Skip to main content
Inspiring
March 14, 2019
Answered

Why won't Chrome 'forget' .htaccess redirects that have since been removed from the file?

  • March 14, 2019
  • 3 replies
  • 9970 views

Even as a non-programmer - with your help - I've been able to use my .htaccess file various different ways... sometimes to shorten the path of long urls, sometimes to redirect to the secure version of the site... always works great.

Until I change my mind about something and remove it from the .htaccess file, because Chrome keeps acting like it's still in there. Forcing a reload of everything on the page doesn't seem to help.

Even if I hollow my .htaccess file out for the purposes of troubleshooting, it seems Chrome remembers every RewriteCond forever. (I tested it a month later and it was still redirecting, so it never expires).

Is there a way for me to flush everything Chrome knows about a specific website? In other words, treat it like it's the first time it's being pulled up, without affecting the notes it has on the other sites.

PS: Is Chrome particularly stubborn about this, or are all browsers? I know Firefox and Edge don't redirect after I removed those lines, but I had never tested the redirects on them in the first place. There was nothing for them to 'forget'. Now I'm afraid to turn the redirects back on and use those browsers, because they might have the same issue Chrome does after I turn them off (ie, keep redirecting forever) then I'm really screwed.

Correct answer Nancy OShea

Chrome has a sticky cache to promote a faster web experience.  The only way to kill it is to clear cache and browsing data  whenever you test web pages.  Or do what I do, get Firefox .

Google Chrome

  1. Click Wrench icon (at the top right of the browser)..>Select the option Tools..>Click 'Clear Browsing Data'..>Mark 'Empty the cache' option..>Click the button 'Clear Browsing Data'
  2. The keyboard shortcut is shift+Ctrl+delete.

3 replies

Under S.Author
Inspiring
March 15, 2019

Are you guys saying there's no way for me to target a specific URL for cache flushing, I gotta use the master purge?

What if I was open to a more manual/laborious solution? I don't want to flush everything that hasn't been whitelisted, I just want to flush what Chrome remembers about the .htaccess file on this 1 specific website. Is that in any way doable?

EDIT: The master purge did work, though. (Damn, that redirect was persistent.)

Jon Fritz
Community Expert
Community Expert
March 15, 2019

In Chrome, you can also...

1. Open the Developer Tools (F12) when viewing your site
2. Click the Network heading
3. Check the box for Disable Cache
4. Reload

Leave the Dev Tools open during development, closing them ignores the Disable Cache checkbox.

anissa_thompson
Community Expert
Community Expert
March 14, 2019
Hope this helps! Make sure to press "✔ Correct Answer" on this post if this answers your question. Happy Creating!Anissa • @anissat
Nancy OShea
Community Expert
Nancy OSheaCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
Community Expert
March 14, 2019

Chrome has a sticky cache to promote a faster web experience.  The only way to kill it is to clear cache and browsing data  whenever you test web pages.  Or do what I do, get Firefox .

Google Chrome

  1. Click Wrench icon (at the top right of the browser)..>Select the option Tools..>Click 'Clear Browsing Data'..>Mark 'Empty the cache' option..>Click the button 'Clear Browsing Data'
  2. The keyboard shortcut is shift+Ctrl+delete.
Nancy O'Shea— Product User & Community Expert