Try Clearing Your Cache

One of the most common frustrations for novice web designers updating and managing their website can be solved with cache management. If you ever make changes to your site and you know it’s uploaded properly but the changes are not being reflected in your browser, try clearing your cache.

What is cache?

A cache is a temporary storage area where frequently accessed data can be stored for rapid access. Once the data is stored in the cache, it can be used in the future by accessing the cached copy rather than re-fetching or recomputing the original data.

This can create a problem when updating files on websites because the cache may include a backup of out-of-date files. On most websites, front-end changes (such as updates to .css files or images) that are not being reflected when viewing the site can usually be corrected by clearing the cache of the browser you are using to view the site.

How do I refresh my browser’s cache?

On most Windows browsers, such as Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome, you may access the browser’s cache management by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Delete. On Safari 4.x, click on the gear icon in the upper-right corner of the screen and select “Reset Safari.”