Improve HTTP caching flexiblity

This commit improves HTTP caching defaults and flexibility in
Spring MVC.

1) Better default caching headers

The `WebContentGenerator` abstract class has been updated with
better HTTP defaults for HTTP caching, in line with current
browsers and proxies implementation (wide support of HTTP1.1, etc);
depending on the `setCacheSeconds` value:

* sends "Cache-Control: max-age=xxx" for caching responses and
do not send a "must-revalidate" value by default.
* sends "Cache-Control: no-store" or "Cache-Control: no-cache"
in order to prevent caching

Other methods used to set specific header such as
`setUseExpiresHeader` or `setAlwaysMustRevalidate` are now deprecated
in favor of `setCacheControl` for better flexibility.
Using one of the deprecated methods re-enables previous HTTP caching
behavior.

This change is applied in many Handlers, since
`WebContentGenerator` is extended by `AbstractController`,
`WebContentInterceptor`, `ResourceHttpRequestHandler` and others.

2) New CacheControl builder class

This new class brings more flexibility and allows developers
to set custom HTTP caching headers.

Several strategies are provided:

* `CacheControl.maxAge(int)` for caching responses with a
"Cache-Control: max-age=xxx" header
* `CacheControl.noStore()` prevents responses from being cached
with a "Cache-Control: no-store" header
* `CacheControl.noCache()` forces caches to revalidate the cached
response before reusing it, with a "Cache-Control: no-store" header.

From that point, it is possible to chain method calls to craft a
custom CacheControl instance:

```
CacheControl cc = CacheControl.maxAge(1, TimeUnit.HOURS)
    .cachePublic().noTransform();
```

3) Configuring HTTP caching in Resource Handlers

On top of the existing ways of configuring caching mechanisms,
it is now possible to use a custom `CacheControl` to serve
resources:

```
@Configuration
public class MyWebConfig extends WebMvcConfigurerAdapter {

  @Override
  public void addResourceHandlers(ResourceHandlerRegistry registry) {
    CacheControl cc = CacheControl.maxAge(1, TimeUnit.HOURS);
    registry.addResourceHandler("/resources/**)
            .addResourceLocations("classpath:/resources/")
            .setCacheControl(cc);
  }
}
```

or

```
<mvc:resources mapping="/resources/**" location="classpath:/resources/">
  <mvc:cachecontrol max-age="3600" cache-public="true"/>
</mvc:resources>
```

Issue: SPR-2779, SPR-6834, SPR-7129, SPR-9543, SPR-10464

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/config/ResourcesBeanDefinitionParser.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2014 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ package org.springframework.web.servlet.config;
 
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
 
 import org.w3c.dom.Element;
 
@@ -34,6 +35,7 @@ import org.springframework.cache.concurrent.ConcurrentMapCache;
 import org.springframework.core.Ordered;
 import org.springframework.util.StringUtils;
 import org.springframework.util.xml.DomUtils;
+import org.springframework.http.CacheControl;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.handler.MappedInterceptor;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.handler.SimpleUrlHandlerMapping;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.mvc.HttpRequestHandlerAdapter;
@@ -162,6 +164,12 @@ class ResourcesBeanDefinitionParser implements BeanDefinitionParser {
 			resourceHandlerDef.getPropertyValues().add("cacheSeconds", cacheSeconds);
 		}
 
+		Element cacheControlElement = DomUtils.getChildElementByTagName(element, "cachecontrol");
+		if (cacheControlElement != null) {
+			CacheControl cacheControl = parseCacheControl(cacheControlElement);
+			resourceHandlerDef.getPropertyValues().add("cacheControl", cacheControl);
+		}
+
 		Element resourceChainElement = DomUtils.getChildElementByTagName(element, "resource-chain");
 		if (resourceChainElement != null) {
 			parseResourceChain(resourceHandlerDef, parserContext, resourceChainElement, source);
@@ -197,6 +205,38 @@ class ResourcesBeanDefinitionParser implements BeanDefinitionParser {
 		}
 	}
 
+	private CacheControl parseCacheControl(Element element) {
+		CacheControl cacheControl = CacheControl.empty();
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("no-cache"))) {
+			cacheControl = CacheControl.noCache();
+		}
+		else if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("no-store"))) {
+			cacheControl = CacheControl.noStore();
+		}
+		else if (element.hasAttribute("max-age")) {
+			cacheControl = CacheControl.maxAge(Long.parseLong(element.getAttribute("max-age")), TimeUnit.SECONDS);
+		}
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("must-revalidate"))) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.mustRevalidate();
+		}
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("no-transform"))) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.noTransform();
+		}
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("cache-public"))) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.cachePublic();
+		}
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("cache-private"))) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.cachePrivate();
+		}
+		if ("true".equals(element.getAttribute("proxy-revalidate"))) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.proxyRevalidate();
+		}
+		if (element.hasAttribute("s-maxage")) {
+			cacheControl = cacheControl.sMaxAge(Long.parseLong(element.getAttribute("s-maxage")), TimeUnit.SECONDS);
+		}
+		return cacheControl;
+	}
+
 	private void parseResourceCache(ManagedList<? super Object> resourceResolvers,
 			ManagedList<? super Object> resourceTransformers, Element element, Object source) {
 

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/config/annotation/ResourceHandlerRegistration.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2014 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ import org.springframework.cache.Cache;
 import org.springframework.core.io.Resource;
 import org.springframework.core.io.ResourceLoader;
 import org.springframework.util.Assert;
+import org.springframework.http.CacheControl;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.resource.PathResourceResolver;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.resource.ResourceHttpRequestHandler;
 
@@ -45,6 +46,8 @@ public class ResourceHandlerRegistration {
 
 	private Integer cachePeriod;
 
+	private CacheControl cacheControl;
+
 	private ResourceChainRegistration resourceChainRegistration;
 
 
@@ -69,7 +72,7 @@ public class ResourceHandlerRegistration {
 	 * {@code /META-INF/public-web-resources/} directory, with resources in the web application root taking precedence.
 	 * @return the same {@link ResourceHandlerRegistration} instance for chained method invocation
 	 */
-	public ResourceHandlerRegistration addResourceLocations(String...resourceLocations) {
+	public ResourceHandlerRegistration addResourceLocations(String... resourceLocations) {
 		for (String location : resourceLocations) {
 			this.locations.add(resourceLoader.getResource(location));
 		}
@@ -88,6 +91,22 @@ public class ResourceHandlerRegistration {
 		return this;
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Specify the {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} which should be used
+	 * by the the resource handler.
+	 *
+	 * <p>Setting a custom value here will override the configuration set with {@link #setCachePeriod}.
+	 *
+	 * @param cacheControl the CacheControl configuration to use
+	 * @return the same {@link ResourceHandlerRegistration} instance for chained method invocation
+	 *
+	 * @since 4.2
+	 */
+	public ResourceHandlerRegistration setCacheControl(CacheControl cacheControl) {
+		this.cacheControl = cacheControl;
+		return this;
+	}
+
 	/**
 	 * Configure a chain of resource resolvers and transformers to use. This
 	 * can be useful for example to apply a version strategy to resource URLs.
@@ -146,7 +165,10 @@ public class ResourceHandlerRegistration {
 			handler.setResourceTransformers(this.resourceChainRegistration.getResourceTransformers());
 		}
 		handler.setLocations(this.locations);
-		if (this.cachePeriod != null) {
+		if (this.cacheControl != null) {
+			handler.setCacheControl(this.cacheControl);
+		}
+		else if (this.cachePeriod != null) {
 			handler.setCacheSeconds(this.cachePeriod);
 		}
 		return handler;

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/handler/AbstractHandlerExceptionResolver.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2013 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -39,10 +39,6 @@ import org.springframework.web.servlet.ModelAndView;
  */
 public abstract class AbstractHandlerExceptionResolver implements HandlerExceptionResolver, Ordered {
 
-	private static final String HEADER_PRAGMA = "Pragma";
-
-	private static final String HEADER_EXPIRES = "Expires";
-
 	private static final String HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL = "Cache-Control";
 
 
@@ -215,13 +211,10 @@ public abstract class AbstractHandlerExceptionResolver implements HandlerExcepti
 
 	/**
 	 * Prevents the response from being cached, through setting corresponding
-	 * HTTP headers. See {@code http://www.mnot.net/cache_docs}.
+	 * HTTP {@code Cache-Control: no-store} header.
 	 * @param response current HTTP response
 	 */
 	protected void preventCaching(HttpServletResponse response) {
-		response.setHeader(HEADER_PRAGMA, "no-cache");
-		response.setDateHeader(HEADER_EXPIRES, 1L);
-		response.setHeader(HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL, "no-cache");
 		response.addHeader(HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL, "no-store");
 	}
 

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/mvc/AbstractController.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2014 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ public abstract class AbstractController extends WebContentGenerator implements
 			throws Exception {
 
 		// Delegate to WebContentGenerator for checking and preparing.
-		checkAndPrepare(request, response, this instanceof LastModified);
+		checkAndPrepare(request, response);
 
 		// Execute handleRequestInternal in synchronized block if required.
 		if (this.synchronizeOnSession) {

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/mvc/WebContentInterceptor.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2012 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -20,6 +20,8 @@ import java.util.Enumeration;
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.Properties;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
 import javax.servlet.ServletException;
 import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
 import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
@@ -27,6 +29,7 @@ import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
 import org.springframework.util.AntPathMatcher;
 import org.springframework.util.Assert;
 import org.springframework.util.PathMatcher;
+import org.springframework.http.CacheControl;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.HandlerInterceptor;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.ModelAndView;
 import org.springframework.web.servlet.support.WebContentGenerator;
@@ -34,7 +37,7 @@ import org.springframework.web.util.UrlPathHelper;
 
 /**
  * Interceptor that checks and prepares request and response. Checks for supported
- * methods and a required session, and applies the specified number of cache seconds.
+ * methods and a required session, and applies the specified {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl}.
  * See superclass bean properties for configuration options.
  *
  * <p>All the settings supported by this interceptor can also be set on AbstractController.
@@ -42,6 +45,7 @@ import org.springframework.web.util.UrlPathHelper;
  * controllers mapped by a HandlerMapping.
  *
  * @author Juergen Hoeller
+ * @author Brian Clozel
  * @since 27.11.2003
  * @see AbstractController
  */
@@ -49,10 +53,9 @@ public class WebContentInterceptor extends WebContentGenerator implements Handle
 
 	private UrlPathHelper urlPathHelper = new UrlPathHelper();
 
-	private Map<String, Integer> cacheMappings = new HashMap<String, Integer>();
-
 	private PathMatcher pathMatcher = new AntPathMatcher();
 
+	private Map<String, CacheControl> cacheMappings = new HashMap<String, CacheControl>();
 
 	public WebContentInterceptor() {
 		// no restriction of HTTP methods by default,
@@ -120,14 +123,47 @@ public class WebContentInterceptor extends WebContentGenerator implements Handle
 		Enumeration<?> propNames = cacheMappings.propertyNames();
 		while (propNames.hasMoreElements()) {
 			String path = (String) propNames.nextElement();
-			this.cacheMappings.put(path, Integer.valueOf(cacheMappings.getProperty(path)));
+			int cacheSeconds = Integer.valueOf(cacheMappings.getProperty(path));
+			if (cacheSeconds > 0) {
+				this.cacheMappings.put(path, CacheControl.maxAge(cacheSeconds, TimeUnit.SECONDS));
+			}
+			else if (cacheSeconds == 0) {
+				this.cacheMappings.put(path, CacheControl.noStore());
+			}
+			else {
+				this.cacheMappings.put(path, CacheControl.empty());
+			}
 		}
 	}
 
+	/**
+	 * Map specific URL paths to a specific {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl}.
+	 * <p>Overrides the default cache seconds setting of this interceptor.
+	 * Can specify a empty {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} instance
+	 * to exclude a URL path from default caching.
+	 *
+	 * <p>Supports direct matches, e.g. a registered "/test" matches "/test",
+	 * and a various Ant-style pattern matches, e.g. a registered "/t*" matches
+	 * both "/test" and "/team". For details, see the AntPathMatcher javadoc.
+	 *
+	 * @param cacheControl the {@code CacheControl} to use
+	 * @param paths URL paths that will map to the given {@code CacheControl}
+	 * @see #setCacheSeconds
+	 * @see org.springframework.util.AntPathMatcher
+	 * @since 4.2
+	 */
+	public void addCacheMapping(CacheControl cacheControl, String... paths) {
+		for (String path : paths) {
+			this.cacheMappings.put(path, cacheControl);
+		}
+	}
+
+
 	/**
 	 * Set the PathMatcher implementation to use for matching URL paths
 	 * against registered URL patterns, for determining cache mappings.
 	 * Default is AntPathMatcher.
+	 * @see #addCacheMapping
 	 * @see #setCacheMappings
 	 * @see org.springframework.util.AntPathMatcher
 	 */
@@ -146,44 +182,44 @@ public class WebContentInterceptor extends WebContentGenerator implements Handle
 			logger.debug("Looking up cache seconds for [" + lookupPath + "]");
 		}
 
-		Integer cacheSeconds = lookupCacheSeconds(lookupPath);
-		if (cacheSeconds != null) {
+		CacheControl cacheControl = lookupCacheSeconds(lookupPath);
+		if (cacheControl != null) {
 			if (logger.isDebugEnabled()) {
-				logger.debug("Applying " + cacheSeconds + " cache seconds to [" + lookupPath + "]");
+				logger.debug("Applying CacheControl to [" + lookupPath + "]");
 			}
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, cacheSeconds, handler instanceof LastModified);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response, cacheControl);
 		}
 		else {
 			if (logger.isDebugEnabled()) {
 				logger.debug("Applying default cache seconds to [" + lookupPath + "]");
 			}
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, handler instanceof LastModified);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response);
 		}
 
 		return true;
 	}
 
 	/**
-	 * Look up a cache seconds value for the given URL path.
+	 * Look up a {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} instance for the given URL path.
 	 * <p>Supports direct matches, e.g. a registered "/test" matches "/test",
 	 * and various Ant-style pattern matches, e.g. a registered "/t*" matches
 	 * both "/test" and "/team". For details, see the AntPathMatcher class.
 	 * @param urlPath URL the bean is mapped to
-	 * @return the associated cache seconds, or {@code null} if not found
+	 * @return the associated {@code CacheControl}, or {@code null} if not found
 	 * @see org.springframework.util.AntPathMatcher
 	 */
-	protected Integer lookupCacheSeconds(String urlPath) {
+	protected CacheControl lookupCacheSeconds(String urlPath) {
 		// direct match?
-		Integer cacheSeconds = this.cacheMappings.get(urlPath);
-		if (cacheSeconds == null) {
+		CacheControl cacheControl = this.cacheMappings.get(urlPath);
+		if (cacheControl == null) {
 			// pattern match?
 			for (String registeredPath : this.cacheMappings.keySet()) {
 				if (this.pathMatcher.match(registeredPath, urlPath)) {
-					cacheSeconds = this.cacheMappings.get(registeredPath);
+					cacheControl = this.cacheMappings.get(registeredPath);
 				}
 			}
 		}
-		return cacheSeconds;
+		return cacheControl;
 	}
 
 

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/mvc/annotation/AnnotationMethodHandlerAdapter.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2012 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -412,12 +412,12 @@ public class AnnotationMethodHandlerAdapter extends WebContentGenerator
 
 		if (annotatedWithSessionAttributes) {
 			// Always prevent caching in case of session attribute management.
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheSecondsForSessionAttributeHandlers, true);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheSecondsForSessionAttributeHandlers);
 			// Prepare cached set of session attributes names.
 		}
 		else {
 			// Uses configured default cacheSeconds setting.
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, true);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response);
 		}
 
 		// Execute invokeHandlerMethod in synchronized block if required.

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/mvc/method/annotation/RequestMappingHandlerAdapter.java

@@ -685,11 +685,11 @@ public class RequestMappingHandlerAdapter extends AbstractHandlerMethodAdapter
 
 		if (getSessionAttributesHandler(handlerMethod).hasSessionAttributes()) {
 			// Always prevent caching in case of session attribute management.
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheSecondsForSessionAttributeHandlers, true);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheSecondsForSessionAttributeHandlers);
 		}
 		else {
 			// Uses configured default cacheSeconds setting.
-			checkAndPrepare(request, response, true);
+			checkAndPrepare(request, response);
 		}
 
 		// Execute invokeHandlerMethod in synchronized block if required.

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/resource/ResourceHttpRequestHandler.java

@@ -60,8 +60,8 @@ import org.springframework.web.servlet.support.WebContentGenerator;
  * <p>The {@linkplain #setLocations "locations" property} takes a list of Spring {@link Resource}
  * locations from which static resources are allowed  to be served by this handler. For a given request,
  * the list of locations will be consulted in order for the presence of the requested resource, and the
- * first found match will be written to the response, with {@code Expires} and {@code Cache-Control}
- * headers set as configured. The handler also properly evaluates the {@code Last-Modified} header
+ * first found match will be written to the response, with a HTTP Caching headers
+ * set as configured. The handler also properly evaluates the {@code Last-Modified} header
  * (if present) so that a {@code 304} status code will be returned as appropriate, avoiding unnecessary
  * overhead for resources that are already cached by the client. The use of {@code Resource} locations
  * allows resource requests to easily be mapped to locations other than the web application root.
@@ -210,7 +210,7 @@ public class ResourceHttpRequestHandler extends WebContentGenerator implements H
 	public void handleRequest(HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
 			throws ServletException, IOException {
 
-		checkAndPrepare(request, response, true);
+		checkAndPrepare(request, response);
 
 		// check whether a matching resource exists
 		Resource resource = getResource(request);

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/support/WebContentGenerator.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2014 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ package org.springframework.web.servlet.support;
 import java.util.Arrays;
 import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Set;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
 import javax.servlet.ServletException;
 import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletRequest;
 import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
@@ -26,7 +28,7 @@ import javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse;
 import org.springframework.util.StringUtils;
 import org.springframework.web.HttpRequestMethodNotSupportedException;
 import org.springframework.web.HttpSessionRequiredException;
-import org.springframework.web.context.request.WebRequest;
+import org.springframework.http.CacheControl;
 import org.springframework.web.context.support.WebApplicationObjectSupport;
 
 /**
@@ -37,11 +39,17 @@ import org.springframework.web.context.support.WebApplicationObjectSupport;
  * {@link org.springframework.web.servlet.HandlerAdapter}.
  *
  * <p>Supports HTTP cache control options. The usage of corresponding
- * HTTP headers can be controlled via the "useExpiresHeader",
- * "useCacheControlHeader" and "useCacheControlNoStore" properties.
+ * HTTP headers can be controlled via the "setCacheSeconds" or "setCacheControl" properties.
+ * As of 4.2, its default behavior changed when using only {@link #setCacheSeconds(int)}, sending
+ * HTTP response headers that are more in line with current browsers and proxies implementations.
+ *
+ * <p>Reverting to the previous behavior can be easily done by using one of the nealy deprecated methods
+ * {@link #setUseExpiresHeader}, {@link #setUseCacheControlHeader}, {@link #setUseCacheControlNoStore} or
+ * {@link #setAlwaysMustRevalidate}.
  *
  * @author Rod Johnson
  * @author Juergen Hoeller
+ * @author Brian Clozel
  * @see #setCacheSeconds
  * @see #setRequireSession
  */
@@ -56,7 +64,6 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	/** HTTP method "POST" */
 	public static final String METHOD_POST = "POST";
 
-
 	private static final String HEADER_PRAGMA = "Pragma";
 
 	private static final String HEADER_EXPIRES = "Expires";
@@ -65,10 +72,12 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 
 
 	/** Set of supported HTTP methods */
-	private Set<String>	supportedMethods;
+	private Set<String> supportedMethods;
 
 	private boolean requireSession = false;
 
+	private int cacheSeconds = -1;
+
 	/** Use HTTP 1.0 expires header? */
 	private boolean useExpiresHeader = true;
 
@@ -78,10 +87,12 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	/** Use HTTP 1.1 cache-control header value "no-store"? */
 	private boolean useCacheControlNoStore = true;
 
-	private int cacheSeconds = -1;
-
 	private boolean alwaysMustRevalidate = false;
 
+	private boolean usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior = false;
+
+	private CacheControl cacheControl;
+
 
 	/**
 	 * Create a new WebContentGenerator which supports
@@ -151,17 +162,42 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	}
 
 	/**
-	 * Set whether to use the HTTP 1.0 expires header. Default is "true".
+	 * Set the {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} instance to build
+	 * the Cache-Control HTTP response header.
+	 *
+	 * @since 4.2
+	 */
+	public void setCacheControl(CacheControl cacheControl) {
+		this.cacheControl = cacheControl;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Get the {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} instance
+	 * that builds the Cache-Control HTTP response header.
+	 *
+	 * @since 4.2
+	 */
+	public CacheControl getCacheControl() {
+		return cacheControl;
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Set whether to use the HTTP 1.0 expires header. Default is "false".
 	 * <p>Note: Cache headers will only get applied if caching is enabled
 	 * (or explicitly prevented) for the current request.
+	 *
+	 * @deprecated in favor of {@link #setCacheSeconds} or {@link #setCacheControl}.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final void setUseExpiresHeader(boolean useExpiresHeader) {
 		this.useExpiresHeader = useExpiresHeader;
+		this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior = true;
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Return whether the HTTP 1.0 expires header is used.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final boolean isUseExpiresHeader() {
 		return this.useExpiresHeader;
 	}
@@ -170,14 +206,19 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	 * Set whether to use the HTTP 1.1 cache-control header. Default is "true".
 	 * <p>Note: Cache headers will only get applied if caching is enabled
 	 * (or explicitly prevented) for the current request.
+	 *
+	 * @deprecated in favor of {@link #setCacheSeconds} or {@link #setCacheControl}.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final void setUseCacheControlHeader(boolean useCacheControlHeader) {
 		this.useCacheControlHeader = useCacheControlHeader;
+		this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior = true;
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Return whether the HTTP 1.1 cache-control header is used.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final boolean isUseCacheControlHeader() {
 		return this.useCacheControlHeader;
 	}
@@ -185,14 +226,19 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	/**
 	 * Set whether to use the HTTP 1.1 cache-control header value "no-store"
 	 * when preventing caching. Default is "true".
+	 *
+	 * @deprecated in favor of {@link #setCacheSeconds} or {@link #setCacheControl}.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final void setUseCacheControlNoStore(boolean useCacheControlNoStore) {
 		this.useCacheControlNoStore = useCacheControlNoStore;
+		this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior = true;
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Return whether the HTTP 1.1 cache-control header value "no-store" is used.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public final boolean isUseCacheControlNoStore() {
 		return this.useCacheControlNoStore;
 	}
@@ -201,30 +247,46 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	 * An option to add 'must-revalidate' to every Cache-Control header. This
 	 * may be useful with annotated controller methods, which can
 	 * programmatically do a lastModified calculation as described in
-	 * {@link WebRequest#checkNotModified(long)}. Default is "false",
-	 * effectively relying on whether the handler implements
-	 * {@link org.springframework.web.servlet.mvc.LastModified} or not.
+	 * {@link WebRequest#checkNotModified(long)}. Default is "false".
+	 *
+	 * @deprecated in favor of {@link #setCacheSeconds} or {@link #setCacheControl}.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public void setAlwaysMustRevalidate(boolean mustRevalidate) {
 		this.alwaysMustRevalidate = mustRevalidate;
+		this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior = true;
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Return whether 'must-revalidate' is added to every Cache-Control header.
 	 */
+	@Deprecated
 	public boolean isAlwaysMustRevalidate() {
 		return alwaysMustRevalidate;
 	}
 
 	/**
-	 * Cache content for the given number of seconds. Default is -1,
-	 * indicating no generation of cache-related headers.
-	 * <p>Only if this is set to 0 (no cache) or a positive value (cache for
-	 * this many seconds) will this class generate cache headers.
-	 * <p>The headers can be overwritten by subclasses, before content is generated.
+	 * Cache content for the given number of seconds, by writing
+	 * cache-related HTTP headers to the response:
+	 * <ul>
+	 *     <li>seconds == -1 (default value): no generation cache-related headers</li>
+	 *     <li>seconds == 0: "Cache-Control: no-store" will prevent caching</li>
+	 *     <li>seconds > 0: "Cache-Control: max-age=seconds" will ask to cache content</li>
+	 * </ul>
+	 * <p>For more specific needs, a custom {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} should be used.
+	 *
+	 * @see #setCacheControl
 	 */
 	public final void setCacheSeconds(int seconds) {
 		this.cacheSeconds = seconds;
+		if (!this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior) {
+			if (cacheSeconds > 0) {
+				this.cacheControl = CacheControl.maxAge(seconds, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
+			}
+			else if (cacheSeconds == 0) {
+				this.cacheControl = CacheControl.noStore();
+			}
+		}
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -241,29 +303,45 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 	 * and applies the number of cache seconds specified for this generator.
 	 * @param request current HTTP request
 	 * @param response current HTTP response
-	 * @param lastModified if the mapped handler provides Last-Modified support
 	 * @throws ServletException if the request cannot be handled because a check failed
 	 */
 	protected final void checkAndPrepare(
-			HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response, boolean lastModified)
+			HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response)
 			throws ServletException {
 
-		checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheSeconds, lastModified);
+		checkAndPrepare(request, response, this.cacheControl);
+	}
+
+	protected final void checkAndPrepare(
+			HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response, int cacheSeconds) throws ServletException {
+
+		CacheControl cControl;
+		if (cacheSeconds > 0) {
+			cControl = CacheControl.maxAge(cacheSeconds, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
+		}
+		else if (cacheSeconds == 0) {
+			cControl = CacheControl.noStore();
+		}
+		else {
+			cControl = CacheControl.empty();
+		}
+		checkAndPrepare(request, response, cControl);
 	}
 
 	/**
 	 * Check and prepare the given request and response according to the settings
-	 * of this generator. Checks for supported methods and a required session,
-	 * and applies the given number of cache seconds.
+	 * of this generator. Checks for supported methods and a required session
+	 * specified for this generator. Also applies the {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl}
+	 * given as a parameter.
 	 * @param request current HTTP request
 	 * @param response current HTTP response
-	 * @param cacheSeconds positive number of seconds into the future that the
-	 * response should be cacheable for, 0 to prevent caching
-	 * @param lastModified if the mapped handler provides Last-Modified support
+	 * @param cacheControl the {@link org.springframework.http.CacheControl} to use
 	 * @throws ServletException if the request cannot be handled because a check failed
+	 *
+	 * @since 4.2
 	 */
 	protected final void checkAndPrepare(
-			HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response, int cacheSeconds, boolean lastModified)
+			HttpServletRequest request, HttpServletResponse response, CacheControl cacheControl)
 			throws ServletException {
 
 		// Check whether we should support the request method.
@@ -280,9 +358,49 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 			}
 		}
 
-		// Do declarative cache control.
-		// Revalidate if the controller supports last-modified.
-		applyCacheSeconds(response, cacheSeconds, lastModified);
+		if (this.usePreviousHttpCachingBehavior) {
+			addHttp10CacheHeaders(response);
+		}
+		else if (cacheControl != null) {
+			String ccValue = cacheControl.getHeaderValue();
+			if (ccValue != null) {
+				response.setHeader(HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL, ccValue);
+			}
+		}
+	}
+
+	protected void addHttp10CacheHeaders(HttpServletResponse response) {
+		if (this.cacheSeconds > 0) {
+			cacheForSeconds(response, this.cacheSeconds, this.alwaysMustRevalidate);
+		}
+		else if (this.cacheSeconds == 0) {
+			preventCaching(response);
+		}
+	}
+
+	/**
+	 * Set HTTP headers to allow caching for the given number of seconds.
+	 * Tells the browser to revalidate the resource if mustRevalidate is
+	 * {@code true}.
+	 * @param response the current HTTP response
+	 * @param seconds number of seconds into the future that the response
+	 * should be cacheable for
+	 * @param mustRevalidate whether the client should revalidate the resource
+	 * (typically only necessary for controllers with last-modified support)
+	 */
+	protected final void cacheForSeconds(HttpServletResponse response, int seconds, boolean mustRevalidate) {
+		if (this.useExpiresHeader) {
+			// HTTP 1.0 header
+			response.setDateHeader(HEADER_EXPIRES, System.currentTimeMillis() + seconds * 1000L);
+		}
+		if (this.useCacheControlHeader) {
+			// HTTP 1.1 header
+			String headerValue = "max-age=" + seconds;
+			if (mustRevalidate) {
+				headerValue += ", must-revalidate";
+			}
+			response.setHeader(HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL, headerValue);
+		}
 	}
 
 	/**
@@ -305,77 +423,4 @@ public abstract class WebContentGenerator extends WebApplicationObjectSupport {
 		}
 	}
 
-	/**
-	 * Set HTTP headers to allow caching for the given number of seconds.
-	 * Does not tell the browser to revalidate the resource.
-	 * @param response current HTTP response
-	 * @param seconds number of seconds into the future that the response
-	 * should be cacheable for
-	 * @see #cacheForSeconds(javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse, int, boolean)
-	 */
-	protected final void cacheForSeconds(HttpServletResponse response, int seconds) {
-		cacheForSeconds(response, seconds, false);
-	}
-
-	/**
-	 * Set HTTP headers to allow caching for the given number of seconds.
-	 * Tells the browser to revalidate the resource if mustRevalidate is
-	 * {@code true}.
-	 * @param response the current HTTP response
-	 * @param seconds number of seconds into the future that the response
-	 * should be cacheable for
-	 * @param mustRevalidate whether the client should revalidate the resource
-	 * (typically only necessary for controllers with last-modified support)
-	 */
-	protected final void cacheForSeconds(HttpServletResponse response, int seconds, boolean mustRevalidate) {
-		if (this.useExpiresHeader) {
-			// HTTP 1.0 header
-			response.setDateHeader(HEADER_EXPIRES, System.currentTimeMillis() + seconds * 1000L);
-		}
-		if (this.useCacheControlHeader) {
-			// HTTP 1.1 header
-			String headerValue = "max-age=" + seconds;
-			if (mustRevalidate || this.alwaysMustRevalidate) {
-				headerValue += ", must-revalidate";
-			}
-			response.setHeader(HEADER_CACHE_CONTROL, headerValue);
-		}
-	}
-
-	/**
-	 * Apply the given cache seconds and generate corresponding HTTP headers,
-	 * i.e. allow caching for the given number of seconds in case of a positive
-	 * value, prevent caching if given a 0 value, do nothing else.
-	 * Does not tell the browser to revalidate the resource.
-	 * @param response current HTTP response
-	 * @param seconds positive number of seconds into the future that the
-	 * response should be cacheable for, 0 to prevent caching
-	 * @see #cacheForSeconds(javax.servlet.http.HttpServletResponse, int, boolean)
-	 */
-	protected final void applyCacheSeconds(HttpServletResponse response, int seconds) {
-		applyCacheSeconds(response, seconds, false);
-	}
-
-	/**
-	 * Apply the given cache seconds and generate respective HTTP headers.
-	 * <p>That is, allow caching for the given number of seconds in the
-	 * case of a positive value, prevent caching if given a 0 value, else
-	 * do nothing (i.e. leave caching to the client).
-	 * @param response the current HTTP response
-	 * @param seconds the (positive) number of seconds into the future that
-	 * the response should be cacheable for; 0 to prevent caching; and
-	 * a negative value to leave caching to the client.
-	 * @param mustRevalidate whether the client should revalidate the resource
-	 * (typically only necessary for controllers with last-modified support)
-	 */
-	protected final void applyCacheSeconds(HttpServletResponse response, int seconds, boolean mustRevalidate) {
-		if (seconds > 0) {
-			cacheForSeconds(response, seconds, mustRevalidate);
-		}
-		else if (seconds == 0) {
-			preventCaching(response);
-		}
-		// Leave caching to the client otherwise.
-	}
-
 }

spring-webmvc/src/main/java/org/springframework/web/servlet/view/json/AbstractJackson2View.java

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 /*
- * Copyright 2002-2014 the original author or authors.
+ * Copyright 2002-2015 the original author or authors.
  *
  * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
  * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -150,9 +150,7 @@ public abstract class AbstractJackson2View extends AbstractView {
 		setResponseContentType(request, response);
 		response.setCharacterEncoding(this.encoding.getJavaName());
 		if (this.disableCaching) {
-			response.addHeader("Pragma", "no-cache");
-			response.addHeader("Cache-Control", "no-cache, no-store, max-age=0");
-			response.addDateHeader("Expires", 1L);
+			response.addHeader("Cache-Control", "no-store");
 		}
 	}