v0.26.7

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
 ## 0.26.7
 
 - Add HOT and COLD cache occupancy progress bars on `/cache` for configured object and byte limits, with explicit percentage/limit details.
-- Verify cache `Age` progression on stored HITs, protect `Age` from custom response-header rules, and clarify that successful validator revalidation legitimately restarts the HTTP freshness age while `X-Cache-Resident-Age` continues to grow.
+- Verify cache `Age` progression on stored HITs and retain 0.26.6 compatibility for existing custom `Age` rules. Response-side Age rules are deferred to the final wire stage so they cannot alter internal freshness/storage. Successful validator revalidation still legitimately restarts HTTP freshness age while `X-Cache-Resident-Age` continues to grow.
 - Restore downstream compression for cookie-bearing responses only when RustProxy is serving a shared-cache HIT already accepted by cache policy or a local static Web Server response; privacy-sensitive dynamic/cookie responses remain excluded.
 - Keep `Content-Encoding`/`Vary: Accept-Encoding` negotiation for gzip, Brotli, Zstandard and deflate, and make the bundled compression tester stop forcing `Cache-Control: no-cache` unless explicitly requested.
 - Preserve compatible backend upstream clients across unrelated active-snapshot rebuilds so generation age, generation request count and rotation totals do not reset spuriously.

ROADMAP.md

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ Current direction: 0.26.6 -> 0.26.7
 - [x] Keep request-count and age-based backend client recycling covered by tests and visible diagnostics.
 - [x] Refresh container documentation and include all supported Certbot DNS plugins in the shipped OCI image.
 - [x] Review current installation/cache/backend lifecycle documentation for stale behavior statements.
+- [x] Keep existing 0.26.6 custom `Age` rules loadable while isolating response-side Age overrides from cache freshness/storage semantics.
 - [x] Keep SQLite schema 8 and saved proxy configuration compatibility with 0.26.6.
 - [ ] Run compiler-enabled `cargo fmt --all`, `cargo check --locked --all-targets` and `cargo test --locked --all-targets` on a Rust release host.
 

SHA256SUMS

@@ -2,12 +2,12 @@
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 c39fd74d633dc36cd7caa8d9b6785151b116752b79bd629d4d810cb03e1096cc  AGENTS.md
-abe0ebe15057929bec551cc1b92cfa25fb7aca616ba7e3bc8d23a4f02082a446  CHANGELOG.md
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 da8311e3db945290666324a2f24bf4521b365272d7ac3f862ded1be993eea646  UPDATE_CHECK.toml
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 834e8de4387354b23a2cb8c2d484f0f641dfed09472a9db12efcd0e683969a06  debian/README.md
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ ec15163f5f51c9212003b7edd1fc380321311c2496fbaa9b45c838281b9af475  docs/ACME_RFC2
 d699f2261a0d7854e49e9b8bae44fa37008a7d2f6340a73cdc37e840722ea211  docs/API.md
 96f0cdc4af8961b69c19d0f8204d467b2b70abf3882f1fe1a540c82cac9c063b  docs/API_ACCESS.md
 0f7f159ad5b4b5277f80c19f3c47f4e7823ea439ef02e5913e1391f1b34d129f  docs/ARCHITECTURE.md
-fec156479641ffa02c5702dd54f79de8efa1e9768557f2d38e44cd6868bba9e4  docs/CACHE.md
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 6266163e17d2921468abdae92c1620266af8351321530e2c9b7dca6f3dd89c88  docs/CACHE_DIAGNOSTICS.md
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 d99fddfc982316c4e915cc6437fe339385350c49a2d06d570d42fd0100227e78  docs/CONTAINER.md
@@ -68,11 +68,11 @@ e7516646dfb107d6240370f4e7460b1189f2eb21f398740381d5d102847bbfe6  docs/NOT_FOUND
 ce5afb4f531bb5fb4c453deb49f643f2a563f32f7908c995e5bc8e0d7de995b7  docs/RENEWAL.md
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 4bf7b3ea0bfe6c6b0ae0b7884b48b10ba29ff3a71611ec96957a3327d3c6ec88  docs/SECRET_STORE_BACKUP.md
-63e033f08acafa0bb6ac3c6ff58ba56a185e34c9ad29f94725837aba4f36b2be  docs/SECURITY.md
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 620b69e566d27af04f0604f4ca3f88cf95cdfea7fbc6ae9dd92446d2b2b5d9be  docs/SECURITY_AUDIT.md
 0c312c26930153a5e7ee77431d3df4d544b5aadbfcbbb1c8aba2a2d0a7d5e656  docs/SETTINGS.md
 3611defd206cde107e75cac006159856d12cd8f15df7ae2eb9ec3592ed2b4abd  docs/STREAMS.md
-365d85700ce3672afd419f74f3dfbf774278a08fddfed34e43b35bc168a42eca  docs/TEST_REPORT.md
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 cfb452d8496839e832b5fbacdd4e52525b0ecc3112fbb62340c1e580bd5c1717  docs/TODO.md
 8ee6187a5460ca45643b7fd789e27bffd264449e3a92ff70e9359edee011bbbb  docs/TRANSFORM.md
 a1e9c6d38d21067d1ce7115ca3395ae8ff1f6a4c40fb0ebf00a6940ef79df439  docs/TRANSPORT.md
@@ -106,7 +106,7 @@ bf9b4cf4fec2c8ce287e1b3c2e7d4828e101dafe4d6c173f099819f22493d144  docs/V0.25.5_A
 da5ec87b9482f2fc506c4334d9365f3bfaec89254a14e5585dd6460326b20e10  docs/V0.26.4_IMPLEMENTATION.md
 0ddf5215c40c8366844350bc6462d8013dba747b6f3e8fbf477985af215e5e8d  docs/V0.26.5_IMPLEMENTATION.md
 dd9b5dcdbd53a04fd32458caaf03b56aa335f0153b1a0e332fdf230fec12680e  docs/V0.26.6_IMPLEMENTATION.md
-d21acc458442278628e524ba0b45eb7baa06a46633376a4abbcc35a8c34e5ff2  docs/V0.26.7_IMPLEMENTATION.md
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 0f0e0e2920c76b2f82f38c6e60ed992a532c63851f593f2a1fa59e8d0014bb41  docs/VHOSTS.md
 09b60fb7b40db4d0139fa2a9e69a2aa9f28d4e61b8643521cfc7e936d7df8774  docs/VHOST_ACCESS.md
 f0e76167944861517d1d42b9186ff0b2f184be0371b9e8597827e60895de4a76  docs/WEB_SERVER.md
@@ -126,8 +126,8 @@ c294a5dcb94c1cf7edf72243bb533cc487a17452a7c0ac8c72f23cce0ec42fc6  grafana/rustpr
 30763fc61c38992a44bc24ad6932b88fd3b322724fce799db1f17f9a747eb59a  install-debian13.sh
 858b39fa6886b71d20690bf369e76580922364b3cc7f0cf6ba9b040df9cd76e3  install.sh
 29cada0936762f26495064d1524a668262ed729b21f20aebddc8b6e5cfea363b  langs/README.md
-5a36a455c9ed45749aca05fe28b3d3036e49cd748c6b89c2334973e7b070f2cb  langs/en_US.json
+9f367283c849d5217cb9386cf743221cc1d44ea4e76aa50a08234bbe71455837  langs/en_US.json
-ec860b4940fd237b8336154824b40b8f09fc009d3baa505771fc56c9ba2bda9e  langs/pl_pl.json
+028c8d841c8cf246a021675054e638d6ab9f0c9785f823e2e4eec60a70fa8823  langs/pl_pl.json
 8b258ac4654a046dc649c7fa8cef273c0f9431c9a12ea9b772dd0a1c95bb281f  make_zip.py
 e830d37dd1f81a4b0aa7d535f5bba69e34e433b0fd99cc8ee0b296786c32379a  migrations/0002_admin.sql
 20112cc82192098b8d602f1c4f7ca08712e9e1366c845fabb92753187c370d35  migrations/0003_certificate_renewals.sql
@@ -147,7 +147,7 @@ edb6ee1445b01cd6f3a74a3a607f39fb107d411b49df028d2e0f4679e093de31  scripts/acme_p
 e69813fb1d3a4cdcfb7243964cc323fc21a603087bf2e84188fa42b9d3cee4b5  scripts/acme_rfc2136.py
 a5b4451e45ce975685772aa8409b64a57a20a7548466584c3ea7fb975e64729c  scripts/admin_audit.py
 20e83f8b6347b819d1d1ea3de5c691c36f0816954a4210b0d3f39557fefe1931  scripts/backup.py
-f79fa03aa2b5f0c04d37c108af55d8c43f9faf402f16553d5348c33a088e6108  scripts/check_source.py
+1d88238e867dcc45c9666f765667674a7dce595a6db578dbfec15311b751f567  scripts/check_source.py
 187ee92c8029cdd59e89b4447cf4d170e856017a2091ceb85ae7c22dd1a79c72  scripts/deploy.py
 fe28d6d580a53d95a0fc318ebc4da5bbc71a23781bb827158848934985477035  scripts/deploy_core.py
 f014472588e889488976970dbaa95a8745b6907516aa81a7cca21d0f81eaaad3  scripts/deploy_runtime.py
@@ -235,7 +235,7 @@ e6c4d91d1542d0a5b47bb8736f9539d43a6713df5a473b635519d5b7eac2eb9c  src/admin/web/
 0a5fff35555153f59d4346933030a67b6e1a8768cee7a47cfa2fcf1a2c564f63  src/admin/web/favicon.svg
 af6e7a2e890df2fb7385a374bcb3fba52fb5a53dbe18adc1fb7865660fcba842  src/admin/web/file-logs.js
 631860ab3793ffd827c7cf19ddd049d14419509f2c2d8b27994b0e54baa0e32a  src/admin/web/host404.js
-1167c964000bb5dae1ba92b850ff76162570af340029d8788296160adc9f67b5  src/admin/web/index.html
+4e8c9a1a1bd9870f0cd8aad5c9da80ff130497f11dbda116d79f91d9bfc129c6  src/admin/web/index.html
 24db88842707f764064657712d3660c6ac129fbfb47d188c0903925cf8244ce5  src/admin/web/integrations.js
 cdab0c11a28deebdf401c0453fbc76b675e9e643722106fb20e812bb9648ccde  src/admin/web/login-keys.json
 a253d202dc9a147f2add34c64e0f35c38fdc7f667f9908933ce5f959b1a92a2e  src/admin/web/login.html
@@ -247,7 +247,7 @@ f1ab20afa09f75f3635511756e36afea46a7917f04937d6f4e89c4e9f3f43204  src/admin/web/
 f5831c2188233e425beecedc9e5e2829b620f80fc5326b73198024d27b81d1e7  src/admin/web/style.css
 a8a73a4fa849ae49391fcd6143e900c515c8b577f71b55cbae9701fa9f5bbe47  src/admin/web/traffic-panel.js
 e686d68fd6a368110a85dc4c5dc64e8093950d20d63e9aa44790c03dea6fc193  src/admin/web/transform-panel.js
-106db335a6dd3e326955241e1d67caa5562a427b0356e7433cd0d92087342ce8  src/admin/web/vhosts/core.js
+6856c230c4f6b18145e16efb6636433f8b21ce3ec5d34246d6561f0150ea0554  src/admin/web/vhosts/core.js
 4d4ee863a3d77e5213ae4bdcad1f533a6222353b9c32e0b5f12f7ea60ab62bea  src/admin/web/vhosts/editor.js
 e0011edc708d245cb514be170c1bbe846a0298b81d86276fe29af05010d215a4  src/admin/web/vhosts/render.js
 b3d8d3e22e4cbab10c5d588c268da6eb3075a9ec857728ce6b5d56e3ffd3c9a6  src/admin/web/web-server.js
@@ -340,8 +340,8 @@ fe571c85a924c827097f4be01b3a827a16bc5dd17a55fbf991ee3ad016641305  src/docker/tes
 057e652f216a1478638cbb53b1c64ac88c7f413a65825caacbf893c5af004a63  src/forwarding/tests.rs
 72215ef6911893f55cc82278169268f03d869b94728f118bf007fc555d609fde  src/geoip.rs
 e40171e72327bc4350ba95cedacde2f3c9148c26a5a232d9f790f4449f20a685  src/geoip/tests.rs
-4e009ec10151a068fa83cf93cac78d2254d152e0386442586d6f5860ab2710b4  src/headers.rs
+13269be4ad8d3e4c91893753f654c3022e6f86d171c5d1ff21eda2d9185ec61f  src/headers.rs
-01cb98570ec388170420883e4ba18b2bf85ad1af97854dbc3a12b135db511c5c  src/headers/tests.rs
+fbb6859780309f8cca1aeaba43fa67d13a1edf6f5a60c5c982d2067b71fb0846  src/headers/tests.rs
 d0cd8589321595309834690fa9ddb98488886bc98f34ea45aa0ccb3035412fb5  src/http3.rs
 2165a0a4b27d621985e2030326ad52b8bbd59d7b9e4f092f72f7e92b4e58b497  src/http3/body.rs
 68bc11160bc5275a904e48af8698b37433096fb6d592364d8281d59bb9e2b3f4  src/http3/tests.rs
@@ -376,7 +376,7 @@ d3c6b08088df0003144544936a55e2a3661aac85292821b594f00adfd19a2951  src/prometheus
 e03f0d6b3f35dae6b98c394837aa0d17e4d73a8306767b4c607868bc00c30286  src/prometheus/vhosts_backends.rs
 b5856fd38a957b2ca9c7e3606d84d13d5cfcf3a45b487b15ae1d2dc248cbda57  src/proxy/body.rs
 16b9d4db3b20b2ab14c47ac14fcd18d3d8ca77c3ad9a1f37866ebfa60f379862  src/proxy/body/tests.rs
-00e50a914511754266b4eae2626244587174bfa71fff91509c530bcde7f0d397  src/proxy/cache_helpers.rs
+f0cb26ed34c35bacc74b914457acac8a611390de14cf46e2e6d3bcc848e914e8  src/proxy/cache_helpers.rs
 cfb0910af8cd868bde3f6c9992319e46d5328d6d8f69c50701df0ea12bef2108  src/proxy/forward/cache_lookup.rs
 212de22f407dd96800afcf65fd1fc7c40fede1b88f80d04850eb8d1227b08a5b  src/proxy/forward/response.rs
 a74deecbdbc5953c46b885a4627b3d1e820752b03921b80406ae11080ea56cc4  src/proxy/forward/route_cache.rs
@@ -389,7 +389,7 @@ c438066616527a3108f2ad53e3698ae9b2a80961714394cdd0a450c92f99d992  src/proxy/head
 f6aef54204b5bb9305dd1367818c7ffd3cb273008404c9fab0317af1d13ba7a6  src/proxy/mod.rs
 d75ff3e38affa49f9a8b9d6801454c1449458e5fbf07e08d51aa3f42abebafd5  src/proxy/tests/authority_tests.rs
 622d44511b82883a34830d0ae3ea665fd40b58eaa85653f58588db92d55a17c3  src/proxy/types.rs
-352260ef9e956534bc91b5cb888e3f8e881913c0bb988e6af95e49933d98814d  src/proxy/upstream_helpers.rs
+b09929990cd34db718c6bc82bd7ac9c711cea6dd52c1977febec6d800fbdd991  src/proxy/upstream_helpers.rs
 69f775f6746b4c6d729dc10961dbef54168846f4ce9cf7fe453ab5a2b879c9b8  src/proxy/websocket.rs
 d05e655ba0b3b322c657aaa9c2cbe7a0181064a896026b5eeaca347c4a0b7831  src/proxy/websocket/handshake.rs
 b21dc9cf3817dd4e3273ce25887d63d7a772c477b86ca57f8d5b72b8154456e7  src/proxy/websocket/tests.rs

docs/CACHE.md

@@ -284,8 +284,10 @@ Cache-Status: RustProxy; hit; ttl=556488; detail="cache_hit"; transformed
 
 Origin lookalike values (`Cache-Status`, `X-Cache-Status` and the other RustProxy
 cache diagnostics) are removed before RustProxy emits its own diagnostics. HTTP `Age`
-remains present on reused cached responses because it is protocol freshness metadata,
+is generated from cache freshness metadata on reused responses. For 0.26.6 configuration
-not a debug header. The Cache dashboard also marks transformed objects explicitly.
+compatibility an explicit response-header rule may set/append/remove `Age`, but that rule
+runs only after cache lookup/revalidation/storage decisions and therefore cannot alter the
+internal freshness clock. The Cache dashboard also marks transformed objects explicitly.
 
 ## Pool behavior
 

docs/SECURITY.md

@@ -121,8 +121,10 @@ update and purge paths. Purge is authenticated, CSRF-protected and audited, not
 public PURGE/BAN capability.
 
 Compression is opt-in, with authenticated/private/no-transform exclusions. Response
-rules cannot overwrite protected framing/identity fields or the cache-controlled `Age`
+rules cannot overwrite protected framing/identity fields. For compatibility with 0.26.6,
-header. Required Age remains on cache hits even when debug headers are disabled. Server hiding is cosmetic and
+custom `Age` rules remain accepted. Response-side `Age` is deferred to the final wire stage,
+after RustProxy's cache freshness/revalidation logic, so it cannot alter stored age, TTL or
+cache eligibility. Server hiding is cosmetic and
 must not be considered an access-control or vulnerability mitigation substitute.
 
 Standard public 80/443 ports are supported without globally forbidding remote

docs/TEST_REPORT.md

@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ Static source contracts require all four `/cache` occupancy meters (HOT objects,
 
 The existing upstream-client unit coverage retains age-triggered rotation without user traffic. A new pool regression, `compatible_pool_rebuild_reuses_upstream_clients`, verifies that a compatible rebuild reuses the previous compiled backend/client object so rotation state remains continuous. Source contracts also require the `reusable_with` compatibility check, maintenance calls for normal/WebSocket clients and backend reuse path. These Rust tests require a compiler-enabled release host.
 
-Cache regressions now require a stored HIT/dashboard object to advance `Age`, while compression regressions require `Age` to survive encoding and require cookie-bearing compression to stay blocked unless the internal cache/static safety marker is present. Source contracts protect the `Age` header from custom response rules and require the bounded HIT/static cookie-compression exception. The bundled compression tester no longer forces `Cache-Control: no-cache` unless `--revalidate` is requested.
+Cache regressions now require a stored HIT/dashboard object to advance `Age`, while compression regressions require `Age` to survive encoding and require cookie-bearing compression to stay blocked unless the internal cache/static safety marker is present. Existing 0.26.6 `Age` rules stay loadable; response-side Age is tagged as a late wire-only override so the generic response-rule pass cannot influence cache freshness/storage. The bundled compression tester no longer forces `Cache-Control: no-cache` unless `--revalidate` is requested.
 
 Documentation checks cover the 0.26.7 release note, Reader index, local Markdown links, cache diagnostics and container/ACME provider guidance. Packaging smoke tests verify the 0.26.7 release identity and deterministic source archive contract.
 

docs/V0.26.7_IMPLEMENTATION.md

@@ -36,9 +36,12 @@ Current cache, vhost/backend and installation documentation was reviewed alongsi
 The cache freshness clock remains RFC-oriented: ordinary stored HITs advance `Age` from
 `initial_age + resident elapsed time`, while a successful validator revalidation starts a
 new freshness calculation. `X-Cache-Resident-Age` remains the monotonic residency clock
-across revalidation and tier movement. `Age` is now protected from generic response-header
+across revalidation and tier movement. Existing 0.26.6 custom `Age` rules remain accepted
-rules, and regression coverage explicitly checks that both the wire HIT header and `/cache`
+for configuration compatibility. Response-side Age rules are isolated to the final wire
-object age advance from the stored clock.
+stage, so set/append/remove cannot feed back into stored freshness, TTL calculation or
+validator revalidation. Regression coverage explicitly checks that both the wire HIT header
+and `/cache` object age advance from the stored clock before any optional presentation
+override.
 
 Compression still refuses Authorization, private/no-store/no-transform, Set-Cookie, ranges,
 SSE, upgrades and already encoded responses. Cookie-bearing requests now have one bounded

langs/en_US.json

@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@
     "cacheDefaultTtl": "Fallback TTL for public responses (0 = off)",
     "bypassQuery": "Bypass URLs with a query string",
     "cachePrefixes": "Bypass path prefixes, one per line",
-    "cacheAgeHelp": "Age is always sent on cache hits. Counters remain available even when diagnostic headers are hidden. Only cache-affecting configuration changes invalidate incompatible objects; managed software updates hand hot objects to cold storage when the cold tier is enabled.",
+    "cacheAgeHelp": "Age is sent on cache hits unless an explicit response-header rule removes or replaces it. Such Age rules are wire-only and do not change cache freshness. Counters remain available even when diagnostic headers are hidden. Only cache-affecting configuration changes invalidate incompatible objects; managed software updates hand hot objects to cold storage when the cold tier is enabled.",
     "saveCache": "Apply cache policy",
     "purgeCache": "Purge all cache",
     "customHeaders": "Global custom headers",

langs/pl_pl.json

@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@
     "cacheDefaultTtl": "Zapasowy TTL odpowiedzi publicznych (0 = wył.)",
     "bypassQuery": "Pomijaj adresy z parametrami query",
     "cachePrefixes": "Pomijane prefiksy ścieżek, po jednym w wierszu",
-    "cacheAgeHelp": "Trafienia zawsze zawierają Age. Liczniki działają również przy ukrytych nagłówkach diagnostycznych. Tylko zmiany wpływające na cache unieważniają niezgodne obiekty; podczas zarządzanej aktualizacji hot cache jest przenoszony do cold storage, jeśli cold tier jest włączony.",
+    "cacheAgeHelp": "Trafienia zawierają Age, chyba że jawna reguła nagłówka odpowiedzi go usunie lub zastąpi. Takie reguły Age działają tylko na odpowiedzi wysyłanej do klienta i nie zmieniają świeżości cache. Liczniki działają również przy ukrytych nagłówkach diagnostycznych. Tylko zmiany wpływające na cache unieważniają niezgodne obiekty; podczas zarządzanej aktualizacji hot cache jest przenoszony do cold storage, jeśli cold tier jest włączony.",
     "saveCache": "Zastosuj ustawienia cache",
     "purgeCache": "Wyczyść cały cache",
     "customHeaders": "Globalne reguły nagłówków",

scripts/check_source.py

@@ -801,8 +801,17 @@ for marker in [
     assert marker in compression_finalize_source, marker
 headers_source_0267 = rust_source(root, "src/headers.rs")
 vhost_core_0267 = (root / "src/admin/web/vhosts/core.js").read_text()
-assert '| "age"' in headers_source_0267, "Age must be protected from generic response rules"
+for marker in [
-assert '["host", "age", "connection"' in vhost_core_0267, "UI must protect Age consistently"
+    'pub fn apply_wire_age',
+    'wire_only: bool',
+    'wire_only: direction == Direction::Response',
+    'rule.name.eq_ignore_ascii_case("age")',
+    'if !rule.wire_only',
+]:
+    assert marker in headers_source_0267, marker
+assert '["host", "connection", "content-length"' in vhost_core_0267, "UI protected header set must stay intact"
+assert '["host", "age", "connection"' not in vhost_core_0267, "0.26.6 Age rules must remain UI-loadable"
+assert 'apply_response_age_rules(' in compression_finalize_source, "Age wire rules must run in final response stage"
 compression_tester_0267 = (root / "scripts/test_compression.py").read_text()
 for marker in ["--revalidate", "if revalidate:", 'headers["Cache-Control"] = "no-cache"', "headers.get('Age', '-')"]:
     assert marker in compression_tester_0267, marker

src/admin/web/index.html

@@ -2172,9 +2172,9 @@
                                                 type="checkbox" /><span>Cache-Status (RFC 9211)</span></label><label
                                             class="check"><input id="cache-resident-age-header"
                                                 type="checkbox" /><span>X-Cache-Resident-Age</span></label></div>
-                                    <p class="fine" data-i18n="cacheAgeHelp">Age is always sent on cache hits. Counters
+                                    <p class="fine" data-i18n="cacheAgeHelp">Age is sent on cache hits unless an
-                                        remain available even when diagnostic headers are hidden. Every configuration
+                                        explicit response-header rule removes or replaces it. Such Age rules are
-                                        apply invalidates the cache.</p>
+                                        wire-only and do not change cache freshness.</p>
                                 </div>
                                 <div class="form-actions"><button class="primary" data-i18n="saveCache"
                                         type="submit">Apply cache policy</button><button class="outline"

src/admin/web/vhosts/core.js

@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@
     for (const direction of ["request", "response"]) {
       const rules = value[direction] || []; if (!Array.isArray(rules) || rules.length > 32) fail(); for (const rule of rules) {
         if (!rule || typeof rule !== "object" || Object.keys(rule).some(k => !["op", "name", "value"].includes(k)) || !["set", "append", "remove"].includes(rule.op) || typeof rule.name !== "string" || rule.name.length > 128 || !/^[-!#$%&'*+.^_`|~0-9A-Za-z]+$/.test(rule.name)) fail();
-        const name = rule.name.toLowerCase(); if (["host", "age", "connection", "content-length", "transfer-encoding", "te", "trailer", "content-encoding", "content-range", "upgrade", "keep-alive", "proxy-connection", "proxy-authorization", "proxy-authenticate", "forwarded", "x-real-ip", "x-request-id", "x-rust-proxy-backend", "x-rust-proxy-backend-time", "x-rustproxy-backend-time"].includes(name) || name.startsWith("x-forwarded-") || name.startsWith("sec-websocket-")) throw new Error(t("headersProtected"));
+        const name = rule.name.toLowerCase(); if (["host", "connection", "content-length", "transfer-encoding", "te", "trailer", "content-encoding", "content-range", "upgrade", "keep-alive", "proxy-connection", "proxy-authorization", "proxy-authenticate", "forwarded", "x-real-ip", "x-request-id", "x-rust-proxy-backend", "x-rust-proxy-backend-time", "x-rustproxy-backend-time"].includes(name) || name.startsWith("x-forwarded-") || name.startsWith("sec-websocket-")) throw new Error(t("headersProtected"));
         if (rule.op === "remove") { if (Object.hasOwn(rule, "value") && rule.value !== null) fail(); } else if (typeof rule.value !== "string" || rule.value.length > 8192 || /[\r\n\0]/.test(rule.value)) fail();
       }
     } return value;

src/headers.rs

@@ -31,6 +31,7 @@ pub struct CompiledRule {
     op: Operation,
     name: HeaderName,
     value: Option<HeaderValue>,
+    wire_only: bool,
 }
 #[derive(Debug, Clone, Default)]
 pub struct CompiledHeaders {
@@ -43,16 +44,20 @@ impl HeaderRules {
     }
     pub fn compile(&self) -> Result<CompiledHeaders> {
         Ok(CompiledHeaders {
-            request: compile_rules(&self.request)?,
+            request: compile_rules(&self.request, Direction::Request)?,
-            response: compile_rules(&self.response)?,
+            response: compile_rules(&self.response, Direction::Response)?,
         })
     }
 }
+#[derive(Clone, Copy, PartialEq, Eq)]
+enum Direction {
+    Request,
+    Response,
+}
 fn protected(name: &str) -> bool {
     matches!(
         name,
         "host"
-            | "age"
             | "connection"
             | "content-length"
             | "transfer-encoding"
@@ -74,7 +79,7 @@ fn protected(name: &str) -> bool {
     ) || name.starts_with("x-forwarded-")
         || name.starts_with("sec-websocket-")
 }
-fn compile_rules(rules: &[Rule]) -> Result<Vec<CompiledRule>> {
+fn compile_rules(rules: &[Rule], direction: Direction) -> Result<Vec<CompiledRule>> {
     ensure!(
         rules.len() <= 32,
         "at most 32 header rules per direction and scope"
@@ -102,23 +107,39 @@ fn compile_rules(rules: &[Rule]) -> Result<Vec<CompiledRule>> {
                 op: rule.op,
                 name,
                 value,
+                wire_only: direction == Direction::Response
+                    && rule.name.eq_ignore_ascii_case("age"),
             })
         })
         .collect()
 }
+fn apply_rule(headers: &mut HeaderMap, rule: &CompiledRule) {
+    match (&rule.op, &rule.value) {
+        (Operation::Remove, _) => {
+            headers.remove(&rule.name);
+        }
+        (Operation::Set, Some(value)) => {
+            headers.insert(rule.name.clone(), value.clone());
+        }
+        (Operation::Append, Some(value)) => {
+            headers.append(rule.name.clone(), value.clone());
+        }
+        _ => unreachable!("only compiled header rules reach the request path"),
+    }
+}
 pub fn apply(headers: &mut HeaderMap, rules: &[CompiledRule]) {
     for rule in rules {
-        match (&rule.op, &rule.value) {
+        // Response Age rules are a wire-only presentation override. Applying
-            (Operation::Remove, _) => {
+        // them here would let a configured value enter cache freshness/storage.
-                headers.remove(&rule.name);
+        if !rule.wire_only {
-            }
+            apply_rule(headers, rule);
-            (Operation::Set, Some(value)) => {
+        }
-                headers.insert(rule.name.clone(), value.clone());
+    }
-            }
+}
-            (Operation::Append, Some(value)) => {
+pub fn apply_wire_age(headers: &mut HeaderMap, rules: &[CompiledRule]) {
-                headers.append(rule.name.clone(), value.clone());
+    for rule in rules {
-            }
+        if rule.wire_only {
-            _ => unreachable!("only compiled header rules reach the request path"),
+            apply_rule(headers, rule);
         }
     }
 }

src/headers/tests.rs

@@ -45,4 +45,62 @@ mod tests {
         };
         assert!(rules.compile().is_err());
     }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn response_age_is_allowed_but_applied_only_at_wire_stage() {
+        let request_age = HeaderRules {
+            request: vec![Rule {
+                op: Operation::Set,
+                name: "Age".into(),
+                value: Some("7".into()),
+            }],
+            response: vec![],
+        };
+        let request_compiled = request_age.compile().unwrap();
+        let mut request_headers = HeaderMap::new();
+        apply(&mut request_headers, &request_compiled.request);
+        assert_eq!(request_headers["age"], "7");
+
+        let response_age = HeaderRules {
+            request: vec![],
+            response: vec![Rule {
+                op: Operation::Remove,
+                name: "Age".into(),
+                value: None,
+            }],
+        };
+        let compiled = response_age.compile().unwrap();
+        let mut headers = HeaderMap::new();
+        headers.insert("age", HeaderValue::from_static("42"));
+        apply(&mut headers, &compiled.response);
+        assert_eq!(headers["age"], "42");
+        apply_wire_age(&mut headers, &compiled.response);
+        assert!(!headers.contains_key("age"));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn response_age_keeps_0266_rule_compatibility() {
+        let rules = HeaderRules {
+            request: vec![],
+            response: vec![
+                Rule {
+                    op: Operation::Set,
+                    name: "age".into(),
+                    value: Some("custom".into()),
+                },
+                Rule {
+                    op: Operation::Append,
+                    name: "age".into(),
+                    value: Some("7".into()),
+                },
+            ],
+        };
+        let compiled = rules.compile().unwrap();
+        let mut headers = HeaderMap::new();
+        headers.insert("age", HeaderValue::from_static("42"));
+        apply(&mut headers, &compiled.response);
+        assert_eq!(headers["age"], "42");
+        apply_wire_age(&mut headers, &compiled.response);
+        assert_eq!(headers.get_all("age").iter().count(), 2);
+    }
 }

src/proxy/cache_helpers.rs

@@ -219,6 +219,20 @@ fn apply_response_rules(
         headers::strip_admin_set_cookie(headers);
     }
 }
+fn apply_response_age_rules(
+    headers: &mut http::HeaderMap,
+    snapshot: &crate::config::Snapshot,
+    frontend: Option<&crate::config::CompiledFrontend>,
+    route: Option<&crate::config::CompiledRoute>,
+) {
+    crate::headers::apply_wire_age(headers, &snapshot.headers.response);
+    if let Some(frontend) = frontend {
+        crate::headers::apply_wire_age(headers, &frontend.headers.response);
+    }
+    if let Some(route) = route {
+        crate::headers::apply_wire_age(headers, &route.headers.response);
+    }
+}
 /// Final policies apply to cache hits, errors, static pages and ALL transports.
 fn finish_headers(
     response: &mut Response,

src/proxy/upstream_helpers.rs

@@ -87,6 +87,12 @@ async fn observe(State(state): State<Arc<App>>, mut request: Request, next: Next
             &request_id,
             &state.active_listeners,
         );
+        apply_response_age_rules(
+            response.headers_mut(),
+            &snapshot,
+            frontend_context.as_deref(),
+            route_context.as_ref(),
+        );
         return response;
     };
     state.metrics.active.fetch_add(1, Ordering::Relaxed);
@@ -356,6 +362,14 @@ async fn observe(State(state): State<Arc<App>>, mut request: Request, next: Next
             cache.annotate_transformed(response.headers_mut(), transformed);
         }
     }
+    if !minimal_welcome {
+        apply_response_age_rules(
+            response.headers_mut(),
+            &snapshot,
+            frontend_context.as_deref(),
+            route_context.as_ref(),
+        );
+    }
     if response
         .extensions()
         .get::<crate::pages::PageServed>()