# Configure Proxy Cache The [`proxy-cache`](https://docs.api7.ai/hub/proxy-cache.md) plugin provides a way to cache upstream responses in the Gateway. This significantly improves response times for frequently requested resources and reduces the load on your backend services. ## Prerequisites[​](#prerequisites "Direct link to Prerequisites") * An API7 Enterprise instance is running. * A Gateway Group is created and a Gateway instance is running. * A [token from the Dashboard](https://docs.api7.ai/api7-gateway/reference/obtain-dashboard-token.md). * If you want to use a custom cache zone, configure it in your Gateway's Nginx configuration (for example, `disk_cache_one` or `memory_cache`). ## Configure Disk-Based Proxy Caching[​](#configure-disk-based-proxy-caching "Direct link to Configure Disk-Based Proxy Caching") By default, the plugin uses disk-based caching, which is persistent across Gateway restarts. * Admin API * ADC ``` curl -k "https://localhost:7443/apisix/admin/services/proxy-cache-service?gateway_group_id={gateway_group_id}" -X PUT \ -H "X-API-KEY: ${API_KEY}" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "name": "proxy-cache-service", "upstream": { "type": "roundrobin", "scheme": "http", "nodes": [ { "host": "httpbin.org", "port": 80, "weight": 100 } ] } }' curl -k "https://localhost:7443/apisix/admin/routes/proxy-cache-route?gateway_group_id={gateway_group_id}" -X PUT \ -H "X-API-KEY: ${API_KEY}" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "name": "proxy-cache-route", "methods": ["GET"], "paths": ["/anything/cache"], "service_id": "proxy-cache-service", "plugins": { "proxy-cache": { "cache_strategy": "disk", "hide_cache_headers": false } } }' ``` adc.yaml ``` services: - name: proxy-cache-service upstream: nodes: - host: httpbin.org port: 80 weight: 1 routes: - name: proxy-cache-route uris: - /anything/cache methods: - GET plugins: proxy-cache: cache_strategy: disk hide_cache_headers: false labels: docs-example: proxy-cache-service ``` Preview the changes owned by this example and confirm that the diff contains no unintended updates or deletions: ``` adc diff -f adc.yaml \ --include-resource-type service \ --label-selector docs-example=proxy-cache-service ``` Synchronize the reviewed configuration: ``` adc sync -f adc.yaml \ --include-resource-type service \ --label-selector docs-example=proxy-cache-service ``` ## Configure Memory-Based Proxy Caching[​](#configure-memory-based-proxy-caching "Direct link to Configure Memory-Based Proxy Caching") Memory-based caching provides faster access than disk-based caching but is not persistent across restarts. * Admin API * ADC ``` curl -k "https://localhost:7443/apisix/admin/services/memory-proxy-cache-service?gateway_group_id={gateway_group_id}" -X PUT \ -H "X-API-KEY: ${API_KEY}" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "name": "memory-proxy-cache-service", "upstream": { "type": "roundrobin", "scheme": "http", "nodes": [ { "host": "httpbin.org", "port": 80, "weight": 100 } ] } }' curl -k "https://localhost:7443/apisix/admin/routes/memory-proxy-cache-route?gateway_group_id={gateway_group_id}" -X PUT \ -H "X-API-KEY: ${API_KEY}" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -d '{ "name": "memory-proxy-cache-route", "methods": ["GET"], "paths": ["/anything/cache-memory"], "service_id": "memory-proxy-cache-service", "plugins": { "proxy-cache": { "cache_strategy": "memory", "cache_zone": "memory_cache", "hide_cache_headers": false, "cache_ttl": 60 } } }' ``` adc.yaml ``` services: - name: memory-proxy-cache-service upstream: nodes: - host: httpbin.org port: 80 weight: 1 routes: - name: memory-proxy-cache-route uris: - /anything/cache-memory methods: - GET plugins: proxy-cache: cache_strategy: memory cache_zone: memory_cache hide_cache_headers: false cache_ttl: 60 labels: docs-example: memory-proxy-cache-service ``` Preview the changes owned by this example and confirm that the diff contains no unintended updates or deletions: ``` adc diff -f adc.yaml \ --include-resource-type service \ --label-selector docs-example=memory-proxy-cache-service ``` Synchronize the reviewed configuration: ``` adc sync -f adc.yaml \ --include-resource-type service \ --label-selector docs-example=memory-proxy-cache-service ``` ## Validate the Configuration[​](#validate-the-configuration "Direct link to Validate the Configuration") Send multiple requests to the route: ``` curl -i "http://127.0.0.1:9080/anything/cache" curl -i "http://127.0.0.1:9080/anything/cache" ``` Check the response headers. If `hide_cache_headers` is `false`, you will see an `Apisix-Cache-Status` header: * `MISS`: The response was not found in the cache and was fetched from the upstream. * `HIT`: The response was served from the cache. * `EXPIRED`: The cached response exists but has expired; a new one was fetched. For the memory-based example, request `http://127.0.0.1:9080/anything/cache-memory` twice. The first response should include `Apisix-Cache-Status: MISS` and the second should include `Apisix-Cache-Status: HIT`. If the route returns `404` immediately after you apply the configuration, wait a few seconds for the latest configuration to reach the gateway and retry. ## Next Steps[​](#next-steps "Direct link to Next Steps") * [Configure Rate Limiting](https://docs.api7.ai/api7-gateway/how-to-guides/traffic-management/rate-limiting.md) — protect your system from traffic spikes. * [Configure Proxy Mirror](https://docs.api7.ai/api7-gateway/how-to-guides/traffic-management/proxy-mirror.md) — test your application with real production traffic. * [Configure Response Rewrite](https://docs.api7.ai/api7-gateway/how-to-guides/traffic-management/response-rewrite.md) — modify response data before returning to the client.