---
title: >-
  Replacing or deleting a Shopify-hosted file no longer purges its CDN URL -
  Shopify developer changelog
description: >-
  Shopify’s developer changelog documents all changes to Shopify’s platform.
  Find the latest news and learn about new platform opportunities.
source_url:
  html: >-
    https://shopify.dev/changelog/replacing-or-deleting-a-shopify-hosted-file-no-longer-purges-its-cdn-url
  md: >-
    https://shopify.dev/changelog/replacing-or-deleting-a-shopify-hosted-file-no-longer-purges-its-cdn-url.md
metadata:
  effectiveApiVersion: ''
  affectedApi: []
  primaryTag:
    displayName: Platform
    handle: platform
  secondaryTag:
    displayName: Update
    handle: update
  indicatesActionRequired: true
  createdAt: '2026-05-13T14:31:01-04:00'
  postedAt: '2026-04-07T00:00:00-04:00'
  updatedAt: '2026-05-13T17:17:03-04:00'
  effectiveAt: '2026-04-07T00:00:00-04:00'
---

April 7, 2026

Tags:

* Action Required
* Platform

# Replacing or deleting a Shopify-hosted file no longer purges its CDN URL

As of April 7, 2026, when you replace or delete a file in the Shopify admin, Shopify will no longer proactively purge the file's URL on cdn.shopify.com/.... The previously cached content will continue to be served until the URL's TTL (Time to Live) expires. This change aims to reduce CDN purge volume and improve consistency across our edge providers.

To ensure your customers receive updated content after a file replacement, use Shopify's URL helpers to render file references. This ensures the current versioned URL (?v=...) is always emitted:

* **In themes:** Use the Liquid filters [file\_url](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/liquid/filters/file_url), [image\_url](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/liquid/filters/image_url), and [asset\_url](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/liquid/filters/asset_url).
* **In products:** Insert images and videos via the native [Media uploader](https://shopify.dev/docs/apps/build/online-store/product-media) rather than pasting `<img src="...">` into descriptions.
* **In apps and external integrations:** Fetch file URLs at request time from the [Admin GraphQL API](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/admin-graphql/latest/queries/files) or [Storefront API](https://shopify.dev/docs/api/storefront/latest/interfaces/Media) instead of caching them.

Hardcoded cdn.shopify.com/... URLs in product descriptions, blog posts, theme code, or printed materials will continue to return the original content after a file replacement. We recommend migrating to one of the dynamic patterns above to ensure updated content is served.