Edge Rules are customizable policies that allow you to control how content is delivered from CDN edge servers to users. These rules provide granular control over various aspects of content delivery, security, caching, and performance optimization.
By configuring Edge Rules, you can define how the CDN behaves when handling requests at the edge server level. This can include actions such as URL rewrites, redirects, caching behavior, geographic targeting, access control, and more.
Common Use Cases for Edge Rules:
- Caching Rules: Control how content is cached on edge servers. You can define cache TTL (Time-to-Live), specify which types of files to cache or not cache, and more.
- Geographic Targeting: Deliver different content to users based on their geographic location. This is useful for regional promotions, localized content, or compliance with regional regulations.
- URL Redirects and Rewrites: Automatically redirect users from one URL to another or rewrite URLs for cleaner, more SEO-friendly addresses.
- Security Enhancements: Enforce security policies like HTTPS redirection, block specific IP addresses, or control access to certain content using rules based on headers, query parameters, or user agents.
- Access Control: Protect certain content by setting authentication rules, or limit access to certain files or directories.
How to Implement Edge Rules:
Edge Rules can typically be configured through your CDN control panel, allowing you to create specific rules based on your needs. The rules are executed at the edge server, ensuring faster processing without routing requests back to the origin server.
Benefits of Edge Rules:
- Performance: Edge Rules can optimize how content is cached and delivered, improving load times.
- Security: Provides an extra layer of security by controlling access and enforcing HTTPS.
- Customization: Gives granular control over content delivery behavior based on various conditions (e.g., device type, location).
- Reduced Server Load: By handling tasks at the edge server level, Edge Rules can reduce the load on your origin server.
Edge Rules offer a flexible and powerful way to enhance your CDN performance, security, and delivery strategies.