What should we store in cache & what should not

Question

How do you determine what data should be stored in the cache and what should not ?

Sangeetha S · Answer

What to Store in Cache: Frequently Accessed Data: Items that are retrieved often (e.g. user profiles configuration settings). Expensive Operations: Results from complex calculations or resource-intensive database queries. Static or Rarely Changing Data: Reference data such as product catalogs or lookup tables that doesn't change frequently. Session Data: Information related to user sessions that enhances user experience (e.g. shopping cart contents). Data with High Latency: Data fetched from slow sources (e.g. external APIs) that can benefit from reduced load times. What Not to Store in Cache: Large Data Sets: Avoid caching large objects that can consume significant memory unless absolutely necessary. Volatile Data: Data that changes frequently (e.g. real-time transaction data) unless you can manage it effectively. Rarely Accessed Data: Data that is infrequently accessed may not justify the overhead of caching. Sensitive Information: Personal or sensitive data (e.g. passwords personal identifiable information) should generally not be cached. Temporary Data: Data that is only relevant for a very short time and won’t be reused.

Sreenath Kappoor · Answer

Caching can significantly improve performance by reducing data retrieval time and server load. Below are some examples of data that should and should not be stored in cache: What Should Be Stored in Cache Static Files: CSS JavaScript files images fonts. Frequently Accessed Data: Menus configuration settings. Session data: User Login States. What Should NOT Be Stored in Cache Sensitive or Personal Data: Passwords credit card details private messages. Data with Low Reuse: One-time API responses Rarely accessed records. Large Files: High-resolution videos Extensive logs. Volatile Data: Data that changes frequently and unpredictably such as sports scores.