Getting Started

Ehcache can be used directly. It can also be used with the popular Hibernate Object/Relational tool. Finally, it can be used for JEE Servlet Caching.

This quick guide gets you started on each of these. The rest of the documentation can be explored for a deeper understanding.

General Purpose Caching

  • Make sure you are using a supported Java version.
  • Place the ehcache jar into your classpath.
  • Ensure that any libraries required to satisfy dependencies are also in the classpath.
  • Configure ehcache.xml and place it in your classpath.
  • Optionally, configure an appropriate logging level.

    See Code Samples for more information on direct interaction with ehcache.

Hibernate

JEE Servlet Caching

  • Perform the same steps as General Purpose Caching .
  • Configure a cache for your web page in ehcache.xml.
  • To cache an entire web page, either use SimplePageCachingFilter or create your own subclass of CachingFilter
  • To cache a jsp:Include or anything callable from a RequestDispatcher, either use SimplePageFragmentCachingFilter or create a subclass of PageFragmentCachingFilter.
  • Configure the web.xml. Declare the filters created above and create filter mapping associating the filter with a URL.

    See JEE Servlet Caching for more information.

Spring, Cocoon, Acegi and other frameworks

Usually, with these, you are using ehcache without even realising it. The first steps in getting more control over what is happening are:

  • discover the cache names used by the framework
  • create your own ehcache.xml with settings for the caches and place it in the application classpath.