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General Discussion

Melinda Golden
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Melinda Golden
Full Stack JavaScript Techdegree Graduate 25,815 Points
Posted by Melinda Golden
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Melinda Golden
Full Stack JavaScript Techdegree Graduate 25,815 Points

Make website not cache images or CSS files

How do I make a website not cache images or CSS files? I constantly have to tell people to clear their browser cache when I make changes to their website and I was wondering if there was a good way to force their browser to clear the cache or always get the fresh files from the server. Thanks!

2 Answers

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,236 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,236 Points

Your server should add these settings to the HTTP header:

Cache-Control: no-cache, no-store, must-revalidate
Pragma: no-cache
Expires: 0

Some browsers will respond to just one of these, but adding them all gives you the best chance with all browsers.

Jenn Turner
Jenn Turner
2,093 Points
Jenn Turner
Jenn Turner
2,093 Points

What language is this/ would this go in the .html or .css file? I just started Javascript so this solution sounds way over my head, but I'm having a similar issue with browsers caching old versions of a website I just made for my wedding, so it would be GREAT if I could learn this specific skill sooner rather than later. Thanks!

Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,236 Points
Steven Parker
Steven Parker
231,236 Points

These are HTTP protocol headers, not part of the page code (neither HTML nor CSS). They would get set up in the server configuration.

michael lynch
michael lynch
9,560 Points
michael lynch
michael lynch
9,560 Points

I though these where helpful shortcuts, not an answer to you question but can be useful.

Hard Refresh - clears browser cache for a specific page and reloads.

Chrome:
Windows = Hold down Ctrl and click the Reload button.
Mac = Hold ⇧ Shift and click the Reload button

FireFox:
Windows = Hold the Ctrl key and press the F5 key
Mac = Hold down the ⇧ Shift and click the Reload button.