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Integrate a CDN resource with Kirby

Kirby can serve media and assets from a CDN by setting custom URLs when Kirby is initialized. Create a CDN resource before starting the integration, and confirm the custom domain is configured.

Back up index.php and the site files before making changes. If the installation uses a custom database integration, back up the database as well — default Kirby installations do not use a database. These steps assume the root index.php initializes Kirby with new Kirby([...]) and has not been replaced by custom bootstrap logic. A custom bootstrap might not integrate correctly.

Before editing Kirby, collect the custom domain value to put in the media and assets URLs — it typically looks like cdn.site.com:

  1. 1

    Open the CDN resource

    In the CDB Customer Portal, navigate to CDN > CDN resources and open the resource.

  2. 2

    Copy the custom domain

    Note the custom domain shown for the resource — this is the hostname used in the Kirby media and assets URLs.

  3. 3

    Confirm the DNS CNAME

    Confirm that the custom domain has a CNAME record pointing to the CDB target hostname shown in the Customer Portal (cl-****.gcdn.co). Do not put the gcdn.co hostname in the Kirby URLs.

  4. 4

    Confirm SSL

    Confirm the custom domain has a valid SSL certificate so assets can load over HTTPS.

Then update the Kirby configuration:

  1. 1

    Open index.php

    Open index.php in the site root.

  2. 2

    Set the media and assets URLs

    Set the media and assets URLs to the custom domain:

    <?php

include __DIR__ . '/kirby/bootstrap.php';

$kirby = new Kirby([
    'urls' => [
        'media'  => 'https://cdn.site.com/media',
        'assets' => 'https://cdn.site.com/assets',
    ]
]);

echo $kirby->render();
  3. 3

    Save the configuration

    Save index.php.

  4. 4

    Confirm the integration

    Open the browser developer tools (press F12), select the Network tab, and refresh the page — media and asset files should now load from the custom domain instead of the original domain.

A plugin-based approach that rewrites only selected paths is described in the Kirby cookbook Kirby loves CDN.