Question: How can you implement Azure distributed cache in your application?

Answer

Azure provides a service named Azure Cache for Redis, which is a secure data cache and messaging broker that provides high throughput and low-latency access to data for applications. The service is fully managed by Microsoft, and it's highly scalable and flexible.

To implement Azure distributed cache, follow these steps:

Step 1: Create an Azure Cache for Redis instance

You need to create an Azure Cache for Redis instance and get the connection string. The detailed steps can be found in Azure official documentation.

Step 2: Install StackExchange.Redis NuGet package

StackExchange.Redis is a high-performance .NET client for Redis. Install this NuGet package in your project.

Install-Package StackExchange.Redis 

Step 3: Use the ConnectionMultiplexer object to connect to the Azure Cache for Redis

The ConnectionMultiplexer object is designed to be shared and reused throughout your client application, and does not need to be created on a per operation basis.

string cacheConnection = "<your-connection-string>";
ConnectionMultiplexer connection = ConnectionMultiplexer.Connect(cacheConnection);

Step 4: Use the IDatabase object to interact with the cache

After connected, get an IDatabase object from ConnectionMultiplexer, then you can perform cache operations like getting and setting cache items.

IDatabase cache = connection.GetDatabase();
// Set cache
cache.StringSet("key", "value");
// Get cache
string value = cache.StringGet("key");

For more advanced usage, such as subscribing to pub/sub messages or using transactions, you should refer to the official documentation of StackExchange.Redis.

Important Note: As Azure evolves rapidly, always refer to the latest Azure documentation or resources for the most up-to-date information.