To clear the Cache for your CloudFront distribution use the `create-invalidation` command passing in the path, which should get invalidated.

Clear CloudFront Cache with AWS CLI


## Table of Contents

1. [Clearing CloudFront Cache for the Entire Distribution](/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache#clearing-cloudfront-cache-for-the-entire-distribution)
2. [Clearing CloudFront Cache for an Entire Directory](/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache#clearing-cloudfront-cache-for-an-entire-directory)
3. [Clearing CloudFront Cache for Specific Files](/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache#clearing-cloudfront-cache-for-specific-files)

## Clearing CloudFront Cache for the Entire Distribution

To invalidate a CloudFront distribution's cache, we have to run the
`create-invalidation` command. The command requires that we pass the
distribution's ID as a parameter, so let's first grab the ID, by running the
`list-distributions` command:

```bash:shell
aws cloudfront list-distributions --query "DistributionList.Items[*].{id:Id,origin:Origins.Items[0].Id}"
```

The command returns a list of objects containing the id of the cloudfront
distribution and the name of the S3 bucket associated with it:

![cloudfront list distributions](/images/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache/cloudfront-list-distributions.webp)

Grab the cloudfront distribution ID, because we'll need it for clearing the
cache.

**To invalidate the cache for an entire CloudFront distribution, run the
`create-invalidation` command with a wildcard path `/*`.**

```bash:shell
aws cloudfront create-invalidation --distribution-id YOUR_CLOUDFRONT_ID --paths "/*"
```

The cache invalidation might take a few minutes. The `create-invalidation`
command returns an `Id`, which we can use to check the result of the
invalidation:

![create invalidation response](/images/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache/create-invalidation-response.webp)

To make sure the cache for your distribution has been invalidated, grab the
Invalidation ID and run the `get-invalidation` command.

```bash:shell
aws cloudfront get-invalidation --id INVALIDATION_ID --distribution-id DISTRIBUTION_ID
```

The output will show the status of the cache invalidation:

![cache invalidation status](/images/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache/cache-invalidation-status.webp)

## Clearing CloudFront Cache for an Entire Directory

**To clear the CloudFront cache for a directory, e.g. `images`, run the
`create-invalidation` command with the `/images/*` wildcard path.**

```bash:shell
aws cloudfront create-invalidation --distribution-id YOUR_CLOUDFRONT_ID --paths "/images/*"
```

![create invalidation for directory](/images/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache/create-invalidation-for-directory.webp)

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<Alert>
  Note that if the path you've specified does not exist, you will not get an
  error, the status of the invalidation will still be <code>Completed</code>.
</Alert>

## Clearing CloudFront Cache for Specific Files

**To clear the CloudFront cache for specific files, run the
`create-invalidation` command passing in the paths to the files you want to
invalidate, separated by space characters.**

```bash:shell
aws cloudfront create-invalidation --distribution-id YOUR_CLOUDFRONT_ID --paths "/images/dog.png" "/js/bundle.js"
```

![create invalidation specific files](/images/blog/aws-cli-clear-cloudfront-cache/create-invalidation-specific-files.webp)

<Alert>
  There is a cost associated to CloudFront cache invalidation requests. At the
  time of writing the first <code>1,000</code> paths you invalidate each month, are free. Each path after
  the first <code>1,000</code> costs <code>$0.005</code> per invalidation request.

Invalidating a wildcard path, e.g. <code>/images/\*</code>, counts as 1
invalidation request.

Cache invalidation of individual files can get costly after a while.

</Alert>

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## Further Reading

- [AWS CDK Tutorial for Beginners - Step-by-Step Guide](/blog/aws-cdk-tutorial-typescript)
- [How does AWS CDK work](/blog/how-does-aws-cdk-work)
- [What is a Token in AWS CDK](/blog/what-is-aws-cdk-token)
- [CDK Constructs - Complete Guide](/blog/cdk-constructs-tutorial)
- [What is an identifier (id) in AWS CDK](/blog/aws-cdk-identifiers)
- [How to use Context in AWS CDK](/blog/how-to-use-context-aws-cdk)
- [How to use Parameters in AWS CDK](/blog/aws-cdk-parameters-example)

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Clear CloudFront Cache with AWS CLI

Table of Contents #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for the Entire Distribution #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for an Entire Directory #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for Specific Files #

Further Reading #

Borislav Hadzhiev

For more articles, navigate to myHome Page

Clear CloudFront Cache with AWS CLI

Table of Contents #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for the Entire Distribution #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for an Entire Directory #

Clearing CloudFront Cache for Specific Files #

Further Reading #

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Borislav Hadzhiev

For more articles, navigate to myHome Page