What a cache stampede is
A warm cache keeps most requests fast. When it expires, many clients can ask for the same missing value together.
Interactive Systems Explainers
Cache Stampede Playground
See how one cache expiration can turn calm traffic into a sudden database stampede.
Key Observations
What to Notice
Why expiration creates spikes
The requests were harmless hits a moment ago. After one shared expiry, they turn into one synchronized miss wave.
Why the database gets overloaded
Every miss tries to rebuild through the database. If rebuilds arrive faster than the database can finish, the queue blooms.
How coalescing helps
Protection lets one request rebuild while the rest wait briefly or use stale cache, keeping the database calm.
Interactive Systems Explainers
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