Browser Cache and HTTP Caching: Understand What Gets Reused
Follow one resource from its first download to a cache hit, a validation request, and an update—and learn which browser cache is involved.
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Cache basics
Explore the cache basics questions that connect these guides.
Start with identity, validity, and a recoverable miss path. A cache entry is useful because it corresponds to a request under specific conditions, not simply because the bytes exist. These articles introduce those conditions and show how they appear in everyday systems.
As you read, identify the authoritative source and write one example of a change that should stop reuse. Then compare how a browser handles that situation with how an application might handle it. The same vocabulary can describe both without assuming the implementation is identical.
Articles about cache basics
What Is a Cache Index? Keys, Freshness, and Safe Reuse
A cache index helps a system decide which stored result belongs to a request—and whether reusing it is still appropriate.
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Start with the Cache Index guide to place the terminology in context. Then explore Web Browser Cache Index for a connected design question.
Read across the index.
A topic can cross several systems. Browse the complete Lab for the surrounding articles, or use the 22-topic directory to find a different entry point.