AWS

CloudFrontInvalidArgument - CloudFront Invalid Argument

Getting a **CloudFrontInvalidArgument** error means one or more arguments in your CloudFront request are invalid—required parameters might be missing, values don't meet CloudFront requirements, or the distribution configuration is malformed. This client-side error (4xx) happens when AWS validates CloudFront request parameters. Most common when distribution configurations are invalid, but also appears when origin settings are wrong, cache behavior settings are invalid, certificate ARNs are malformed, or parameter formats are incorrect.

#Common Causes

  • Identity: IAM policy allows CloudFront but invalid arguments. Service Control Policy (SCP) enforces CloudFront validation.
  • Network: VPC endpoint CloudFront restrictions. Invalid distribution configuration.
  • Limits: Invalid distribution configuration. Invalid origin settings. Invalid cache behavior settings. Invalid certificate ARN. Invalid parameter format.

Solutions

  1. 1Step 1: Diagnose - Check exact error message: AWS usually specifies which argument is invalid. Review error message for parameter name. Check for typos.
  2. 2Step 2: Diagnose - Validate distribution configuration JSON: Use jq to validate: jq '.' dist-config.json. Check required fields: CallerReference, Origins, DefaultCacheBehavior.
  3. 3Step 3: Diagnose - Check origin domain names: Verify domain format: echo DOMAIN | grep -E '^[a-zA-Z0-9][a-zA-Z0-9-]{0,61}[a-zA-Z0-9]?\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$'. Test DNS resolution: nslookup DOMAIN.
  4. 4Step 4: Fix - Validate certificate ARN format: Verify ARN format: arn:aws:acm:REGION:ACCOUNT:certificate/CERT_ID. Check certificate exists: aws acm describe-certificate --certificate-arn ARN.
  5. 5Step 5: Fix - Review cache behavior settings: Verify AllowedMethods, ViewerProtocolPolicy, TargetOriginId. Check cache behavior structure matches CloudFront requirements. Validate all parameter values.

</>Code Examples

Validate CloudFront Distribution Configuration JSON
1#!/bin/bash
2CONFIG_FILE="dist-config.json"
3
4echo "=== Validating CloudFront Distribution Config ==="
5
6# Check if file exists
7if [ ! -f ${CONFIG_FILE} ]; then
8  echo "✗ Config file not found: ${CONFIG_FILE}"
9  exit 1
10fi
11
12# Validate JSON syntax
13if command -v jq &> /dev/null; then
14  echo "\n=== Validating JSON Syntax ==="
15  jq '.' ${CONFIG_FILE} > /dev/null 2>&1
16  
17  if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
18    echo "✓ JSON syntax valid"
19  else
20    echo "✗ Invalid JSON syntax (CloudFrontInvalidArgument)"
21    jq '.' ${CONFIG_FILE} 2>&1 | head -5
22    exit 1
23  fi
24else
25  echo "jq not installed - cannot validate JSON"
26fi
27
28# Check required fields
29echo "\n=== Checking Required Fields ==="
30if grep -q '"CallerReference"' ${CONFIG_FILE}; then
31  echo "✓ CallerReference present"
32else
33  echo "✗ Missing CallerReference"
34fi
35
36if grep -q '"Origins"' ${CONFIG_FILE}; then
37  echo "✓ Origins present"
38else
39  echo "✗ Missing Origins"
40fi
41
42if grep -q '"DefaultCacheBehavior"' ${CONFIG_FILE}; then
43  echo "✓ DefaultCacheBehavior present"
44else
45  echo "✗ Missing DefaultCacheBehavior"
46fi
47
48echo "\n=== Valid Configuration ==="
49echo "Ready to create distribution"
Validate Origin Domain Names
1#!/bin/bash
2ORIGIN_DOMAIN="example.com"
3
4echo "=== Validating Origin Domain ==="
5echo "Domain: ${ORIGIN_DOMAIN}"
6
7# Check domain format
8if [[ ! ${ORIGIN_DOMAIN} =~ ^[a-zA-Z0-9][a-zA-Z0-9-]{0,61}[a-zA-Z0-9]?\.[a-zA-Z]{2,}$ ]]; then
9  echo "✗ Invalid domain format (CloudFrontInvalidArgument)"
10  exit 1
11else
12  echo "✓ Domain format valid"
13fi
14
15# Check DNS resolution
16echo "\n=== Checking DNS Resolution ==="
17if nslookup ${ORIGIN_DOMAIN} &>/dev/null; then
18  echo "✓ Domain resolves"
19else
20  echo "✗ Domain does not resolve"
21  echo "CloudFront requires accessible origins"
22fi
23
24# Test HTTPS connectivity
25echo "\n=== Testing Origin Connectivity ==="
26if curl -I https://${ORIGIN_DOMAIN} &>/dev/null 2>&1; then
27  echo "✓ HTTPS accessible"
28elif curl -I http://${ORIGIN_DOMAIN} &>/dev/null 2>&1; then
29  echo "⚠ HTTP accessible (HTTPS recommended)"
30else
31  echo "✗ Origin not accessible"
32fi
Verify Certificate ARN Format
1#!/bin/bash
2CERT_ARN="arn:aws:acm:us-east-1:123456789012:certificate/12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012"
3
4echo "=== Validating Certificate ARN ==="
5echo "ARN: ${CERT_ARN}"
6
7# Check ARN format
8if [[ ${CERT_ARN} =~ ^arn:aws:acm:[a-z0-9-]+:[0-9]+:certificate/[a-zA-Z0-9-]+$ ]]; then
9  echo "✓ ARN format valid"
10  
11  # Extract region and certificate ID
12  REGION=$(echo ${CERT_ARN} | cut -d: -f4)
13  CERT_ID=$(echo ${CERT_ARN} | cut -d/ -f2)
14  
15  echo "Region: ${REGION}"
16  echo "Certificate ID: ${CERT_ID}"
17  
18  # Verify certificate exists
19  echo "\n=== Verifying Certificate Exists ==="
20  CERT_INFO=$(aws acm describe-certificate \
21    --certificate-arn ${CERT_ARN} \
22    --region ${REGION} \
23    --query 'Certificate.Status' \
24    --output text 2>&1)
25  
26  if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
27    echo "✓ Certificate exists: ${CERT_INFO}"
28  else
29    echo "✗ Certificate not found (CloudFrontInvalidArgument)"
30    echo "Error: ${CERT_INFO}"
31  fi
32else
33  echo "✗ Invalid ARN format (CloudFrontInvalidArgument)"
34  echo "Expected format: arn:aws:acm:REGION:ACCOUNT:certificate/CERT_ID"
35fi

Related Errors

Provider Information

This error code is specific to AWS services. For more information, refer to the official AWS documentation.

CloudFrontInvalidArgument - CloudFront Invalid Argument | AWS Error Reference | Error Code Reference