How to perform on-demand mass cache invalidation in Next.js application?

On-demand mass cache invalidation

This is more of an investigative question rather than trying to find a solution to a problem.
On our NextJs application, we have managed to incorporate the on-demand revalidation functionality but since our application is fairly complex there seems to always come to the table if there is a method to “invalidate” the entire cache and basically wait for the users to visit the pages in order to generate them once again.

Has anyone else come across such a requirement because there seem to be no posts related on the internet about something like this and the only way is by targeting the specified URLs through webhooks and the revalidation API.

Performing on-demand mass cache invalidation in a Next.js application can be a bit tricky because Next.js handles caching and revalidation automatically based on page-specific data dependencies. However, if you want to force a complete cache invalidation and regenerate all pages on-demand, you can follow these steps:

1. Determine the scope of cache invalidation: Decide whether you want to invalidate the cache for the entire application or only for specific sections.

2. Create a cache invalidation mechanism: There are a few approaches you can consider:

   a. Webhook: Set up a webhook that triggers the cache invalidation process when called. You can use a service like Zapier or build your own webhook handler using a serverless function.

   b. Custom endpoint: Create a custom endpoint in your Next.js application that handles the cache invalidation logic. This endpoint can be called manually or triggered by an external process.

   c. Integration with cache service: If you're using a cache service like Varnish or Redis, explore their documentation to see if they provide any mechanisms for cache invalidation. You may be able to utilize their features to invalidate the cache.

3. Invalidate the cache: Once you have a mechanism in place, you need to trigger the cache invalidation process. This can be done by calling the webhook, hitting the custom endpoint, or utilizing the cache service's functionality.

4. Regenerate the pages: With Next.js, pages are typically generated dynamically upon the first request. By invalidating the cache, the next request to each page will trigger the generation of a fresh version. Therefore, you don't need to explicitly regenerate all pages. Users accessing the pages will automatically trigger their regeneration.

5. Monitor the cache regeneration: Keep an eye on server logs or implement some form of tracking to ensure that pages are being regenerated as users access them.

It's worth noting that Next.js already provides built-in cache invalidation and revalidation mechanisms based on data dependencies, such as stale-while-revalidate. On-demand mass cache invalidation goes against the typical Next.js caching behavior and may introduce performance and scalability concerns. It's recommended to carefully evaluate the need for such a feature and consider alternative approaches before implementing it in a production application.