A handful of Firefox tweaks that will double your browser speed
Firefox users take note: You need to do this. Now. As in, this instant. More savvy users are probably already familiar with editing Firefox’s configuration file but whether you’re a computer rookie or a seasoned veteran, Gnoted has issued a handful of tweaks that really get Firefox cooking. As much as we all love the fox, it can get a bit slow on occasion – especially if you’re like us and have 35 open tabs spread across four windows at any given time. By tweaking the way Firefox handles some caching functions, you can dramatically improve page load speed and even prevent Firefox from hogging your system resources while minimized. If you don’t currently have any experience playing with your configuration file, don’t be scared. Just follow the simple instructions, take your time and if you want a security blanket to squeeze, jot down each setting before you change it so you can always restore the default configuration if need be. So without further ado, hit the jump and get tweaking – just remember to restart Firefox when you’re done.
Reduce the amount of RAM Firefox uses for its cache feature
1. Type “about:config” (no quotes) in the adress bar in the browser.
2. Find “browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewer”
3. Set it’s value to “0“;(Zero)
Increase the Speed at Which Firefox loads pages
1. Type “about:config” into the address bar and hit Enter.
(Normally the browser will make one request to a web page at a time. When you enable pipelining it will make several at once, which really speeds up page loading.)
2. Alter the entries as follows:
Set “network.http.pipelining” to “true”
Set “network.http.proxy.pipelining” to “true”
Set “network.http.pipelining.maxrequests” to some number like 10.
This means it will make 10 requests at once.
3. Lastly, right-click anywhere and select New-> Integer. Name it “nglayout.initialpaint.delay” and set its value to “0“;.(Zero)
This value is the amount of time the browser waits before it acts on information it receives. If you’re using a broadband connection you’ll load pages faster now.
Optionally (for even faster web browsing) here are some more options for your about:config (you might have to create some of these entries by Right Click –> New– > Interger or String
network.dns.disableIPv6: set “false”
“content.notify.backoffcount”: set “5“; (Five)
“plugin.expose_full_path”: set “true”.
“ui.submenuDelay”: set “0; (zero)
Reduce RAM usage to 10MB when Firefox is minimized:
This little hack will drop Firefox’s RAM usage down to 10 Mb when minimized:
1. Open Firefox and go to the Address Bar. Type in about:config and then press Enter.
2. Right Click in the page and select New -> Boolean.
3. In the box that pops up enter “config.trim_on_minimize”. Press Enter.
4. Now select True and then press Enter.
5. Restart Firefox.
Thanks, Mel!
[Via Unplggd]
NOw….i get a lot of nothing….cursor does not respond….top bar reports “Firefox is not responding”, huh? How do I fix this?
thanx alot it really helped
Can this work some how with Seamonkey ?
The very first tweak messed up my configuration.
“Reduce the amount of RAM Firefox uses for its cache feature”
no good (for me)
“Increase the Speed at Which Firefox loads pages”
WORKS great! (for me)
“Reduce RAM usage to 10MB when Firefox is minimized”
Noticed no difference IN ram USAGE. (for me)
Thanks for the tweaks. Good work.
ya man maaaaaaaaaxxxxxxxxxxxxaaaaaaaa……….
:):):)
those r working 4 me…………..
THX
For someone who calls them self the “boy genius” you sure don’t know much about making Firefox “twice as fast”. Why would you ever want to decrease the amount of RAM that Firefox uses to zer0?! Do you have any idea what RAM is or what it is used for?
First and last visit I’ll ever make to this website
@syndre:
STFU n00b. You’re decreasing the amount of RAM used for caching, not how much Firefox actually uses you idiot. Perhaps you should learn to fucking read, maybe?
Hey, its really simple actually.
your welcome!
just right click it then select reset, then restart firfox and it will have been deleted.
Works great. Thanks.
Works great for me, thanks!
omg! that is now very fast using ubuntu linux, good one
Looks like reducing RAM isn’t popular. Glad I didn’t touch it..
Most of these settings were already set for me by default. could that be the fasterfox addon?