Back in school, one of the first things I would do in the lab was to access the Cache data on the browser. One of the major problem a user – if new the computer – would run into is figuring out where the cache data is stored. This is when you can turn to MozillaCacheView and ChromeCacheView — two long-time freewares from Nirsoft which would make it easy to not merely view your cache, but to truly get your hands deep into it, too.

The interface of either will instantly bore you. How uninspired is it? It’s so dull I’ve got to point out that there’s a menu bar, because right below it there’s a row of nearly-indecipherable buttons. Most of what you’ll want is there, and thankfully they all have mouse-over tooltips so you can figure what they do on the fly. A little bit of exploring will help you grok what each one does. In order: you can select the cache folder, open the cached item’s link in your browser, copy selected cached files to a new folder, or delete selected files. The next two buttons let you filter the cache and clear the filter, and we were surprised at how well the filter worked.

You can also save items; refresh the list so you don’t need to restart the program, copy items to the clipboard, view properties, and perform a search. The search option allows for a more refined process than the filter. Under the View option you can export an HTML report of your cache’s contents. MozillaCacheView also gives you hot keys for all its major functions, and includes several preset filters under the Options menu. Annoyingly, the programs come as ZIP archives and not as executables.

They are slightly different: ChromeCacheView doesn’t provide as many options, most notably lacking the ability to delete cache items and lacking the filter. The programs are surprisingly powerful despite the lackluster interface, and make for an excellent lightweight way to explore your cache folders.