CMS Made Simple Forums

The main cache folder is actually tmp/templates_c, but it actually sounds like your server may just be slow...

It is caching things like page templates module stuff etc. if you look at the files in it you will see that they say things that reflect what they are for, is best to leave them as it helps things render faster but no it doesn't "cache page.html" as that is not how a CMS works...

I had the same problem, site with less pages, and my host kept telling me to optimize my scripts, I compacted all my templates and CSS still no luck, moved to a new host with the exact same site and all ran like lightening, is why I say it most likely is a slow host, you probably are on a shared server and it is getting crowded from them overselling and all sites on it most likely are slow...

Do not change code of the core files and expect support if there is an error.
Sorry, but that are the rules.

I don't know what you're looking for.
There is no static cache in CMSms.
Only the smarty templates will be cached.
Page / module content will be loaded from the db.
Maybe your db is just too slow.

If you want static pages don't use a CMS.

You don't give any info about server config.
Dedicated server - even a new one - doesn't mean anything.

What does the comments at the bottom in the html source code of the frontend say about generation time, query count and memory usage?

Turn debug mode on (in config.php set $config['debug'] = true;) and do some investigations where the most ressources are used.

How many modules are used and what for?
How many modules/plugins/udts are used in your template or in eventmanager?

There are so many reasons that may slow down your page.
Maybe it is just a bad page setup. With too many queries, modules etc.
We need some more info about how your page is structured and working.

A DB that is not set as localhost can have a dramatic effect on site speed as it has to go to another server to get the info out of the DB to display on page, I had this exact problem on 1&1...

Good going, glad to hear it, if it is considered [solved] please add it to the subject line of your first post here...