How to check your website status, clear your cache, and delete cookies

Modified on Tue, 31 Oct 2023 at 01:14 PM

Checking Your Website Status

If you are having a hard time accessing your website, you'll first want to make sure it is available and functioning normally for its users. is a free website monitoring site that allows you to enter to your URL and verify that your website is up and accessible. The ‘is it down’ tool performs a status check from five global locations and instantly shows you the website’s availability with its response time from each of the five locations.

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What is the Cache?

Essentially, your cache acts as a repository where various web pages are stored, either on your computer's hard drive or within the storage of your mobile phone or tablet. The stored data typically encompasses text, images, and various multimedia elements found on the web pages you've previously accessed.

Why is this local copy of web content important? It significantly enhances the loading speed of web pages when you revisit them because your computer or mobile device no longer needs to retrieve the data from the internet. However, it's worth noting that, over time, your cache can accumulate a substantial amount of data, potentially occupying a considerable portion of your computer's storage capacity.

Reasons to Clear Your Cache:

Ensuring Fresh Content: Clearing your cache compels your browser to fetch the latest version of a web page from the website, which is something it should do automatically but occasionally fails to achieve.
Resolving Errors: If you encounter issues like 404 errors or 502 errors, these may signal that your browser's cache has become corrupted and clearing it can help rectify these problems.
Combatting Malware: Malware can infiltrate your cache surreptitiously, often accompanying program installations. By clearing your cache, you can eliminate potentially malicious files. Having antivirus software is also essential for added security.
Reclaiming Storage Space: Over time, your cache can accumulate a significant amount of data, consuming valuable hard drive space. Clearing your cache is an effective way to reclaim previously used storage space and optimize your device's performance

How to Clear Your Cache:

If you think that you need to clear your browsing data, pull up the "cache clearing" or "browsing data" section in your browser is via Ctrl+Shift+Del (Windows) or Command+Shift+Delete (Mac) but see this article for the exact steps involved in clearing your specific browser's cache.

What are Cookies?

Computer cookies are small files used by web servers to save browsing information, allowing websites to remember your device, browser preferences, and associated online activity. Cookies are very common -- you probably have hundreds stored in your browser right now. If you use multiple web browsers on your computer, each browser has its own set of cookies.

Reasons to Clear Your Cookies:

Browser Performance: Over time, a large number of cookies can slow down your browser's performance and clearing them can help optimize its speed.
Protecting Personal Data: If you share a computer, clearing cookies can help protect your personal information from being accessible to others who use the same device.
Fresher Browsing Experience: Regularly clearing cookies ensures that you start each browsing session with a clean slate, reducing the influence of past interactions on your current online experience.
Troubleshooting Issues: If you encounter problems with a specific website, clearing cookies can often resolve issues related to cached data.

How to Delete Your Cookies:

To clear cookies, select the Settings or Options menu in your browser, then go to either the Privacy or History section. In most browsers, use the Ctrl+Shift+Del keyboard shortcut or Command+Shift+Del on a Mac. See this article for the exact steps involved in clearing your cookies on specific browsers.