I have added url rewrite rules to my .htaccess file. Should I see these changes working right away?
Changes to .htaccess are immediate and do not require a restart. Normally, if you aren't seeing what you expect from .htaccess changes, you have a syntax error and should check Apache's logs for some idea of what's going on.
NVM found it.
The .htaccess files follow the same syntax as the main configuration files. Since .htaccess files are read on every request, changes made in these files take immediate effect.
If you use redirect 301, clear browser cache.
Apparently, some servers only check .htaccess files periodically. I've found this to be the case w/ our AWS host.
My source is only a comment below the answer here, but it matches my experiences and others seem to agree.
来源：https://stackoverflow.com/questions/7836845/how-long-does-it-take-for-htaccess-changes-to-take-effect