diff --git a/python/cuopt_server/cuopt_server/tests/utils/utils.py b/python/cuopt_server/cuopt_server/tests/utils/utils.py
index 022f5aac8e..eaefdb2a25 100644
--- a/python/cuopt_server/cuopt_server/tests/utils/utils.py
+++ b/python/cuopt_server/cuopt_server/tests/utils/utils.py
@@ -267,6 +267,8 @@ def cuopt_service_sync(
 # Fixture and client to allow full cuopt service
 # to run as a separate process for multiple tests
 cuoptmain = None
+# True after server has passed initial healthcheck; used to fail-fast on later crashes
+_server_was_up = False
 # Use module name instead of file path to ensure we use the installed package
 server_script = "-m"
 server_module = "cuopt_server.cuopt_service"
@@ -296,7 +298,21 @@ def signal_handler(signum, frame):
 signal.signal(signal.SIGTERM, signal_handler)
 
 
+def _exit_if_server_gone(exc):
+    """Exit pytest immediately when server was up but is now unreachable (e.g. crashed)."""
+    global _server_was_up
+    if _server_was_up:
+        pytest.exit(
+            "cuOpt server stopped responding (connection error). "
+            "Skipping remaining server tests to reduce log noise. "
+            "Check server startup and dependencies (e.g. cudf/GPU).",
+            returncode=1,
+        )
+    raise exc
+
+
 def spinup_wait():
+    global _server_was_up
     client = RequestClient()
     count = 0
     result = None
@@ -309,7 +325,13 @@ def spinup_wait():
             break
         except Exception:
             time.sleep(1)
-    assert result.status_code == 200
+    if result is None or result.status_code != 200:
+        pytest.exit(
+            "cuOpt server failed to pass healthcheck after 30s. "
+            "Skipping all server tests. Check server logs for startup errors (e.g. cudf/GPU).",
+            returncode=1,
+        )
+    _server_was_up = True
 
 
 @pytest.fixture(scope="session")
@@ -347,9 +369,12 @@ def poll_for_completion(self, reqId, delete=True):
         cnt = 0
         headers = {"Accept": "application/json"}
         while True:
-            res = requests.get(
-                self.url + f"/cuopt/solution/{reqId}", headers=headers
-            )
+            try:
+                res = requests.get(
+                    self.url + f"/cuopt/solution/{reqId}", headers=headers
+                )
+            except (requests.ConnectionError, requests.ConnectTimeout) as e:
+                _exit_if_server_gone(e)
             if "response" in res.json() or "error" in res.json():
                 break
             time.sleep(1)
@@ -361,6 +386,8 @@ def poll_for_completion(self, reqId, delete=True):
                 requests.delete(
                     self.url + f"/cuopt/solution/{reqId}", headers=headers
                 )
+            except (requests.ConnectionError, requests.ConnectTimeout) as e:
+                _exit_if_server_gone(e)
             except Exception:
                 pass
         return res
@@ -375,13 +402,16 @@ def post(
         block=True,
         delete=True,
     ):
-        res = requests.post(
-            self.url + endpoint,
-            params=params,
-            headers=headers,
-            json=json,
-            data=data,
-        )
+        try:
+            res = requests.post(
+                self.url + endpoint,
+                params=params,
+                headers=headers,
+                json=json,
+                data=data,
+            )
+        except (requests.ConnectionError, requests.ConnectTimeout) as e:
+            _exit_if_server_gone(e)
 
         # cuopt/cuot is already blocking, don't ever poll
         if endpoint == "/cuopt/cuopt":
@@ -397,9 +427,20 @@ def post(
         return self.poll_for_completion(res.json()["reqId"], delete)
 
     def get(self, endpoint, headers=None, json=None):
-        return requests.get(self.url + endpoint, headers=headers, json=json)
+        try:
+            return requests.get(
+                self.url + endpoint, headers=headers, json=json
+            )
+        except (requests.ConnectionError, requests.ConnectTimeout) as e:
+            _exit_if_server_gone(e)
 
     def delete(self, endpoint, headers=None, json=None, params=None):
-        return requests.delete(
-            self.url + endpoint, params=params, headers=headers, json=json
-        )
+        try:
+            return requests.delete(
+                self.url + endpoint,
+                params=params,
+                headers=headers,
+                json=json,
+            )
+        except (requests.ConnectionError, requests.ConnectTimeout) as e:
+            _exit_if_server_gone(e)