ANGEL Tip of the Day #44 - Why empty the Cache?

When you call Presidium for help, the first thing they do is ask you to clear your cache. How annoying! Especially when you just want to solve the problem. Today, I got an explanation of why they do this. If you are curious, read on. If you are not curious, emptying your cache at the first sign of a problem really is a good idea.

See ATOD #33 on How to Clear your Cache

ANGEL uses something called load balancing. When you log into ANGEL, you access one server and then you get sent to the server with the lowest use (load) at that time (WAOL ANGEL has 40 servers averaging about 150 users each, they have a capacity of about 250 users). A cookie is then set and whenever you access ANGEL after that, you get sent to that same server.

Let’s say something goes wrong with that server. You’re stuck going to that same server until you delete that cookie and start off fresh. So, from a trouble shooting perspective, Presidium wants to be sure that you are going to a good server. Thus, they ask you to clear your cache.

So, before calling Presidium, to do a bit of your own troubleshooting, clear your cache and try changing browsers (if you are in IE, try Firefox and visa versa). For me, most of the time these two steps solve the problem. If it does not, then you have some good information for the Presidium folks to get started in getting to a resolution.