DistributionNotDisabled
AWS DistributionNotDisabled (Cloud Front Distribution Not Disabled) means the distribution must be disabled before it can be deleted. In the CloudFront API, this error returns HTTP 409.
Last reviewed: February 5, 2026|Editorial standard: source-backed technical guidance
What Does Distribution Not Disabled Mean?
CloudFront blocked deletion because the distribution is still enabled, so lifecycle workflow must disable and wait for deployment completion before delete.
Common Causes
- -DeleteDistribution was called before distribution status was disabled and propagated.
- -Automation skipped required disable-and-wait lifecycle step.
- -Concurrent workflows toggled distribution state while delete path executed.
- -Polling logic assumed immediate disable propagation across CloudFront edge network.
How to Fix Distribution Not Disabled
- 1Set distribution Enabled=false first, then wait until status is fully deployed.
- 2Retry delete only after GetDistribution confirms disabled state.
- 3Serialize disable/delete operations to avoid lifecycle races.
- 4Add explicit wait conditions in automation between disable and delete calls.
Step-by-Step Diagnosis for Distribution Not Disabled
- 1Fetch current distribution Enabled flag and deployment status.
- 2Correlate update/delete timestamps to identify ordering issues.
- 3Inspect orchestration workflow for missing disable propagation wait step.
- 4Validate no parallel job re-enables the distribution during deletion path.
Disable-Then-Delete Lifecycle Validation
- -Verify
Enabled=falseupdate was applied with correct ETag/If-Match flow (example: disable update failed silently due to stale ETag). - -Check distribution status reaches deployed disabled state before delete (example: delete issued while disable still propagating).
Mutation Ordering and Locking
- -Audit parallel jobs that mutate same distribution (example: update job re-enables distribution while cleanup job attempts delete).
- -Enforce serialized delete pipeline with explicit state checkpoints (example: guard delete call until enabled flag false and status deployed).
How to Verify the Fix
- -Re-run delete workflow and confirm DistributionNotDisabled is cleared.
- -Validate distribution is removed only after disabled+deployed state is reached.
- -Ensure no repeated lifecycle-sequencing failures in deployment logs.
How to Prevent Recurrence
- -Encode CloudFront disable-then-delete lifecycle in reusable workflow modules.
- -Require explicit state polling gates before destructive operations.
- -Alert on repeated distribution lifecycle race signatures.
Pro Tip
- -implement a two-phase delete controller that records disable timestamp and blocks delete until a verified deployed-disabled readback is observed.
Decision Support
Compare Guide
409 Conflict vs 412 Precondition Failed: When to Use Each
Choose 412 when If-Match or If-Unmodified-Since checks fail; choose 409 for state conflicts without failed precondition headers during concurrent updates.
Playbook
Conflict and Concurrency Playbook (409 / 412 / OptimisticLock)
Use this playbook to separate true write conflicts from stale precondition failures, then apply safe re-fetch, optimistic-lock, and retry choices.
Official References
Provider Context
This guidance is specific to AWS services. Always validate implementation details against official provider documentation before deploying to production.