obcachejs

Object caching for Node.js. Wraps async functions and caches results with automatic key generation.

Features

• LRU in-memory cache with TTL support
• Optional Redis backend for distributed caching
• Request deduplication (prevents thundering herd)
• Promise and callback APIs
• TypeScript definitions included

Installation

npm install obcachejs

Requires Node.js 18+

Quick Start

const obcache = require('obcachejs');

const cache = new obcache.Create({ max: 1000, maxAge: 60000 });

const getUser = cache.wrap(function(id, callback) {
  // Simulate async database lookup
  setTimeout(() => callback(null, { id, name: 'User ' + id }), 10);
});

// Promise style
const user = await getUser(123);
console.log(user); // { id: 123, name: 'User 123' }

// Callback style
getUser(456, (err, user) => console.log(user));

API

obcache.Create(options)

Creates a cache instance.

const cache = new obcache.Create({
  max: 1000,           // max keys (default: 1000)
  maxAge: 60000,       // TTL in ms
  queueEnabled: true   // deduplicate concurrent requests
});

Options:

Option	Description
max	Maximum number of cached keys
maxSize	Maximum cache size in bytes (alternative to max)
maxAge	Time-to-live in milliseconds
queueEnabled	Enable request deduplication
dispose	Function called when entries are evicted
reset.interval	Auto-reset interval in ms
reset.firstReset	First reset time (Date or ms)

cache.wrap(fn, [thisobj], [skipArgs])

Wraps a callback-based function with caching. The wrapped function:

• Returns a Promise when called without a callback
• Calls the callback when provided as last argument
• Generates cache keys from function name and arguments

const cached = cache.wrap(myAsyncFn);

// Exclude arguments from key generation
const cached = cache.wrap(function(id, timestamp, cb) {
  // timestamp won't affect cache key
  cb(null, result);
}, null, [1]);

cache.warmup(fn, ...args, value)

Pre-populate cache for given arguments.

cache.warmup(getUser, 123, { id: 123, name: 'Alice' });

cache.invalidate(fn, ...args)

Remove cached entry for given arguments.

cache.invalidate(getUser, 123);

cache.isReady()

Returns true when cache backend is ready. Always true for LRU, waits for connection with Redis.

cache.stats

Cache statistics object.

{
  hit: 0,      // cache hits
  miss: 0,     // cache misses
  reset: 0,    // number of resets
  pending: 0   // queued requests
}

Redis Backend

const cache = new obcache.Create({
  max: 10000,
  maxAge: 300000,
  id: 1,  // required for Redis
  redis: {
    host: 'localhost',
    port: 6379,
    connectTimeout: 5000
  }
});

// Wait for connection
if (!cache.isReady()) {
  // handle not ready
}

Redis options:

Option	Description
host	Redis host
port	Redis port
url	Connection URL (alternative to host/port)
database	Redis database number
connectTimeout	Connection timeout in ms (default: 5000)
twemproxy	Enable twemproxy compatibility

Debug Interface

Register caches for inspection:

obcache.debug.register(cache, 'users');

// Express middleware
app.get('/debug/cache', obcache.debug.view);

// Console output
obcache.debug.log();

Security Warning: The debug endpoint exposes cached data via ?detail=cachename and allows cache flushing via POST with ?flush=cachename. Never expose this endpoint publicly. Always protect it with authentication middleware:

app.get('/debug/cache', requireAdmin, obcache.debug.view);

How It Works

obcachejs generates cache keys by hashing the function name and serialized arguments using sigmund. When a wrapped function is called:

1. Generate key from function name + arguments
2. Check cache for existing value
3. On hit: return cached value
4. On miss: call original function, cache result, return

With queueEnabled, concurrent calls with the same key are queued and resolved together, preventing duplicate work.

TypeScript

Type definitions are included.

const obcache = require('obcachejs');
// or with ES modules: import obcache from 'obcachejs';

const cache = new obcache.Create({ max: 100 });

Types available: Cache, CacheOptions, CacheStats, CachedFunction.

Security

• Redis authentication: Use the url option with credentials: redis://user:pass@host:port
• Secrets: Never cache sensitive data (tokens, passwords, PII) without encryption
• Network: Use TLS for Redis in production (rediss:// protocol)
• Eviction: Cached data persists until TTL expires or LRU evicts; plan accordingly

Report security issues via GitHub issues with [SECURITY] prefix.

License

BSD-3-Clause