sccache

What it is and what it does

sccache is a compiler caching tool that intercepts compilation commands and stores results to avoid redundant recompilation. It works as a compiler wrapper—you prefix your normal compiler invocations with sccache, and it transparently caches object files and other build artifacts. It supports a wide range of compilers including gcc, clang, MSVC, rustc, NVIDIA CUDA (nvcc), AMD ROCm HIP, and others.

The package can store cached results on local disk or in cloud storage backends like S3, Redis, Memcached, Google Cloud Storage, Azure, and others. It includes a client-server architecture where the server maintains in-memory state for efficiency, and it can optionally provide distributed compilation similar to icecream, automatically packaging toolchains for remote build servers. The tool is particularly useful in CI/CD pipelines and large projects where compilation time is a bottleneck.

Use it for:

• Accelerate CI/CD pipelines by caching C/C++ and Rust compilation results across builds and team members.
• Speed up local development by avoiding recompilation of unchanged source files across multiple builds.
• Distribute compilation workload across multiple machines with automatic toolchain packaging for remote builders.
• Cache CUDA and HIP compiler output to reduce GPU build times in heterogeneous computing projects.
• Integrate with CMake builds using CMAKE_C_COMPILER_LAUNCHER and CMAKE_CXX_COMPILER_LAUNCHER for transparent caching.

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

sccache is a compiler caching wrapper that stores compilation results locally or in cloud storage to avoid recompilation, supporting C/C++, Rust, CUDA, and other compilers with optional distributed compilation.

Yes, if you have compilation-heavy workflows (C/C++, Rust, CUDA) and want to reduce build times. The package is actively maintained, has no runtime dependencies, and offers both local and cloud storage options. Medium install friction is acceptable given the potential build-time savings. No known security vulnerabilities.

Install

sccache on PyPI

pip install sccache

uv add sccache

poetry add sccache

Installing sccache

Before you install

Medium install friction due to platform-specific binary wheels (Windows, macOS, Linux architectures). Package is actively maintained with recent releases and no runtime dependencies, making it straightforward to deploy once the correct binary is selected.

License in practice

Apache-2.0 is permissive; you can use sccache in commercial and proprietary projects without licensing restrictions, though you must include a copy of the license and note any modifications.

Quickstart

# Install via pip
pip install sccache

# Use as compiler wrapper
sccache gcc -o foo.o -c foo.c

# Or set as Rust compiler wrapper
export RUSTC_WRAPPER=/path/to/sccache
cargo build

Requires a supported compiler (gcc, clang, MSVC, rustc, NVCC, NVC++, hipcc, or diab) already installed on the system; sccache is a wrapper, not a compiler itself.

Verify before relying

• Whether the PyPI package includes all documented storage backends (S3, Redis, Memcached, GCS, Azure, etc.) or if some require separate compilation.
• Performance overhead of the client-server model and typical cache hit rates in real build environments.
• Compatibility with specific CI/CD systems beyond GitHub Actions (Jenkins, GitLab CI, etc.).

Package facts

Evidence: sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-macosx_10_12_x86_64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-manylinux_2_17_aarch64.manylinux2014_aarch64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-manylinux_2_31_riscv64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-win32.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-win_amd64.whl; sccache-0.16.0-py3-none-win_arm64.whl

Keywords: ccache

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