Why Retried AI Image Uploads Can Overwrite Earlier Renders in Object Storage

The article explains that retrying an AI-generated image upload to the same stable storage key can overwrite a previously successful render when the storage layer lacks versioning. It recommends issuing a private presigned upload to a unique key for each render attempt, recording that key in the job row, and promoting it to a canonical key only after the database transaction succeeds. The author frames this as primarily an access-control decision, since private objects and short-lived signed delivery prevent player-generated art and moderation evidence from becoming permanent public links. A sample Python script demonstrates generating attempt-unique keys with timestamps and UUIDs, plus retrying a discovery request on rate limits. The piece concludes that the database should remain the authoritative index for which attempt belongs to a job.