How does in-memory caching work?
How does in-memory caching work?
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10-Mar-2025
Khushi Singh
11-Mar-2025The system stores often-used data in random access memory directly instead of retrieving it from storage systems such as databases or standard disk storage. By placing data in RAM instead of traditional storage systems, in-memory caching delivers applications with better performance because it shortens data access times.
How It Works
The system checks the cache for requested data before continuing to other data storage locations. The system retrieves stored data from memory when users have a cache hit which enables them to skip making expensive queries to the database. User requests lead to database fetching during cache misses before the response is sent back to users with future data retention in the cache.
Key Components of In-Memory Caching
Key-value storage presents an in-memory data storage system that operates through pairings of keys and values to support fast lookup operations. Each stored piece of data receives its own individual retrieval key when added to the system.
Eviction policies implemented by in-memory caches remove data with LRU or FIFO-based approaches when memory runs out due to limited RAM availability.
Cached data includes an expiration feature through TTL (Time-To-Live) to discard outdated information after a specified time.
Scalability together with reliability becomes possible when distributed caching functions across multiple servers within large-scale applications.
Popular In-Memory Caching Solutions
Three popular in-memory caching tools are Redis, Memcached, and Apache Ignite enables applications to interact with and handle cached data at high speeds.
The speedup and responsiveness of applications with in-memory caching rest on its ability to minimize database workload therefore enabling quicker system performance and superior user experience.