Laravel: Refresh response()->file - php

Question

In Laravel I use this route
Route::get('admin/showBill/{file}','Admin\FileController#showBill');
and this code
class FileController extends AuthController
{
public function showBill($file)
{
$path = storage_path('app/bills/' . basename($file) );
if(!\File::exists($path)) return back();
return response()->file($path);
}
to display a pdf from my storage folder.
So if I have the pdf bill-1.pdf in my /storage/app/bills/ folder, then I can view it with the url
example-domain.com/admin/showBill/bill-1.pdf
The problem is that if I open that pdf with the browser, replace it, and refresh (F5) the page, then the old bill is shown. I guess its because its stored in the cache. Can I force Laravel to show the new replaced file?
I tried
public function showBill($file)
{
$path = storage_path('app/bills/' . basename($file) );
if(!\File::exists($path)) return back();
$path .= '?v='. time();
return response()->file($path);
}
But then Laravel tells me that this file does not exist. I am looking for a solution where I have not to rename the pdf file.

Answer 1

Are you sure you're replacing the right file?
If so, place this dd(). I've created an endpoint, response an empty pdf file - viewed it - replaced it with a content-filled pdf file and it works just fine when I replace it.
Edit: Also, you should validate the $file variable, using either a formrequest or validating in the controller.
public function showBill($file)
{
$path = storage_path('app/bills/' . basename($file));
if(!\File::exists($path)) {
dd("Quite possibly the problem is here, on the redirect back");
}
return response()->file($path);
}