# AI use cases for Cache Tax (karanb192/cache-tax)

Repo: [karanb192/cache-tax](https://github.com/karanb192/cache-tax) | Use cases: 3 | Page: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/

Cache Tax is a Claude Code mod that keeps the prompt cache warm during breaks and shows the estimated rewrite cost before a cold send.

This file holds every use case of this repo. Each one starts with a "## " heading and ends with its URL.

- Keep Claude Code's cache warm during a break: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/keep-claude-code-cache-warm-on-break/
- See the rewrite price before a cold send: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/check-cold-resend-price-before-sending/
- Keep every session warm with always mode: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/keep-every-session-warm-across-breaks/

## How to keep Claude Code's cache warm during a break with Cache Tax

Repo: [karanb192/cache-tax](https://github.com/karanb192/cache-tax) | Difficulty: Intermediate | Time: 15 minutes | Basis: From the README

Arm a timed keepwarm window before stepping away so the next message does not pay a full cache rewrite.

**Who it is for:** A developer deep in a large Claude Code session who needs to step away for a meeting, lunch or a short break and return to the same context.

**The problem:** When the prompt cache expires, even a short message can trigger a rewrite of the old context, which costs tokens on the next send.

**The outcome:** The session stays warm for the chosen window, and the user knows the next ping time and the last receipt when they return.

### Steps

1. Run `claude plugin marketplace add karanb192/claude-code-mods` in a terminal.
2. Run `claude plugin install cache-tax@claude-code-mods`, then restart Claude Code or run `/reload-plugins` in an open session.
3. If you use API-key, usage-credit or cloud-provider billing, set promptCacheTtl to "1h" so the main cache lasts an hour.
4. In a warm session, run `/keepwarm 90m` before your break, or `/keepwarm` for the six-hour default.
5. On return, run `/keepwarm status` to see the warming window, next ping and last receipt.

### Prompt to paste into your agent

```text
In the karanb192/cache-tax repo, install the cache-tax plugin, then in a warm Claude Code session run /keepwarm 90m. Report the output of /keepwarm status, including the warming window and next ping time. Verify that the window shown matches the 90 minutes you requested.
```

### Caveat

Pings cost tokens, and the mod reads every prompt you type, so choose a window you expect to return within.

Disclaimer: Third-party repos we don't own or vouch for. AI-generated use cases can be wrong: review everything and run at your own risk. Full text: https://dedupedai.com/disclaimer/

URL: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/keep-claude-code-cache-warm-on-break/

## How to see the rewrite price before a cold send with Cache Tax

Repo: [karanb192/cache-tax](https://github.com/karanb192/cache-tax) | Difficulty: Intermediate | Time: 15 minutes | Basis: From the README

Get a warning with the estimated cost when a message would rewrite an expired cache, then choose to resend or start fresh.

**Who it is for:** A developer returning to a long Claude Code session after the cache has gone cold, who wants to know the cost before paying it.

**The problem:** A cold resend silently rewrites the whole cached context, and the user has no price in front of them before the send.

**The outcome:** The user sees an estimated rewrite price, resends only if they accept it, or clears the session and starts from a note.

### Steps

1. Install the plugin as described in the keepwarm use case, then restart Claude Code or run `/reload-plugins`.
2. Run `/cache-tax` to see the current cache estimate, warming window and this session's cold-write tally.
3. Keep the default with `/cache-tax guard refuse`, or switch to `/cache-tax guard warn` to see the price and send without a drop.
4. When a cold send is dropped, read the estimated rewrite price, then send the message again to pay it, or run `/clear` and start from a note.

### Prompt to paste into your agent

```text
In the karanb192/cache-tax repo, with the cache-tax plugin installed, run /cache-tax in a resumed Claude Code session. Report the cache estimate and cold-write tally, and state whether the guard is set to warn or refuse. Verify that the guard mode matches the value you set with /cache-tax guard.
```

### Caveat

The refusal figure is an upper bound and the README says these are API-equivalent costs, not extra subscription charges.

Disclaimer: Third-party repos we don't own or vouch for. AI-generated use cases can be wrong: review everything and run at your own risk. Full text: https://dedupedai.com/disclaimer/

URL: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/check-cold-resend-price-before-sending/

## How to keep every session warm with always mode with Cache Tax

Repo: [karanb192/cache-tax](https://github.com/karanb192/cache-tax) | Difficulty: Advanced | Time: 15 minutes | Basis: From the README

Turn on always mode so each turn leaves at least six hours of warm window across sessions.

**Who it is for:** A developer who runs several long Claude Code sessions over a workday and does not want to arm keepwarm in each one.

**The problem:** Setting keepwarm by hand in every session is easy to forget, and an unwarmed session costs a full rewrite on the next message after a break.

**The outcome:** Each session that reaches the cache keeps a warm window of at least six hours from its last turn, and the setting persists across sessions.

### Steps

1. Install the plugin and confirm the cache lifetime setting as described in the first use case.
2. In a warm session, run `/keepwarm always` to keep every session warm until six hours after its last turn.
3. Run `/keepwarm status` in a session to confirm the window and next ping.
4. When you no longer want warming, run `/keepwarm off`, which stops every session from its next turn and turns always off.

### Prompt to paste into your agent

```text
In the karanb192/cache-tax repo, with the plugin installed, run /keepwarm always in a Claude Code session and then /keepwarm status. Report the warming window and next ping. Verify that the window reaches at least six hours after the last turn.
```

### Caveat

Always mode keeps pinging across sessions, so it spends tokens even on sessions you no longer use, and the README says pings cost tokens including uncapped output.

Disclaimer: Third-party repos we don't own or vouch for. AI-generated use cases can be wrong: review everything and run at your own risk. Full text: https://dedupedai.com/disclaimer/

URL: https://dedupedai.com/use-cases/karanb192-cache-tax/keep-every-session-warm-across-breaks/