Cache settings operations (SharePoint Server 2010)

  • Article

 

Applies to: SharePoint Server 2010

The article contains an overview of the BLOB cache, cache profiles and object cache settings that can be configured for Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 at the Web application level.

SharePoint Server 2010 provides three types of caches that help improve the speed at which Web pages load in the browser: the BLOB cache, the page output cache, and the object cache. The BLOB cache is enabled and configured in the Web.config file in the Web application to which you want to apply the cache. The page output cache and object cache are usually configured in the user interface at the site collection level; however certain settings for these caches can also be configured at the Web application level. The changes that you make to the Web.config file will be applied to all site collections and sites within the Web application, and will supersede any configuration made at the site collection level or below.

Note

To use the page output cache or the object cache, you must be using the Publishing feature on your site.

In this article:

  • BLOB cache

  • Page output cache profiles

  • Object cache

BLOB cache

SharePoint Server 2010 provides a disk-based cache that stores files that are used by Web pages to help them load quickly in the browser, and reduces the load on the database server when it uses those files. These files are known as binary large objects (BLOBs), and the cache is known as the BLOB cache. The BLOB cache is stored directly on the hard disk drive of a front-end Web server computer. The first time that a Web page is called, these files are copied from the database to the cache on the server hard disk drive, and all subsequent requests for those files are then served from the hard disk drive cache of the server. By default, the BLOB cache is off and must be enabled to use the functionality it provides. When you enable the BLOB cache on your front-end Web server, you reduce the load on the SharePoint Server 2010 database server created by read requests from Web browsers.

You enable the BLOB cache in the Web.config file of the Web application to which you want to apply it. The changes that you make to the Web.config file will be applied to all site collections within the Web application. For information about the BLOB cache, see Plan for caching and performance (SharePoint Server 2010).

Page output cache profiles

The page output cache stores the rendered output of a page. It also stores different versions of the cached page, based on the permissions of the users who are requesting the page. Page output cache settings can be configured at the site collection level, at the site level, and for page layouts. By default, the page output cache is turned off.

The page output cache uses cache profiles that specify how long items should be held in the cache. You can specify different cache profiles to be used for anonymous and authenticated users, which optimizes the use of the cache based on the authentication methods that are allowed on the site.

You can configure cache profile settings for a Web application by editing the Web.config file on the application server. The cache profile settings that you configure at the Web application level will be used for all cache profiles in the site collections for that Web application.

Note

To use the page output cache and the associated cache profile settings, you must be using the Publishing feature on your site.

Object cache

The object cache reduces the amount of traffic between the Web server and the SQL database by storing objects—such as lists and libraries, site settings, and page layouts—in memory on the front-end Web server computer. As a result, the pages that require these items are able to be rendered quickly, increasing the speed with which pages are delivered to the client browser. Object cache settings can be configured at the Web application level, and at the site collection level. By default, the object cache is on at the site collection level.

You can optimize the object cache for a Web application by specifying the size of the object cache. Specifying a larger number can enhance performance for some large sites at the cost of memory on each front-end Web server. You can configure other settings for the object cache at site collection level.

Note

To use the object cache, you must be using the Publishing feature on your site.

Task Requirements

In this section:

See Also

Concepts

Plan for caching and performance (SharePoint Server 2010)

Other Resources

Resource Center: Enterprise Content Management in SharePoint Server 2010
Resource Center: Web Content Management in SharePoint Server 2010