diff --git a/src/content/changelog/gateway/2025-06-17-new-order-of-enforcement.mdx b/src/content/changelog/gateway/2025-06-17-new-order-of-enforcement.mdx new file mode 100644 index 000000000000000..061c9c98d7cf4f1 --- /dev/null +++ b/src/content/changelog/gateway/2025-06-17-new-order-of-enforcement.mdx @@ -0,0 +1,49 @@ +--- +title: Gateway will now evaluate Network policies before HTTP policies from July 14th, 2025 +description: Gateway Network policies (Layer 4) will be evaluated before HTTP (Layer 7) policies from July 14th, 2025 +products: + - gateway +hidden: false +date: 2025-06-18T11:00:00Z +--- +[Gateway](/cloudflare-one/policies/gateway/) will now evaluate [Network (Layer 4) policies](/cloudflare-one/policies/gateway/network-policies/) **before** [HTTP (Layer 7) policies](/cloudflare-one/policies/gateway/http-policies/). This change preserves your existing security posture and does not affect which traffic is filtered — but it may impact how notifications are displayed to end users. + +This change will roll out progressively between **July 14–18, 2025**. If you use HTTP policies, we recommend reviewing your configuration ahead of rollout to ensure the user experience remains consistent. + +### Updated order of enforcement + +**Previous order:** +1. DNS policies +2. HTTP policies +3. Network policies + +**New order:** +1. DNS policies +2. **Network policies** +3. **HTTP policies** + +### Action required: Review your Gateway HTTP policies + +This change may affect block notifications. For example: + +- You have an **HTTP policy** to block `example.com` and display a block page. +- You also have a **Network policy** to block `example.com` silently (no client notification). + +With the new order, the Network policy will trigger first — and the user will no longer see the HTTP block page. + +To ensure users still receive a block notification, you can: +- Add a client notification to your Network policy, or +- Use only the HTTP policy for that domain. + +--- + +### Why we’re making this change + +This update is based on user feedback and aims to: + +- Create a more intuitive model by evaluating network-level policies before application-level policies. +- Minimize [526 connection errors](/support/troubleshooting/http-status-codes/cloudflare-5xx-errors/error-526/#error-526-in-the-zero-trust-context) by verifying the network path to an origin before attempting to establish a decrypted TLS connection. + +--- + +To learn more, visit the [Gateway order of enforcement documentation](/cloudflare-one/policies/gateway/order-of-enforcement/).