The announcement of SASL (Simple Authentication and Security Layer) support in the memcached server version 1.4.3 has led to significant developments, especially in client capabilities. SASL integration enhances security by requiring authentication for client connections, which was previously absent in memcached. Initially supported by the spymemcached Java client, SASL is now also compatible with libmemcached, enabling broader application use. Implementing SASL involves configuring user credentials stored in a database, either system-wide or user-specific, and ensuring memcached employs the binary protocol. The process includes installing necessary libraries, setting up configuration files, and using tools like saslpasswd to manage user credentials. The integration of SASL with memcached allows for secure and authenticated data transactions, with examples provided for setting up and testing the functionality using both spymemcached and libmemcached clients.