architecture The Cache Stampede: How One Expired Key Can Take Down Your Database josedacruz, September 18, 2026September 18, 2026 TL;DR: A cache stampede happens when a popular cached value expires and a flood of requests all miss the cache at the same instant, sending them straight to your database all at once. It is one of the few bugs that gets worse the more successful your caching strategy is…. Continue Reading