LightMemoryCache

LightMemoryCache is a lightweight, thread-safe, in-memory caching library for .NET applications. It provides a simple and efficient way to cache data objects with customizable expiration times.

Features

• Simple API: Easy-to-use methods for adding, retrieving, and invalidating cached items.
• Thread-Safe: Utilizes ConcurrentDictionary along with the lock statement for thread safety.
• Expiration: Supports customizable expiration times for cached items.
• Automatic Cleanup: Periodically cleans up expired items using a background timer.
• Configurable: Allows configuration of default expiration time via options.

Installation

You can install LightMemoryCache via NuGet Package Manager:

Install-Package LightMemoryCache

or dotnet CLI

dotnet add package LightMemoryCache

Usage

Register the component:

services.AddLightMemoryCache();

or

var configurationRoot = new ConfigurationBuilder()
                        .SetBasePath(Directory.GetCurrentDirectory())
                        .AddJsonFile("appsettings.json", false)
                        .Build();

var defaultExpirationInMinutes = configurationRoot.GetValue<int>("CacheOptions:DefaultExpirationInMinutes");

services.AddLightMemoryCache(options => { options.DefaultExpirationInMinutes = defaultExpirationInMinutes; });

appsettings.json

"CacheOptions": {
    "DefaultExpirationInMinutes": "15"
}

Dependency injection

public class CountryService : ICountryService
{
    private readonly ILightMemoryCache _cache;
    private readonly ICountryRepository _countryRepository;
    private const string CountryCacheKey = "AllCountries";

    public CountryService(ILightMemoryCache cache, ICountryRepository countryRepository)
    {
        _cache = cache;
        _countryRepository = countryRepository;
    }

    public async Task<IEnumerable<CountryDto>> GetAllAsync()
    {
        if (_cache.TryGetValue(CountryCacheKey, out IEnumerable<CountryDto> cachedCountries))
        {
            return cachedCountries;
        }

        var countries = await _countryRepository.GetAllAsync();
        _cache.Add(CountryCacheKey, countries, TimeSpan.FromMinutes(30));
        return countries;
    }
    // ...
}

Benchmark

LightMemoryCache vs MemoryCache

Both LightMemoryCache and MemoryCache were benchmarked under similar conditions to evaluate their performance:

Method	Mean	Error	StdDev
LightMemoryCache_AddAndRetrieve	12.19 us	0.029 us	0.027 us
MemoryCache_AddAndRetrieve	13.60 us	0.149 us	0.116 us
LightMemoryCache_AddAndRetrieveComplexObject	23.83 us	0.093 us	0.072 us
MemoryCache_AddAndRetrieveComplexObject	34.23 us	0.083 us	0.077 us