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To clear one MediaWiki page, open its URL with ?action=purge, submit the confirmation form, and reload the page. For automation, send a POST request to the Action API’s purge module. Administrators with shell access can run maintenance/purgePage.php, while a site-wide file-cache problem requires changing $wgCacheEpoch or removing the file-cache contents. If an old page still appears after a successful purge, check template dependencies and external caches such as Varnish, Squid, or a CDN.
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What a MediaWiki purge actually does
A purge discards the cached rendered output for a page and makes MediaWiki render that page again from its current source. It is the right first response when an edit is saved but the page still displays an earlier version.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThe operation is narrower than a complete cache reset. It refreshes rendered page output, but it does not automatically rebuild every dataset derived from the page. Link tables, search indexes, and other secondary data can require their own update path. A purge also does not guarantee that a reverse proxy or CDN will stop serving an older HTML response unless that external layer receives and accepts the invalidation.
MediaWiki’s parser cache stores rendered output for the latest revision. Entries are invalidated using the page’s page_touched timestamp. Changes to dependencies such as templates can trigger invalidation asynchronously, so a dependent page can remain old for a short period even when the template itself has been edited.
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Choose the purge method by scope and access
| Method | Best for | Scope | Access and side effects | Cache layers reached |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Browser URL with action=purge |
One page that looks stale | One rendered page; an image description purge also refreshes cached thumbnails | Interactive confirmation; availability depends on the wiki’s permissions | MediaWiki’s page output, with external behavior dependent on proxy configuration |
Action API purge |
Scripts, integrations, or several named pages | One or more titles in one request | POST request; requires read and write rights. Optional link-table and recursive updates add work | MediaWiki’s purge path and any configured notifications |
maintenance/purgePage.php |
Administrators operating from the server | Pages selected by the maintenance script; internal and configured external caches | Shell access and a correctly configured MediaWiki installation; reparses wikitext and updates page.page_touched |
File cache plus configured Squid/Varnish targets |
$wgCacheEpoch change or file-cache removal |
Broad rendering or configuration changes affecting many pages | Entire MediaWiki file cache | Administrator configuration or filesystem access; plan for increased regeneration traffic and storage use | MediaWiki’s complete file-cache layer, not automatically every CDN object |
Use the smallest scope that fixes the problem. A single-page purge is fast and low-risk; invalidating the complete file cache can make the web server regenerate a large number of pages at once.
How to purge one page in a browser
Append the purge action
- Open the page that is showing old content.
- Add
?action=purgeto the page URL. For example:https://example.org/wiki/Main_Page?action=purge. - If the URL already contains a query string, use
&action=purgerather than adding a second question mark. - Submit the confirmation form MediaWiki displays.
- Reload the page and check the rendered result.
MediaWiki asks for confirmation because a query-string URL is a GET request, and GET links should not silently perform a state-changing purge. Do not treat merely opening the URL as proof that the purge has run; the form must be submitted.
When the page is an image description
Purging an image description page also purges cached thumbnails for that file. If a thumbnail remains old, check that you purged the description page associated with the file rather than only refreshing a page where the thumbnail is embedded.
What a successful browser purge does not cover
The browser action rebuilds the page’s rendered output. It does not, by itself, rebuild link tables, refresh search indexes, or recalculate every other derived dataset. It also cannot force an independently cached response out of a CDN that is not honoring MediaWiki’s invalidation notification.
How to purge through the Action API
Send a POST request
The Action API’s purge module accepts POST requests and can process one or more page titles. A minimal request contains these fields:
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action=purge
titles=Main_Page
format=jsonReplace the title and API endpoint with values for your installation, and use the authentication method required by that wiki. The API documentation for the running MediaWiki version is authoritative for endpoint details, title formatting, tokens, and permission checks.
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The purge module requires read and write rights. An unauthenticated GET request is not a dependable automation strategy: it may be rejected, may lack the required token or session, and does not provide the protection expected for a state-changing operation. Have the calling account authenticate and send the request as POST.
Update link tables when needed
Add forcelinkupdate=true when the page’s link tables and related secondary data must be updated as part of the request. This is useful when the visible page is current but link-dependent behavior is not.
Use forcerecursivelinkupdate=true when pages that use the purged title as a template also need their link information updated. Recursive work can touch many pages, so use it deliberately rather than as a default for every purge.
Interpret the result
A successful API response confirms that MediaWiki accepted the purge request; it does not prove that a browser, proxy, or CDN will immediately return the new HTML. If the API reports a permission, token, or title error, correct that issue before diagnosing cache behavior.
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How administrators purge from the server
With shell access, run the MediaWiki maintenance script maintenance/purgePage.php from the installation’s maintenance environment, following the invocation and authentication conventions of that MediaWiki release.
This script is broader than a browser-only request. It purges internal caches and configured external caches, reparses the page’s wikitext, writes the current time to page.page_touched, and purges canonical URLs from the file cache and configured Squid or Varnish proxies.
Because the exact command-line arguments and maintenance runner can vary by MediaWiki version, use the help output and maintenance documentation shipped with the installed release rather than copying flags from an unrelated version. Confirm that the web server, database, and proxy configuration used by the maintenance process point to the same wiki that readers access.
When this method is preferable
- A deployment changed many pages and an administrator wants one controlled server-side operation.
- The wiki has configured proxy invalidation and the purge must reach those proxies.
- Automated jobs need a repeatable administrative process rather than browser interaction.
How to invalidate the entire MediaWiki file cache
Use a site-wide invalidation only when a broad rendering or configuration change leaves many pages stale. There are two documented approaches:
- Set
$wgCacheEpochto the current timestamp in the wiki configuration. Existing file-cache entries then fall outside the active cache epoch. - Remove the files inside the configured file-cache directory, preserving the directory and permissions expected by the installation.
Both approaches force large-scale regeneration. Schedule the change for a period when the server can handle simultaneous cache misses, and watch disk usage, CPU, database load, and response times while pages are rebuilt. A file-cache reset affects MediaWiki’s own files; it is not a universal command for third-party CDN objects.
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Do not use a whole-cache reset for a one-page edit
For an isolated stale page, site-wide invalidation creates unnecessary work and can temporarily reduce performance for every reader. Start with a page purge, then expand the scope only when evidence shows that many entries or a configuration-wide change are involved.
Why a page can still look old after purging
The page depends on a template or other transcluded content
MediaWiki tracks dependencies and can invalidate dependent parser-cache entries asynchronously. A template edit may therefore reach pages that use it after a delay rather than in the same instant. Purge the affected page after the dependency update has propagated; for API workflows that also require link data, request forcelinkupdate, and use the recursive option only when template users must be processed.
A proxy or CDN is serving old HTML
Varnish, Squid, and other CDNs can cache the complete HTML response outside MediaWiki. MediaWiki is designed to notify configured proxies when a page changes, but the notification works only when the deployment is configured correctly.
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For a wiki using these layers, check:
$wgUseCdnand the list in$wgCdnServers.- Proxy purge access-control rules and whether the proxy accepts MediaWiki’s invalidation requests.
- The CDN’s own purge or cache-invalidation mechanism and its response codes.
- Whether the browser request is reaching the intended host, scheme, and cache layer.
Provider-specific CDN commands depend on the deployment, so there is no single universal command that clears every third-party service.
The browser is not the authoritative cache
A normal browser refresh may reuse a response that is still valid in an upstream file or proxy cache. A hard refresh can help identify a local browser issue, but it is not a substitute for purging MediaWiki or invalidating the external layer that supplied the stale response.
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The rendered page is current but derived data is not
A purge refreshes rendered output, not every derived dataset. Link tables may need a forced link update, and search indexes or other extensions’ data may require their own jobs or administrative rebuild process. If the page source and visible HTML are current but search results, backlinks, or another secondary feature are old, investigate that subsystem instead of repeating page purges.
The cache epoch or expiry rules are overriding expectations
Parser-cache invalidation uses page_touched, while cache expiry and the global $wgCacheEpoch setting provide additional controls. An unexpectedly old response can indicate an epoch value, expiry policy, or file-cache configuration that does not match the change you made.
A practical troubleshooting sequence
- Confirm the source revision. Open the page history or edit view and verify that the intended revision was saved on the wiki you are actually visiting.
- Purge the single page. Append
?action=purge, submit the confirmation form, and reload. - Check dependencies. If the visible content comes from a template or another transcluded page, allow dependency invalidation to complete and purge the dependent page when necessary.
- Separate HTML from secondary data. If the rendered page is correct but links or search results are not, use the relevant link-update or index-maintenance process instead of another ordinary purge.
- Test external layers. Compare a response that bypasses the proxy, inspect cache headers if available, and verify the CDN or Varnish/Squid purge logs.
- Use the API for repeatable checks. Send an authenticated POST to
action=purge; add forced link updates only when the symptom requires them. - Escalate to server maintenance. If many pages are stale or a broad configuration change occurred, use
maintenance/purgePage.phpor invalidate the complete file cache after assessing capacity.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Adding a second question mark. A URL with existing parameters needs
&action=purge, not another?. - Skipping the confirmation form. The GET URL presents the action; submitting the form performs it.
- Assuming purge means reindex. Rendered output, link tables, search indexes, and extension-specific data are separate concerns.
- Using an unauthenticated API GET in a cron job. Use an authenticated POST with the rights and token required by the installation.
- Purging every page for a local problem. Whole-file-cache invalidation creates avoidable regeneration load.
- Ignoring proxies. A current MediaWiki render can still be hidden behind a stale Varnish, Squid, or CDN object.
- Deleting the cache directory itself. Remove cache files as directed by the installation while retaining the directory and its required ownership and permissions.
Which method should you use?
| Your symptom or task | Recommended first action | Escalate when |
|---|---|---|
| One edited article still shows the previous text | Browser ?action=purge |
The response remains old after checking external caches |
| An integration must refresh named pages | Authenticated API POST with action=purge |
Link-dependent data also needs updating; add the appropriate forced option |
| A template change affects many transcluding pages | Allow dependency invalidation, then use targeted API or maintenance purges | Recursive link updates or a controlled server-side run is required |
| The administrator changed rendering configuration globally | Plan a $wgCacheEpoch change or file-cache invalidation |
External proxies or a CDN still return old objects |
| Search results or backlinks are stale while HTML is correct | Run the subsystem’s link-update or index-maintenance process | The relevant extension or search service reports its own failure |
Operational cautions for production wikis
Cache invalidation is normally cheaper than rebuilding everything, but its cost depends on page size, traffic, parser complexity, and the number of dependent pages. Forced recursive updates can create substantial queue work. A whole-file-cache reset can produce a burst of database and CPU demand as popular pages are rendered again.
Before broad invalidation, confirm that the file-cache path is writable, proxy purge permissions are correct, and monitoring can distinguish a cache miss from an application error. Afterward, verify a representative set of pages, an image thumbnail if files were affected, and any external cache layer that readers use.
The short answer
For a single stale page, use the browser purge URL and submit its confirmation form. For automation, use an authenticated POST to the Action API’s purge module. For administrator-controlled internal and configured proxy caches, use maintenance/purgePage.php. Reserve $wgCacheEpoch changes or deleting file-cache contents for site-wide problems, and investigate proxy/CDN behavior whenever MediaWiki has rebuilt the page but visitors still receive old HTML.
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