[Performance] File browser slow with NAS storage due to /api/contents/ metadata checks

[cyneck]

Description

In the NAS storage environment, the JupyterLab left-side file browser responds slowly, especially due to frequent directory attribute information retrieval by the /api/contents/interface, leading to latency.

Reproduce

1. Configure the JupyterLab working directory to a NAS mount path

2. Open the left-side file browser and expand a directory containing a large number of files

3. Observe network requests, with the /api/contents/interface response time > 10 seconds

Expected behavior

Provide configuration options to skip unnecessary metadata retrieval, or implement a caching mechanism

Context

• JupyterLab version: 4.x.x
• Operating System: CentOS 8
• Storage: NAS (NFS/SMB)

[cyneck]

I made some optimizations in #1589 @michalc