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Troubleshooting and FAQ
MetaLocator caching explained
MetaLocator caching explained

Not seeing your latest changes on your Website? Read on...

Bryan Nye avatar
Written by Bryan Nye
Updated over a week ago

If you are not see the changes to your interface reflected on your website, delete your browser cache.  You must delete the browser cache to see the latest on your Website.  Clicking reload and/or shift+reload is not sufficient.

To clear this cache, follow these instructions on clearing your browser cache.

MetaLocator uses a browser-based cache and a server-side cache to improve performance.  This can sometimes affect the ability to see the most recent changes while viewing the interface installed on a public Website.

The interface as viewed through the "Preview" link is not cached and reflects your latest settings immediately.  We recommend that the Preview link shown below be used during development to avoid cache-based delays.

When testing or making changes to your Interface or data, you should always use the provided preview link, as shown below to ensure you are seeing your latest changes:

Caching Details

There are two types of caching used within MetaLocator, a server-side cache and a browser-based cache.  Both caches only apply to the Interface when it is deployed to your Web page.  Therefore, previewing changes on your website, versus the "Preview" link above, can be difficult if you don't understand how the MetaLocator caches can be cleared.

To clear the server-based cache, you can simply save your Interface.  Any time the Interface is saved, the server-side cache is cleared.  The server side cache is also cleared every 15 minutes automatically.

There is also a browser-based cache, which resides in your browser, and is specific to your computer.  To clear this cache, follow these instructions on clearing your browser cache.  You must actually delete your cache.   Clicking reload and/or shift+reload is not sufficient.

If you encounter a scenario where you want to force your website visitor's cache of the Interface to be forcibly ignored, you can change the code that was deployed to your page. Again, this is rarely necessary.

The code you deployed on your page looks like this:

<script src="//code.metalocator.com/index.php?option=com_locator&amp;view=directory&layout=_javascript&framed=1&format=raw&tmpl=component&no_html=1&Itemid=XXXXXXX"></script>

Changing it to this, forces a browser to treat it as a new resource

<script src="//code.metalocator.com/index.php?option=com_locator&amp;view=directory&layout=_javascript&framed=1&format=raw&tmpl=component&no_html=1&Itemid=XXXXXXX&cachebust=12345"></script>

Notice the added &cachebust=12345. This parameter is totally arbitrary, and serves only to change the URL. I could have added &this=that, or &favoritesoftware=metalocator.

This will change the URL and cause the script to be refreshed in the user's browser.

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