linux cache question
 

Hi all,
Ok so I know linux caches all available RAM for faster data access, my question is where is the cache? is it basically the RAM and linux just converts it to cache and calls it cache? and is this process totally different then linux disk cache?

I've googled around but I still havent grasp the concept. Maybe I'm thinking too much into it but I really want to understand.

Thanks.

"my question is where is the cache"

The cache is memory that is physically located in the CPU. The cache memory can be accessed much faster than main memory which must be accessed across the memory bus. The hardware controls the cache and the kernel has nothing to do with it. The design of the cache system varies from one computer type to another. The hardware uses the memory cache to speed up main memory accesses.

"is this process totally different then linux disk cache?"

Yes. The Linux disk cache is created from main memory (but not all of main memory) by the kernel and it is administered by the kernel to speed up disk access.

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Steve Stites