Purging Cache

Overview

When you update content on your website, the cached pre-rendered HTML in RndrKit may still reflect the old version. Purging the cache forces RndrKit to re-render the page on the next bot visit, ensuring search engines see your latest content.

When to Purge

You should purge cached pages when:

  • You publish or update content on a page
  • You fix SEO issues (titles, meta descriptions, structured data)
  • You change your site's layout or navigation
  • You add or remove pages from your site
  • You change your origin URL

You do not need to purge if:

  • You are only making backend changes that do not affect the rendered HTML
  • The cache will expire naturally within an hour and the update is not time-sensitive

Purging a Single Page

To purge the cache for one specific page:

  1. Go to your domain's Cache tab in the dashboard.
  2. Find the page in the cached pages list. You can search by URL path.
  3. Click the Purge button next to the page.

The cache entry is removed immediately. The next bot visit to that page will trigger a fresh render.

Purging All Cache

To clear all cached pages for a domain:

  1. Go to your domain's Cache tab.
  2. Click Purge All Cache.
  3. Confirm the action.

This removes every cached entry for the domain. Use this after major site updates like:

  • Deploying a new version of your application
  • Changing your site's template or theme
  • Updating global elements like headers, footers, or navigation

Emergency Refresh

For major site updates, you can use the Emergency Refresh feature from the domain detail page. This re-renders all cached pages for a domain in one action. Emergency refreshes are limited per billing period -- see Plans and Pricing for your plan's allowance.

Impact of Purging

When you purge cached pages, be aware of the following:

  • Next bot visit triggers a fresh render -- This takes 2-5 seconds instead of the usual sub-50ms cached response. The first bot after a purge will experience slower response times.
  • Render counts increase -- Each fresh render counts against your monthly limit. Purging all cache and having many bots visit shortly after will consume more renders.
  • Temporary performance dip -- Until the cache rebuilds, response times for bots will be higher.

To mitigate these effects, consider warming the cache immediately after purging.

Purge Strategies

Selective Purge

When only a few pages changed, purge only those pages instead of the entire cache. This preserves the cache for unchanged pages and keeps response times fast.

Post-Deployment Purge

After deploying a new version of your site, purge all cached pages from the dashboard's Cache tab, then warm your critical pages to ensure bots get fresh content immediately.

Scheduled Purge

If your content changes on a predictable schedule (e.g., daily blog posts), consider purging and warming specific pages after each content update.

Best Practices

  • Purge selectively when possible. Only clear the pages that actually changed.
  • Warm after purging critical pages to avoid slow first-bot-visit response times.
  • Do not purge unnecessarily. If the change is minor and can wait for the 1-hour TTL to expire naturally, let it expire.
  • Monitor your render count after bulk purges to ensure you stay within your plan limits.

Next Steps

Previous

How Caching Works

Next

Cache Warming