Blink Laravel Package

Getting Started

Install via Composer: composer require spatie/blink. Blink provides an ultra-fast, in-memory cache that persists only for the duration of a single request (or optionally across requests when used with spatie/laravel-blink package). Start by instantiating it directly: $blink = new Spatie\Blink\Blink();, then use put('key', 'value') and get('key') for immediate, zero-I/O caching within a request lifecycle. Ideal for caching expensive operations like repeated DB queries or API calls within the same HTTP request.

Implementation Patterns

• In-request caching: Avoid redundant expensive operations in loops or nested calls (e.g., Blink::put('user:' . $id, $user); before a deep call, then Blink::get('user:' . $id) later).
• Laravel integration: Use Blink::store('my-store')->put(...) to share data across service providers, jobs, middleware, and events in one request.
• Testing with fakes: In tests, wrap logic in Blink::fake(); to assert cache interactions: $this->assertEquals('expected', Blink::get('key'));.
• Per-request state buses: Use Blink as a lightweight message bus — put from one class, get in another — avoiding dependency injection of shared state.

Gotchas and Tips

• No cross-request persistence: Blink does not persist between requests by default. For global caching (e.g., across workers), combine with Laravel’s cache drivers via Blink::store('default')->forever(...) only if using spatie/laravel-blink, but note it writes to the configured cache driver (not truly “blink” speed).
• Memory concerns: Avoid caching large arrays or objects in long-running processes (e.g., queues, Horizon workers) — data accumulates for the entire request lifetime. Use forget('key') or clear() to manually prune.
• Testing nuance: When using Blink::fake(), only the store instance used in fake() is mocked — use Blink::setFakeStoreName('default') to ensure Blink::store() calls are also faked.
• Performance edge cases: For ultra-low-latency needs (e.g., inner loops), direct instantiation (new Blink()) is slightly faster than static calls (Blink::) due to avoiding __callStatic overhead.