Many times, when using a web based CRM system, or any other complex web based system, locally cached files can conflict with the versions available on the web server and cause issues such as:

• Display issues like missing X’s on things you should be able to exit
• Errors where the webpage will not load at all
• Errors where the webpage partially loads but will not finish loading
• A generic error message in your browser

If caches can cause issues, then why are files cached in the first place?  Nearly every website you visit will cache files to your local computer to speed up website loading.  The logic is that, if the file is already on your computer, then it doesn’t need to be downloaded, and the website will load faster.

If you take a look at the “Have you already tried the following?” section of any of our CRM support pages--Sugar Support, Infor Support, or Creatio Support--you will see an entry about clearing your browser cache.  These pages link to SugarCRM’s “Clearing Browser Cache” Knowledge Base article, Chrome’s “Clear cache & cookies” Help article, and Firefox’s “How to clear the Firefox cache” Support article.  The local cache is why we also recommend trying on another computer, a different browser, or an Incognito or Private window.  On a different browser or computer, there are no existing cached files.

Users are often hesitant to clear their browser cache because it can clear out their preferences for all websites for all time. However, there is a way around this that I often use in Chrome.  First, open Chrome’s Developer Tools by hitting F12 on your keyboard or right-clicking on a website and selecting “Inspect”:

The DevTools may open inside your current browser window or they may open in a new, separate window. In either case, the DevTools can be ignored or minimized.

Once the Chrome DevTools are open, if you use your mouse to left-click and hold on the Refresh button, you will see a new option for Empty Cache and Hard Reload.  This will empty the cache for only this website and all other websites will be unaffected.