How to Cache FHIR Data Catalog Metadata: Explanation of the CacheMetadata Feature

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This article explains the 'CacheMetadata' function within the CData Tableau Connector. When enabled, this setting caches the table metadata from the FHIR catalog into a dedicated cache database upon query execution. This dramatically speeds up subsequent metadata discovery processes because the information is read directly from the cache database rather than being requested from the live FHIR source. The feature is particularly useful in environments with a large number of FHIR tables and columns. However, users must be aware that this cache is static; it does not automatically reflect changes to the underlying table schema (such as added or deleted columns). Therefore, new metadata requires manually deleting and rebuilding the cache database file. While the connector typically persists metadata in memory for up to an hour, making CacheMetadata generally unnecessary, its use is highly valuable for performance optimization in large-scale FHIR environments or workflows involving numerous connections.