Documentation

Dynamic Media images fail to load on Live Pages in AEM

Last update: Mon Mar 09 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

In Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), Dynamic Media images intermittently render using a preview server domain instead of the production Scene7 domain, which causes image load failures with 403 errors on published sites. To fix this, correct the Dynamic Media configuration, reprocess the affected assets, and ensure components reference the production Scene7 domain.

Description description

Environment

Adobe Experience Manager Dynamic Media/Scene7

Issue/Symptoms

  • Images on live published pages use a preview server domain instead of the production Scene7 domain.
  • Affected images return a 403 error and do not display.
  • The issue occurs intermittently and does not appear on author instances.
  • Only certain assets processed during a period of incorrect misconfiguration are affected.

Resolution resolution

To fix this issue, follow these steps:

  1. Re-save the Dynamic Media configuration in the AEM author environment to reapply the correct Scene7 domain settings.
  2. Trigger the Sample Manager asynchronous job from the author environment to refresh Dynamic Media asset metadata.
  3. Reprocess each affected asset so its metadata updates to reference the correct production Scene7 domain.
  4. Republish all pages that contain affected assets to ensure the updated image URLs are reflected on live sites.
  5. Verify that the images now render correctly and that their URLs point to the production Scene7 domain.
  6. If images on live pages continue to reference the preview server domain, review and correct the Image component configuration so that they reference only the published Dynamic Media domain for live environments and not the preview server.

Notes:

  • The root cause is typically a misconfiguration or replication issue in Dynamic Media settings that sets metadata fields such as dam:scene7Domain incorrectly.
  • After correcting the configuration, newly uploaded assets process automatically without requiring manual reprocessing.
  • The preview server is intended for use in author environments only, and IP restrictions prevent access from public or live sites when used incorrectly.
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