fixed at construction.
-	conns := d.maxConns
-	if d.cfg.AutoSplit {
-		conns = autoConns(total, d.cfg.MinSplit)
-	}
-	segs := makeSegments(total, d.cfg.MinSplit, conns)
+	segs := makeSegments(total, d.cfg.MinSplit, d.maxConns)
 	if c := d.resumeControl(out, etag, lastmod); c != nil {
 		segs = segsFromControl(c)
 	} else if d.cfg.Continue && !fileExists(controlPath(out)) {
@@ -809,10 +795,11 @@ func (d *Download) fetchOnce(ctx context.Context, f *os.File, s *seg, uri string
 	return d.pump(ctx, f, s, body)
 }
 
-// errIdleTimeout marks a transfer that stalled past the idle window, so callers
-// can report a distinct "timed out" instead of the bare "context canceled" that
-// the cancelled request would otherwise surface (item [39]).
-var errIdleTimeout = errors.New("idle timeout: no data received")
+// ErrTimeout marks a transfer that stalled past the idle window (--timeout): a
+// distinct "timed out" instead of the bare "context canceled" the cancelled
+// request would otherwise surface (item [39]). main maps it to exit code 2 via
+// errors.Is, so it must stay on the error chain (CONTRACT).
+var ErrTimeout = errors.New("idle timeout: no data received")
 
 // idleReader records the time of the last byte received; a background watcher
 // (idleGuard) cancels the request once a full idle window passes with no
@@ -834,7 +821,7 @@ func (ir *idleReader) Read(p []byte) (int, error) {
 	if err != nil && ir.timedOut.Load() {
 		// The cancellation came from our watcher, not the caller's ctx, so
 		// translate the read error into the distinct idle-timeout sentinel.
-		return n, fmt.Errorf("%w (after %s)", errIdleTimeout, ir.idle)
+		return n, fmt.Errorf("%w (after %s)", ErrTimeout, ir.idle)
 	}
 	return n, err
 }
diff --git a/httpdl/segment.go b/httpdl/segment.go
index edd0ba4..00d773b 100644
--- a/httpdl/segment.go
+++ b/httpdl/segment.go
@@ -55,27 +55,3 @@ func makeSegments(total, minSplit int64, conns int) []seg {
 	}
 	return segs
 }
-
-// maxAutoConns is the ceiling --auto-split scales to. aria2 caps
-// max-connection-per-server (-x) at 16, so a got-chosen count honours the same
-// per-server limit rather than inventing a looser one.
-const maxAutoConns = 16
-
-// autoConns picks a connection count from the file size, used only when
-// --auto-split is set: one connection per min-split-size of content, at least 1
-// and at most maxAutoConns. It is the got-only stand-in for hand-tuning -x/-s,
-// and because the count never exceeds total/minSplit, makeSegments yields exactly
-// that many balanced segments.
-func autoConns(total, minSplit int64) int {
-	if minSplit < 1 {
-		minSplit = 1
-	}
-	n := total / minSplit
-	if n < 1 {
-		n = 1
-	}
-	if n > maxAutoConns {
-		n = maxAutoConns
-	}
-	return int(n)
-}
diff --git a/httpdl/segment_test.go b/httpdl/segment_test.go
index 8a4c774..2160749 100644
--- a/httpdl/segment_test.go
+++ b/httpdl/segment_test.go
@@ -47,31 +47,6 @@ func TestMakeSegments(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
-func TestAutoConns(t *testing.T) {
-	const m = int64(20 << 20) // 20 MiB min-split, aria2's default
-	tests := []struct {
-		name     string
-		total    int64
-		minSplit int64
-		want     int
-	}{
-		{"under one min-split is a single connection", 5 << 20, m, 1},
-		{"exactly one min-split", m, m, 1},
-		{"five min-splits", 100 << 20, m, 5},
-		{"caps at maxAutoConns", 10 << 30, m, maxAutoConns},
-		{"rounds down to whole pieces", m*3 + 1, m, 3},
-		{"tiny min-split still capped", 1 << 30, 1 << 20, maxAutoConns},
-		{"zero total is one connection", 0, m, 1},
-	}
-	for _, tc := range tests {
-		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
-			if got := autoConns(tc.total, tc.minSplit); got != tc.want {
-				t.Errorf("autoConns(%d, %d) = %d, want %d", tc.total, tc.minSplit, got, tc.want)
-			}
-		})
-	}
-}
-
 func TestSegProgress(t *testing.T) {
 	s := seg{start: 100, end: 199} // length 100
 	if s.length() != 100 {
diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index 26da524..b37e321 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -530,7 +530,6 @@ func httpConfig(opts *cli.Options, single bool, overallDL *rate.Limiter) httpdl.
 		Split:            opts.Int("split"),
 		MaxConnPerServer: opts.Int("max-connection-per-server"),
 		MinSplit:         opts.Size("min-split-size"),
-		AutoSplit:        opts.Bool("auto-split"),
 		Tries:            opts.Int("max-tries"),
 		Timeout:          time.Duration(opts.Int("timeout")) * time.Second,
 		FileAlloc:        opts.Str("file-allocation"),
@@ -717,42 +716,29 @@ func exitCode(err error) int {
 
 // isNameResolution reports whether err is (or wraps) a DNS lookup failure —
 // "name resolution failed" (19), which usually points at the user's own
-// network or resolver rather than a dead remote.
+// network or resolver rather than a dead remote. The stdlib reports every such
+// failure (no-such-host, server-misbehaving) as *net.DNSError.
 func isNameResolution(err error) bool {
 	var de *net.DNSError
-	if errors.As(err, &de) {
-		return true
-	}
-	msg := strings.ToLower(err.Error())
-	return strings.Contains(msg, "no such host") || strings.Contains(msg, "server misbehaving")
+	return errors.As(err, &de)
 }
 
 // isNetwork reports whether err is a connection-level failure — refused, reset,
-// or an unreachable host/network — a "network problem" (6).
+// or an unreachable host/network — a "network problem" (6). A dial error from
+// net/http wraps the syscall errno, so the typed check sees through it.
 func isNetwork(err error) bool {
-	if errors.Is(err, syscall.ECONNREFUSED) || errors.Is(err, syscall.ECONNRESET) ||
-		errors.Is(err, syscall.ENETUNREACH) || errors.Is(err, syscall.EHOSTUNREACH) {
-		return true
-	}
-	msg := strings.ToLower(err.Error())
-	return strings.Contains(msg, "connection refused") ||
-		strings.Contains(msg, "connection reset") ||
-		strings.Contains(msg, "network is unreachable") ||
-		strings.Contains(msg, "no route to host")
+	return errors.Is(err, syscall.ECONNREFUSED) || errors.Is(err, syscall.ECONNRESET) ||
+		errors.Is(err, syscall.ENETUNREACH) || errors.Is(err, syscall.EHOSTUNREACH)
 }
 
 // isTimeout reports whether err is (or wraps) a timeout: a deadline exceeded, a
-// net.Error that timed out, or an idle-read timeout reported as such.
+// net.Error that timed out, or our own idle-read timeout (httpdl.ErrTimeout).
 func isTimeout(err error) bool {
-	if errors.Is(err, context.DeadlineExceeded) {
+	if errors.Is(err, context.DeadlineExceeded) || errors.Is(err, httpdl.ErrTimeout) {
 		return true
 	}
 	var ne net.Error
-	if errors.As(err, &ne) && ne.Timeout() {
-		return true
-	}
-	msg := strings.ToLower(err.Error())
-	return strings.Contains(msg, "timeout") || strings.Contains(msg, "timed out")
+	return errors.As(err, &ne) && ne.Timeout()
 }
 
 // saveSession writes the sources of every download that did not finish to path,
diff --git a/main_test.go b/main_test.go
index 2724550..a064daf 100644
--- a/main_test.go
+++ b/main_test.go
@@ -69,16 +69,14 @@ func TestExitCode(t *testing.T) {
 		err  error
 		want int
 	}{
-		{"idle timeout", errors.New("idle timeout: no data received"), 2},
-		{"metadata timed out", errors.New("timed out fetching metadata after 3s"), 2},
+		{"idle timeout", fmt.Errorf("segment 0: %w (after 1m0s)", httpdl.ErrTimeout), 2},
+		{"metadata timed out", fmt.Errorf("timed out fetching metadata after 3s: %w", context.DeadlineExceeded), 2},
 		{"deadline", context.DeadlineExceeded, 2},
 		{"file exists", fmt.Errorf("/tmp/x: %w (use --allow-overwrite or -c)", httpdl.ErrOutputExists), 13},
 		{"dns typed", dnsErr, 19},
 		{"dns wrapped through retries", fmt.Errorf("http://x: %w (after 5 tries)", dnsErr), 19},
-		{"dns by message", errors.New("dial tcp: lookup nope.invalid: no such host"), 19},
 		{"refused typed", refused, 6},
 		{"refused wrapped through retries", fmt.Errorf("http://x: %w (after 5 tries)", refused), 6},
-		{"refused by message", errors.New("dial tcp 127.0.0.1:1: connect: connection refused"), 6},
 		{"not found", fmt.Errorf("%w: http://x/y: 404 Not Found", httpdl.ErrNotFound), 3},
 		{"too slow", fmt.Errorf("http://x: %w (<= %d bytes/sec)", httpdl.ErrTooSlow, 1024), 5},
 		{"checksum", fmt.Errorf("/tmp/x: %w (want a, got b)", httpdl.ErrChecksum), 32},
@@ -227,7 +225,7 @@ func TestFollowUpInfoHashDedup(t *testing.T) {
 func TestReportExit(t *testing.T) {
 	canceled := download.Result{Name: "a", Err: context.Canceled}
 	done := download.Result{Name: "b", Err: nil}
-	timeout := download.Result{Name: "c", Err: errors.New("idle timeout")}
+	timeout := download.Result{Name: "c", Err: httpdl.ErrTimeout}
 
 	tests := []struct {
 		name    string