In this chapter, we will cover:
Initializing Cache Client using code
Initializing Cache Client using configuration
Programming AppFabric Cache Client
Using AppFabric Cache via the ASP.NET provider model
Using AppFabric local cache
Using the AppFabric cache management tool
Building a custom provider model
Handling common Windows Server AppFabric caching errors
In distributed applications, object caching offers significant performance gains compared to direct database access. Historically, we have come to believe that performance and scalability are like two faces of the same coin; one can either get the system to perform better or have it optimized for scalability.
The use of distributed in-memory caching not only helps with performance, but also with scalability. If you cannot scale up then you have to scale out and that is exactly how distributed in-memory caching works for Windows Server AppFabric.