CACHING.rst

Caching

PyPhi can optionally store the results of 𝚽 calculations as they're computed in order to avoid expensive re-computation. These results can be stored locally on the filesystem (the default setting), or in a full-fledged database.

Caching is configured either in the pyphi_config.yml file or at runtime by modifying pyphi.config. See the configuration documentation for more information.

Caching with MongoDb

Using the default caching system is easier and works out of the box, but using a database is more robust.

To use the database-backed caching system, you must install MongoDB. Please see their installation guide for instructions.

Once you have MongoDB installed, use mongod to start the MongoDB server. Make sure the mongod configuration matches the PyPhi's database configuration settings in pyphi_config.yml (see the configuration section of PyPhi's documentation).

You can also check out MongoDB's Getting Started guide or the full manual.

Caching with Redis

PyPhi can also use Redis as a fast in-memory global LRU cache to store Mice objects, reducing the memory load on PyPhi processes.

Install Redis. The redis.conf file provided with PyPhi includes the minimum settings needed to run Redis as an LRU cache:

redis-server /path/to/pyphi/redis.conf

Once the server is running you can enable Redis caching by setting REDIS_CACHE: true in your pyphi_config.yml.

Note: PyPhi currently flushes the connected Redis database at the start of every execution. If you are running Redis for another application be sure PyPhi connects to its own Redis server.