Caching Techniques

This project demonstrates the use of in-memory caching (IMemoryCache) and distributed caching (IDistributedCache) with Redis in an ASP.NET Core application. There are two HTTP GET methods:

• One retrieves data from IMemoryCache.
• The other retrieves data from IDistributedCache using Redis as the cache store.

Prerequisites

1. .NET Core SDK

• Install the latest version of the .NET Core SDK from the official website.

2. Redis for Distributed Cache (using Docker)

• This project uses Redis for IDistributedCache. You can run Redis locally using Docker.

To pull and run Redis using Docker, execute the following steps:

1. Pull Redis image from Docker Hub.
2. Run Redis in a detached mode, mapping it to the default port 6379.

3. Required NuGet Packages

• For IMemoryCache (built into ASP.NET Core):

  • No additional packages are required as IMemoryCache is part of the Microsoft.Extensions.Caching.Memory package, which is included with ASP.NET Core.

• For IDistributedCache with Redis:

  • Install the Microsoft.Extensions.Caching.StackExchangeRedis package to use Redis with IDistributedCache.

Getting Started

1. Clone the Repository

Clone the repository to your local machine using your preferred git client.

2. Run Redis using Docker

If you haven't already set up Redis, run it locally using Docker. Make sure Redis is running on port 6379.

3. Configure Redis in appsettings.json

Ensure that your Redis configuration matches your setup. By default, Redis is expected to run on localhost:6379.

4. Build and Run the Application

Use your development environment or the command line to build and run the application.

5. Test the Application

There are two HTTP GET endpoints available:

• Retrieve data from IMemoryCache:

  • Endpoint: /api/Cache/GetInMemoryCacheData
  • This endpoint returns data cached in memory (server-side).

• Retrieve data from IDistributedCache (Redis):

  • Endpoint: /api/Cache/GetDistributedCacheData
  • This endpoint returns data from the Redis-based distributed cache.

Example appsettings.json Configuration for Redis

Make sure your appsettings.json file has Redis configured correctly:

How Caching Works

IMemoryCache

• This is an in-memory caching implementation. Data is cached in the memory of the running application and is available as long as the application is running.

IDistributedCache (using Redis)

• IDistributedCache is a distributed caching solution where cache data can be shared across multiple servers. In this project, Redis is used as the caching store. Redis ensures that the cache data is persisted outside of the application’s memory, making it suitable for distributed applications.

Additional Configuration

• Sliding Expiration and Absolute Expiration can be configured for both IMemoryCache and IDistributedCache as demonstrated in the code.
• You can configure expiration policies and customize cache behavior according to your needs.

Dependencies

• Microsoft.Extensions.Caching.Memory: For IMemoryCache, included in ASP.NET Core.
• Microsoft.Extensions.Caching.StackExchangeRedis: For IDistributedCache with Redis.