Question 1

What is @express-route-cache?

Accepted Answer

@express-route-cache is a production-grade caching middleware for Express.js. It provides O(1) route invalidation via Epoch Versioning, Stale-While-Revalidate (SWR) background refresh, and Stampede Protection. It supports Redis, Memcached, and in-memory adapters.

Question 2

How does O(1) cache invalidation work in express-route-cache?

Accepted Answer

Instead of scanning Redis keys (KEYS/SCAN), express-route-cache assigns an integer epoch counter to every route pattern. When you invalidate /api/users, it increments that epoch. All future cache lookups embed the new epoch in their key, making old entries instantly obsolete — without touching a single stored key.

Question 3

Does express-route-cache support Redis?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Install @express-route-cache/redis and ioredis. Then use createRedisAdapter({ url: 'redis://localhost:6379' }) as the adapter when creating your cache instance. It uses Redis MGET and INCR for O(1) performance.

Question 4

What is Stale-While-Revalidate (SWR) in express-route-cache?

Accepted Answer

SWR means the server instantly returns stale (slightly old) cached data to the client, then triggers a background refresh. This eliminates latency spikes from cache misses. Enable it with swr: true in createCache() or per-route in cache.route().

Question 5

What is Stampede Protection in express-route-cache?

Accepted Answer

Stampede Protection prevents the thundering herd problem. When a cache miss occurs, the first request executes the handler and stores a pending Promise. Subsequent concurrent requests await that same Promise instead of hitting the database again, preventing N simultaneous DB queries.

Question 6

Is express-route-cache free and open source?

Accepted Answer

Yes. @express-route-cache is 100% free and released under the MIT License. The source code is available on GitHub at https://github.com/CODE-Y02/express-route-cache.

@express-route-cacheTanStack Query for the Backend.

O(1) Invalidation

Stale-While-Revalidate

Stampede Protection

Multi-Adapter Support

Binary Support

Header Preservation

Standalone Fetch

Built-in Retries

🚀 Why express-route-cache?

🛠 Built With

❤️ Support the Project