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### 18.16 File Name Cache

You can use the file name cache to make it easy to locate a file by name, without having to remember exactly where it is located. When typing a file name in the minibuffer, `C-TAB` (`file-cache-minibuffer-complete`) completes it using the file name cache. If you repeat `C-TAB`, that cycles through the possible completions of what you had originally typed. (However, note that the `C-TAB` character cannot be typed on most text terminals.)

The file name cache does not fill up automatically. Instead, you load file names into the cache using these commands:

`M-x file-cache-add-directory RET directory RET`

  Add each file name in directory to the file name cache.

`M-x file-cache-add-directory-using-find RET directory RET`

  Add each file name in directory and all of its nested subdirectories to the file name cache.

`M-x file-cache-add-directory-using-locate RET directory RET`

  Add each file name in directory and all of its nested subdirectories to the file name cache, using `locate` to find them all.

`M-x file-cache-add-directory-list RET variable RET`

  Add each file name in each directory listed in variable to the file name cache. variable should be a Lisp variable whose value is a list of directory names, like `load-path`.

`M-x file-cache-clear-cache RET`

  Clear the cache; that is, remove all file names from it.

The file name cache is not persistent: it is kept and maintained only for the duration of the Emacs session. You can view the contents of the cache with the `file-cache-display` command.

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