Gyorsítótárakba

Gyorsítótárakba, or caches, are temporary storage areas used to speed up data access. They hold frequently used data so that it can be retrieved more quickly than fetching it from the original, slower source, such as a hard drive or a remote server. When a request for data is made, the system first checks the cache. If the data is found in the cache, it is returned immediately, saving time and resources. If the data is not in the cache, it is fetched from the original source, and then a copy of that data is usually stored in the cache for future use.

There are various types of caches, each serving different purposes. CPU caches are small, fast memory modules located on or near the central processing unit (CPU) that store recently accessed instructions and data. This reduces the time the CPU spends waiting for information from the main memory (RAM). Web browser caches store copies of web page elements like images, scripts, and stylesheets on a user's local computer. This allows web pages to load faster on subsequent visits. Disk caches use a portion of RAM to store frequently accessed data from slower storage devices like hard disk drives. Network caches, such as Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), distribute cached content across multiple servers geographically, reducing latency for users by serving content from a server closer to them.

The effectiveness of a cache depends on its hit rate, which is the percentage of times requested data is found in the cache. A high hit rate indicates an efficient cache. Cache management policies, such as Least Recently Used (LRU) or First-In, First-Out (FIFO), determine which data to remove from the cache when it becomes full.