The have_query_cache server system variable indicates whether the query cache is available:

mysql> SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'have_query_cache';
+------------------+-------+
| Variable_name    | Value |
+------------------+-------+
| have_query_cache | YES   |
+------------------+-------+

When using a standard MySQL binary, this value is always YES, even if query caching is disabled.

Several other system variables control query cache operation. These can be set in an option file or on the command line when starting mysqld. The query cache system variables all have names that begin with query_cache_. They are described briefly in Section 5.1.3, “Server System Variables”, with additional configuration information given here.

To set the size of the query cache, set the query_cache_size system variable. Setting it to 0 disables the query cache. The default size is 0, so the query cache is disabled by default.

MySQL Enterprise.  For expert advice on configuring the query cache, subscribe to the MySQL Enterprise Monitor. For more information, see http://www.mysql.com/products/enterprise/advisors.html.

When you set query_cache_size to a nonzero value, keep in mind that the query cache needs a minimum size of about 40KB to allocate its structures. (The exact size depends on system architecture.) If you set the value too small, you'll get a warning, as in this example:

mysql> SET GLOBAL query_cache_size = 40000;
Query OK, 0 rows affected, 1 warning (0.00 sec)

mysql> SHOW WARNINGS\G
*************************** 1. row ***************************
  Level: Warning
   Code: 1282
Message: Query cache failed to set size 39936;
         new query cache size is 0

mysql> SET GLOBAL query_cache_size = 41984;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

mysql> SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'query_cache_size';
+------------------+-------+
| Variable_name    | Value |
+------------------+-------+
| query_cache_size | 41984 |
+------------------+-------+

For the query cache to actually be able to hold any query results, its size must be set larger:

mysql> SET GLOBAL query_cache_size = 1000000;
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.04 sec)

mysql> SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'query_cache_size';
+------------------+--------+
| Variable_name    | Value  |
+------------------+--------+
| query_cache_size | 999424 |
+------------------+--------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

The query_cache_size value is aligned to the nearest 1024 byte block. The value reported may therefore be different from the value that you assign.

If the query cache size is greater than 0, the query_cache_type variable influences how it works. This variable can be set to the following values:

Setting the GLOBAL query_cache_type value determines query cache behavior for all clients that connect after the change is made. Individual clients can control cache behavior for their own connection by setting the SESSION query_cache_type value. For example, a client can disable use of the query cache for its own queries like this:

mysql> SET SESSION query_cache_type = OFF;

If you set query_cache_type at server startup (rather than at runtime with a SET statement), only the numeric values are allowed.

To control the maximum size of individual query results that can be cached, set the query_cache_limit system variable. The default value is 1MB.

When a query is to be cached, its result (the data sent to the client) is stored in the query cache during result retrieval. Therefore the data usually is not handled in one big chunk. The query cache allocates blocks for storing this data on demand, so when one block is filled, a new block is allocated. Because memory allocation operation is costly (timewise), the query cache allocates blocks with a minimum size given by the query_cache_min_res_unit system variable. When a query is executed, the last result block is trimmed to the actual data size so that unused memory is freed. Depending on the types of queries your server executes, you might find it helpful to tune the value of query_cache_min_res_unit:

MySQL Enterprise.  If the query cache is under-utilized, performance will suffer. Advice on avoiding this problem is provided to subscribers to the MySQL Enterprise Monitor. For more information, see http://www.mysql.com/products/enterprise/advisors.html.