zcached - A Lightweight In-Memory Cache System

Welcome to zcached, a nimble and efficient in-memory caching system resembling databases like Redis. This README acts as a comprehensive guide, aiding in comprehension, setup, and optimal utilization.

Introduction

zcached aims to offer rapid, in-memory caching akin to widely-used databases such as Redis. Its focus lies in user-friendliness, efficiency, and agility, making it suitable for various applications requiring swift data retrieval and storage.

Crafted using Zig, a versatile, modern, compiled programming language, zcached prides itself on a zero-dependency architecture. This unique feature enables seamless compilation and execution across systems equipped with a Zig compiler, ensuring exceptional portability and deployment ease.

Features

• Zero-Dependency Architecture: Entirely built using Zig, ensuring seamless execution across systems with a Zig compiler, enhancing portability (except openssl, but it's optional).
• Lightweight Design: Engineered for efficiency, zcached boasts a small memory footprint and minimal CPU usage, optimizing performance while conserving resources.
• Optimized Efficiency: Prioritizing swift data handling, zcached ensures prompt operations to cater to diverse application needs.
• Diverse Data Type Support: Accommodates various data structures like strings, integers, floats, and lists, enhancing utility across different use cases.
• Evented I/O and Multithreading: Leveraging evented I/O mechanisms and multithreading capabilities, zcached efficiently manages concurrent operations, enhancing responsiveness and scalability.
• TLS Support: Ensures secure data transmission with encryption, protecting data integrity and confidentiality during client-server communication.

Usage

While zcached lacks a CLI, you can utilize nc (netcat) from the terminal to send commands to the server.

SET

Set a key to hold the string value. If key already holds a value, it is overwritten, regardless of its type.

echo "*3\r\n\$3\r\nSET\r\n\$9\r\nmycounter\r\n:42\r\nx03" | netcat -N localhost 7556

echo "*3\r\n\$3\r\nSET\r\n\$9\r\nmycounter\r\n%2\r\n+first\r\n:1\r\n+second\r\n:2\r\nx03" | netcat -N localhost 7556

Command Breakdown:

• *3\r\n - number of elements in the array (commands are always arrays)
• \$3\r\nSET\r\n - $3 denotes the following string as 3 bytes long, SET is the command
• \$9\r\nmycounter\r\n - $9 means that the next string is 9 bytes long, mycounter is the key
• :42\r\n - : indicates the next string is a number, 42 is the value

GET

Retrieve the value of a key. If the key doesn’t exist, -not found is returned. GET only accepts strings as keys.

echo "*2\r\n\$3\r\nGET\r\n\$9\r\nmycounter\r\n\x03" | netcat -N localhost 7556

PING

Returns PONG. This command is often used to test if a connection is still alive, or to measure latency.

echo "*1\r\n\$4\r\nPING\r\n\x03" | netcat -N localhost 7556

Running Tests

Run the tests using zig in the root directory of the project:

zig build test

Documentation

• For release history, see the release_history.md
• For building/installation process please refer to the installation.md
• For supported types and their encodings, see the types.md
• For supported commands, see the commands.md

Contributing

Pull requests are welcome. For major changes, please open an issue first to discuss what you would like to change.