Visual Studio Cache: The Bane of Performance

Have you ever felt that Visual Studio is running a tad too slow and the performance is not up to the mark? Well, you are not alone. Developers often encounter unexpected behavior and performance issues with Visual Studio due to cache conflicts and errors.

What is a Cache in Visual Studio?

In simple terms, a cache in Visual Studio is a temporary data storage that contains frequently accessed files, data, settings, and configurations to improve performance and optimize resource utilization. It saves a lot of time by keeping a copy of the files that are generated while building, debugging or testing a project. But as time passes, the cache files can become a liability as they grow excessively, resulting in slow performance, errors, and crashes.

Clearing the Cache in Visual Studio

Clearing the cache in Visual Studio is a vital task to maintain the software’s stability and performance. Depending on the version you’re using, the process of clearing the cache may vary. Here are some steps to clear the cache in Visual Studio 2019, 2017, and 2015.

Clear Cache in Visual Studio 2019

1. Close all instances of Visual Studio.
2. Open the file explorer and launch the %TEMP% folder by typing %TEMP% in the address bar and pressing Enter.
3. Select all folders and files and delete them from the %TEMP% folder.
4. Launch Visual Studio again, and your cache should be cleared.

Clear Cache in Visual Studio 2017

1. Close all instances of Visual Studio.
2. Search for the Developer Command Prompt for VS 2017 in the Start menu and launch it.
3. Type the command “cd %TEMP%” in the prompt and press Enter.
4. Type the command “rmdir /s /q VSTSCache” in the prompt and press Enter. This will delete the cache folder for Visual Studio 2017.
5. Launch Visual Studio again, and your cache should be cleared.

Clear Cache in Visual Studio 2015

1. Close all instances of Visual Studio.
2. Search for the Developer Command Prompt for VS 2015 in the Start menu and launch it.
3. Type the command “cd %TEMP%” in the prompt and press Enter.
4. Type the command “rmdir /s /q VSKU1*” in the prompt and press Enter. This will delete the cache folders for Visual Studio 2015.
5. Launch Visual Studio again, and your cache should be cleared.

Conclusion

In conclusion, clearing the cache in Visual Studio is an essential task that helps maintain the software’s performance and stability. The steps to clear cache may vary depending on the version, but the fundamental concept remains the same – you need to delete the temporary files and folders generated by the software periodically to avoid conflicts and errors. We hope this article has provided you with a comprehensive understanding of how to clear cache in Visual Studio.