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how to enable caching for common file types in the .htaccess file

Enabling caching for common file types in the .htaccess file can help speed up your website by instructing browsers to store files locally for a certain period. Here’s how you can enable caching for various file types in your .htaccess file.

Open your .htaccess file (usually located in the root directory of your website).

Add the following code to set caching rules for common file types:

apache
# Enable caching for common file types
<IfModule mod_expires.c>
    ExpiresActive On

    # Images
    ExpiresByType image/jpg "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType image/jpeg "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType image/gif "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType image/png "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType image/svg+xml "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType image/webp "access plus 1 year"

    # Fonts
    ExpiresByType font/ttf "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/woff "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/woff2 "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/eot "access plus 1 year"
    ExpiresByType font/otf "access plus 1 year"

    # CSS and JavaScript
    ExpiresByType text/css "access plus 1 month"
    ExpiresByType text/javascript "access plus 1 month"
    ExpiresByType application/javascript "access plus 1 month"
    ExpiresByType application/x-javascript "access plus 1 month"

    # Documents
    ExpiresByType text/html "access plus 3 days"
    ExpiresByType application/pdf "access plus 1 month"
</IfModule>

Save and upload the .htaccess file to your server if editing locally.

Explanation of Code
ExpiresActive On: Enables the module.
ExpiresByType: Defines caching rules for each MIME type.
access plus [time period]: Specifies how long the browser should cache the resource. Adjust this based on your update frequency for different file types.

Note
Ensure that mod_expires is enabled on your server. If unsure, contact your hosting provider. This setup will reduce server load and improve site performance by allowing users’ browsers to reuse cached files instead of fetching them every time.

caching in .htaccess file