LRU(3)
NAME
Cache - the Cache interface
DESCRIPTION
The Cache modules are designed to assist a developer in persisting data
for a specified period of time. Often these modules are used in web
applications to store data locally to save repeated and redundant
expensive calls to remote machines or databases.
The Cache interface is implemented by derived classes that store cached
data in different manners (such as as files on a filesystem, or in mem-
ory).
USAGE
To use the Cache system, a cache implementation must be chosen to suit
your needs. The most common is Cache::File, which is suitable for
sharing data between multiple invocations and even between concurrent
processes.
Using a cache is simple. Here is some very simple sample code for
instantiating and using a file system based cache.
use Cache::File;
my $cache = Cache::File->new( cache_root => '/tmp/cacheroot' );
my $customer = $cache->get( $name );
unless ($customer) {
$customer = get_customer_from_db( $name );
$cache->set( $name, $customer, '10 minutes' );
}
return $customer;
Of course, far more powerful methods are available for accessing cached
data. Also see the TIE INTERFACE below.
METHODS
my $cache_entry = $c->entry( $key )
Return a 'Cache::Entry' object for the given key. This object can
then be used to manipulate the cache entry in various ways. The
key can be any scalar string that will uniquely identify an entry
in the cache.
$c->purge()
Remove all expired data from the cache.
$c->clear()
Remove all entries from the cache - regardless of their expiry
time.
my $num = $c->count()
Returns the number of entries in the cache.
my $size = $c->size()
Returns the size (in bytes) of the cache.
PROPERTIES
When a cache is constructed these properties can be supplied as options
to the new() method.
default_expires
The current default expiry time for new entries into the cache.
This property can also be reset at any time.
my $time = $c->default_expires();
$c->set_default_expires( $expiry );
removal_strategy
The removal strategy object for the cache. This is used to remove
object from the cache in order to maintain the cache size limit.
When setting the removal strategy in new(), the name of a strategy
package or a blessed strategy object reference should be provided
(in the former case an object is constructed by calling the new()
method of the named package).
The strategies 'Cache::RemovalStrategy::LRU' and 'Cache::Removal-
Strategy::FIFO' are available by default.
my $strategy = $c->removal_strategy();
size_limit
The size limit for the cache.
my $limit = $c->size_limit();
load_callback
The load callback for the cache. This may be set to a function
that will get called anytime a 'get' is issued for data that does
not exist in the cache.
my $limit = $c->load_callback();
$c->set_load_callback($callback_func);
validate_callback
The validate callback for the cache. This may be set to a function
that will get called anytime a 'get' is issued for data that does
not exist in the cache.
my $limit = $c->validate_callback();
$c->set_validate_callback($callback_func);
SHORTCUT METHODS
These methods all have counterparts in the Cache::Entry package, but
are provided here as shortcuts. They all default to just wrappers that
do '$c->entry($key)->method_name()'. For documentation, please refer
to Cache::Entry.
my $bool = $c->exists( $key )
$c->set( $key, $data, [ $expiry ] )
my $data = $c->get( $key )
my $data = $c->size( $key )
$c->remove( $key )
$c->expiry( $key )
$c->set_expiry( $key, $time )
$c->handle( $key, [$mode, [$expiry] ] )
$c->validity( $key )
$c->set_validity( $key, $data )
$c->freeze( $key, $data, [ $expiry ] )
$c->thaw( $key )
TIE INTERFACE
tie %hash, 'Cache::File', { cache_root => $tempdir };
$hash{'key'} = 'some data';
$data = $hash{'key'};
The Cache classes can be used via the tie interface, as shown in the
synopsis. This allows the cache to be accessed via a hash. All the
standard methods for accessing the hash are supported , with the excep-
tion of the 'keys' or 'each' call.
The tie interface is especially useful with the load_callback to auto-
matically populate the hash.
REMOVAL STRATEGY METHODS
These methods are only for use internally (by concrete Cache implemen-
tations).
These methods define the interface by which the removal strategy object
can manipulate the cache (the Cache is the 'context' of the strategy).
By default, methods need to be provided to remove the oldest or stalest
objects in the cache - thus allowing support for the default FIFO and
LRU removal strategies. All derived Cache implementations should sup-
port these methods and may also introduce additional methods (and addi-
tional removal strategies to match).
my $size = $c->remove_oldest()
Removes the oldest entry in the cache and returns its size.
my $size = $c->remove_stalest()
Removes the 'stalest' (least used) object in the cache and returns
its size.
$c->check_size( $size )
This method isn't actually part of the strategy interface, nor does
it need to be defined by Cache implementations. Instead it should
be called by implementations whenever the size of the cache
increases. It will take care of checking the size limit and invok-
ing the removal strategy if required. The size argument should be
the new size of the cache.
UTILITY METHODS
These methods are only for use internally (by concrete Cache implemen-
tations).
my $time = Cache::Canonicalize_Expiration_Time($timespec)
Converts a timespec as described for Cache::Entry::set_expiry()
into a unix time.
SEE ALSO
Cache::Entry, Cache::File, Cache::RemovalStrategy
DIFFERENCES FROM CACHE::CACHE
The Cache modules are a total redesign and reimplementation of
Cache::Cache and thus not directly compatible. It would be, however,
quite possible to write a wrapper module that provides an identical
interface to Cache::Cache.
The semantics of use are very similar to Cache::Cache, with the follow-
ing exceptions:
The get/set methods DO NOT serialize complex data types. Use
freeze/thaw instead (but read the notes in Cache::Entry).
The get_object / set_object methods are not available, but have
been superseded by the more flexible entry method and Cache::Entry
class.
There is no concept of 'namespace' in the basic cache interface,
although implementations (eg. Cache::Memory) may choose to provide
them. For instance, File::Cache does not provide this - but dif-
ferent namespaces can be created by varying cache_root.
In the current Cache implementations purging is done automatically
- there is no need to explicitly enable auto purge on get/set. The
purging algorithm is no longer implemented in the base Cache class,
but is left up to the implementations and may thus be implemented
in the most efficient way for the storage medium.
Cache::SharedMemory is not yet available.
Cache::File no longer supports separate masks for entries and
directories. It is not a very secure configuration and presents
numerous issues for cache consistency and is hence depricated.
There is still some work to be done to ensure cache consistency
between accesses by different users.
AUTHOR
Chris Leishman <chris@leishman.org>
Based on work by DeWitt Clinton <dewitt@unto.net>
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 2003-2006 Chris Leishman. All Rights Reserved.
This module is distributed on an "AS IS" basis, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY
KIND, either expressed or implied. This program is free software; you
can redistribute or modify it under the same terms as Perl itself.
$Id: Cache.pm,v 1.7 2006/01/31 15:23:58 caleishm Exp $
perl v5.8.8 2006-01-31 Cache(3)
See also Cache::BaseCache(3)
See also Cache::BaseCacheTester(3)
See also Cache::Cache(3)
See also Cache::CacheMetaData(3)
See also Cache::CacheSizer(3)
See also Cache::CacheTester(3)
See also Cache::CacheUtils(3)
See also Cache::Entry(3)
See also Cache::File(3)
See also Cache::File::Entry(3)
See also Cache::File::Handle(3)
See also Cache::File::Heap(3)
See also Cache::FileBackend(3)
See also Cache::FileCache(3)
See also Cache::IOString(3)
See also Cache::Memory(3)
See also Cache::Memory::Entry(3)
See also Cache::Memory::HeapElem(3)
See also Cache::MemoryBackend(3)
See also Cache::MemoryCache(3)
See also Cache::Null(3)
See also Cache::Null::Entry(3)
See also Cache::NullCache(3)
See also Cache::Object(3)
See also Cache::RemovalStrategy(3)
See also Cache::RemovalStrategy::FIFO(3)
See also Cache::RemovalStrategy::LRU(3)
See also Cache::SharedMemoryBackend(3)
See also Cache::SharedMemoryCache(3)
See also Cache::SizeAwareCache(3)
See also Cache::SizeAwareCacheTester(3)
See also Cache::SizeAwareFileCache(3)
See also Cache::SizeAwareMemoryCache(3)
See also Cache::SizeAwareSharedMemoryCache(3)
See also Cache::Tester(3)
See also Tie::Cache(3)
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