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Version: 1.0.0

How to Manage the Blob Cache

Monitor and control blobber's local cache for optimal disk usage.

Prerequisites​

  • blobber installed

Check Cache Status​

View current cache statistics:

blobber cache info

Output:

Cache: /home/user/.cache/blobber
Size:  150 MB (157286400 bytes)
Entries: 3

View Detailed Cache Info​

See individual entries:

blobber cache info --long

Output:

Cache: /home/user/.cache/blobber
Size:  150 MB (157286400 bytes)
Entries: 3

DIGEST                                                            SIZE     LAST ACCESSED   COMPLETE
sha256:a1b2c3d4e5f6789...                                         50 MB    1 hour ago      yes
sha256:b2c3d4e5f6789a0...                                         50 MB    30 min ago      yes
sha256:c3d4e5f6789a0b1...                                         50 MB    5 min ago       yes

Clear the Entire Cache​

Remove all cached blobs:

blobber cache clear

Confirm when prompted, or skip confirmation:

blobber cache clear --yes

Prune Old Entries​

Remove entries not accessed in 7 days:

blobber cache prune --max-age 7d

Limit Cache Size​

Keep cache under 1GB, removing least recently used entries:

blobber cache prune --max-size 1GB

Combine Pruning Strategies​

Remove old entries AND enforce size limit:

blobber cache prune --max-age 7d --max-size 1GB

Order: age-based removal happens first, then LRU eviction.

Use a Custom Cache Directory​

All cache commands accept --dir:

blobber cache info --dir /custom/cache
blobber cache prune --dir /custom/cache --max-size 500MB

Automate Cache Maintenance​

Add to cron for daily cleanup:

0 3 * * * blobber cache prune --max-age 7d --max-size 2GB

Cache Location​

Default: ~/.cache/blobber (following XDG Base Directory Specification)

To change permanently:

# Option 1: Set in config file
blobber config set cache.dir /path/to/cache

# Option 2: Environment variable
export BLOBBER_CACHE_DIR=/path/to/cache

# Option 3: XDG override (affects all XDG-compliant apps)
export XDG_CACHE_HOME=/custom/cache

Bypass Cache Temporarily​

Skip caching for a single operation without changing settings:

blobber --no-cache pull ghcr.io/myorg/config:v1 ./output

Disable Caching Permanently​

Turn off caching in the config file:

blobber config set cache.enabled false

When to Clear vs Prune​

ScenarioCommand
Free all disk spacecache clear
Regular maintenancecache prune --max-age 7d
Disk pressurecache prune --max-size 500MB
Troubleshootingcache clear then retry
Skip cache once--no-cache flag

See Also​