Opening JotCache component you have the possibility to look into one-to-one relation between cached pages and their original resource - title, original link, unrouted link (when Mark option is set on), component name, view, content id as well as parameters which have influence on separate caching – browser split (setting in JotCache plugin) and language set for cached page.

Here it is necessary to remember that core of page caching with JotCache is server file system where all cached pages are stored as files. In the time of storing these files are also stored management data into database (table jotcache).

Caching of site frontend page is performed for each unique page URI string when following major conditions are fullfilled :

• user is not registred in CMS (anonymous user)
• it is used GET method
• no DEBUG mode used
• no Ajax request

Status indicators/buttons have four possible colors :

Normal status

Special condition (e.g. cache is empty) - it serves only for indication

Attention (e.g. JotCache plugin is not last in order of system plugins) - mostly is required administrator intervention

Warning (e.g. JotCache plugin is disabled) - extension is out of service

Click on each button opens new browser window related to :

P - JotCache plugin
G - Global settings (on tab System are global cache settings)
C - Clear Cache page

Frontend state of caching mode

JotCache can operate in 3 different modes :

• Normal - base operation state - frontend pages are displayed as any site visitor sees them
• Mark - with this mode selected JotCache provides supporting administration functions :
  • showing on frontend page if page is cached and which template locations are excluded (marked with red outline)
  • allowing fast select cached pages which were visited in current administrator session
  • showing non-routed page URL also in the case when on site is SEO enabled (non-routed page URL is mostly used for URL exclusion definitions)

  • allowing recaching of presented page clicking on button RENEW in special top toolbar

    

• Renew - each page visited by administrator during his current session is automatically recached

With active Mark is possible to see page request in Joomla internal format (same as SEO disabled) :

Options for JotCache component can be set on JotCache Configuration form :

Three of shown options change Management View layout :

• Descriptor - alternating first main column showing either Page Title or Page URI string for given cached page
• Show cookies - can be used together with cookies exclusion (see Plugin settings) to show in additional table column which predefined cookies where active during page caching
• Show file hash - additional table column with file name of cached page (stored in Joomla cache directory) - link to related debug page Cached Content Debug View

For batch recaching are important following settings :

• Recache run timeout - important setting for control of batch recache operation time
• Recache log - it is possible to enable batch recache logging to analyse recache processing

Convenience setting :

• Fast delete - delete of selected items in management view can be performedwithout confirming alert message box

Other options supports simplified operation with JotCache (see option tooltips).

Permissions

Individual page recache operations as mark supported renew and fast renew can be also granted to other users as administrators. For such users is necessary to set permissions in JotCache options as shown on next picture :

View explaination

Opening JotCache component you have the possibility to look into one-to-one relation between cached pages and their original resource :

• title/URI (as selected in Parameters), original link
• unrouted link (when Mark option is set on)
• file hash string (when Show file hash option is set on)
• component name
• (component) view
• content id
• parameters which have influence on separate caching – browser split (setting in JotCache plugin) and language set for cached page.

Here it is necessary to remember that decisive part of page caching with JotCache is server file system where all cached pages are stored as files. In the time of storing these files are page related informations also stored into database (table jotcache).

Remarks to items expiration & synchronisation

After specified cache time stored files of cached pages are no more valid – they expire. Here are important two topics for proper management : removing of expired files from file system and database as well as keeping set of stored cached items in synchronisation between file system and database.

For fast responses during opening/filtering management activities no removing/synchronisation of expired items from file system and database is performed.

Expired items are marked in management view with item line in italics font and Created time value is embraced with :

  '()' for cache files expired and present in file system

  '##' for cache files no more present in file system.

Thus the administrator has fast overview about the cache status. For refreshing view to latest content and removing of obsolete items shall be used Refresh button on Cache Management toolbar.

Presented informations about cached pages

For cached item is presented in JotCache management view :

• page title with link to original frontend page call (if implemented with SEF routing) or URI string based on settings in component Parameters

• page call target expresed as component, view, content id (some third parties extensions are not using view, content id but they have own parameters)

• time of item creation (server system time)

• language set for item content

• browser (presentation of browsers selected in plugin Browser split selection, inclusive mobile device groups)

• cookies (displayed only when Cookies Split in plugin parameters and Show Cookies in component Options are set) - see also Administration of JotCache plugin

• mark with link to original page query string (can be used for page exclusion) – it is shown only after clicking on toolbar button Set Mark after frontend pages recalls

Selecting of cache items for deleting from the cache

For selection of cached pages which shall be deleted from the cache you can use following methods :

• individual selection with checkbox on the most left position of displayed item row

• search by page title and then use checkbox(es) for selection

• group selection for all cached pages of selected component and/or view with appropriate selection boxes

• selection of marked pages using Set Mark button. Pressing this button creates setting of mark cookie in administrator browser during current session and then after all visited pages in site frontend shall be marked with visible 'Yes' in JotCache Management view.

  Using top selection box you can select only last visited page(s). 'Yes' mark has link to cached page with transparent URL query string (without any SEF transformations) which can be used for definitions of excluded pages (on the page shown after pressing Exclude on management view toolbar).

Actions over cached pages

Toolbar buttons Refresh Table, Delete Items, Delete ALL and Recache Items starts actions which operates over the cached pages presented as items in table form in lower part of the Management View page.

Description :

• Refresh Table performs cleaning of the page cache from expired pages as well as synchronization of items stored in cache filesystem and JotCache database table
• Delete Items deletes selected items in the table
• Delete ALL deletes all items in the cache (purge all)

• Recache Items opens page Recache Control in new browser window with possibility to start/stop and adjust recaching of site pages. To each recache action belongs one form (tab) on the page. This presentation of recache actions is dependable on number of enabled JotCache recache plugins (in plugin group 'jotcacheplugins').

  Standard with JotCache ver.4.x are provided two recache plugins : Crawler and Recache. Details are described in chapter Recaching.

Range of cache processing

In this group are located three toolbar buttons which allow to change scope of pages assigned to page caching :

• URL Exclude - filtering is based on parts of page URL. Setting of exclusion filters is described in chapter Exclusion of pages and modules
• Position Exclude - gives possibility to exclude modules which have dynamic presentation on cached pages. Exclusion is defined by template position, used style and related style attributes (see Exclusion of pages and modules).

• Browser Caching - defines INCLUSION of pages or page groups (recognized with same URI leading substring).

  For browser caching are following parameters which can be set :

  • Browser caching (JotCache plugin parameter) : YES
  • Browser Cache Expiration(JotCache component option) : 120 (in minutes) - as example
  • Browser Cache URI Filter(JotCache component option) : YES

  More details are described in chapter Forcing local browser caching.