WWW是互联网上最受欢迎的应用之一,其快速增长导致网络拥塞和服务器超载,缓存技术被认为是减轻服务器负载、降低网络拥塞,减少客户访问延迟的有效途径之一。本文首先描述了Web缓存系统的基本要素及理想属性,然后介绍目前围绕Web缓存技术已经开展的研究,最后讨论Web缓存技术需要进一步研究的问题。 WWW is one of the most popular applications on the Internet. Its rapid growth leads to network congestion and server overloading. Cache technology is considered as an effective way to reduce server load, reduce network congestion and reduce customer access delay. This paper first describes the basic elements and ideal attributes of Web caching system, then introduces the research that has been done around Web caching technology at present, and finally discusses the issues that Web caching technology needs to be further studied.