Do you have this Problem? i do..and this is how we solved it.
Firefox sometimes uses more memory than it should. It is a very complicated issue caused my many things, including memory leaks, faulty third party applications, and a change in the habits of web users. This article describes how to make Firefox use less memory (RAM).
Extensions and themes
Extensions and themes can cause Firefox to use more memory than it normally would. Starting Firefox in Firefox Safe Mode and observing its memory usage, will tell you whether extensions and themes are significant memory consumers for you. If you notice a significant improvement, you can try disabling or uninstalling extensions.
* To start Firefox in Firefox Safe Mode, see the Troubleshooting Add-ons? article.
Plugins
Older versions of plugins can consume large amounts of memory. You should make sure you're using the latest versions of your plugins.
If your are still having problems, there are some workarounds for specific plugins listed below.
Adobe PDF Reader
Adobe Reader SpeedUp is a free Windows utility that disables various features of Adobe PDF Reader to improve performance and decrease memory usage.
Flash
Flash content is among the most common content that requires a plugin. Often, Flash isn't required for a site to function. The Flashblock extension will stop Flash content from loading automatically; it will replace Flash content with a button you can press if you wish to see it. Because less Flash content will load, the Flash plugin will be invoked fewer times and use less memory.
* To download Flashblock, go to addons.mozilla.org.
Download history
Firefox can use excessive memory if you have a large download history. The solution is to simply clear your download history.
1. At the top of the Firefox window, click the Tools menu, and select Clear Private Data.... The Clear Private Data window will open.
2. In the Clear Private Data window, select Download History and deselect the other items.
3. Click Clear Private Data Now.
Settings that reduce memory usage
Firefox has hidden settings that let you change how it uses memory.
Memory cache
Firefox caches image and interface data in memory so they can be displayed quickly. You can see how much memory Firefox uses for this purpose.
1. Type about:cache in the Location Bar at the top of the Firefox window and press Enter.
2. A page listing your Firefox cache information should appear. Under the Memory cache device heading, Maximum storage size refers to the maximum amount of memory Firefox will use for this purpose, and Storage in use refers to the current amount of memory Firefox is using for this purpose.
By default, Firefox will use more memory on computers with more memory installed. You can change the limit for your computer.
Lowering the amount of memory available for caching will increase the amount of time Firefox takes to display web pages and dialogs.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. The about:config page should appear. Right-clickHold down the Ctrl key while you click anywhere in the grid and choose New, then Integer.
3. In the Enter the preference name prompt, type browser.cache.memory.capacity and press OK.
4. Next, type the maximum number of kilobytes you want Firefox to use for cache and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference browser.cache.memory.capacity.
3. Right-click the entry for browser.cache.memory.capacity and press Reset.
Blazingly fast back
Firefox stores pages in memory so they can be displayed quickly when you press Back or Forward. By default, Firefox will use more memory on computers that have more memory installed. You can change the maximum number of pages Firefox will store for this purpose on your computer.
Lowering the number of stored pages will slow down Firefox when you press Back or Forward.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
3. In the browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers prompt, type the maximum number of pages you want Firefox to store and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers.
3. Right-click the entry for browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers and press Reset.
Behavior on minimize
By default, Firefox will allow Windows to reclaim its memory when Windows needs it for other programs. Firefox can be configured to allow Windows to reclaim its memory immediately.
Allowing Windows to reclaim the memory immediately will make Firefox slower to come up after being minimized.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. The about:config page should appear. Right-click anywhere in the grid and choose New, then Boolean.
3. In the Enter the preference name prompt, type config.trim_on_minimize and press OK.
4. Next, choose True and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press EnterReturn.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference config.trim_on_minimize.
3. Right-click the entry for config.trim_on_minimize and press Reset.
Restarting Firefox
Firefox's memory usage may increase if it's left open for long periods of time. A workaround for this is to periodically restart Firefox. You can configure Firefox to save your tabs and windows so that when you start it again, you can start where you left off.
more tips at supportmozilla
Firefox sometimes uses more memory than it should. It is a very complicated issue caused my many things, including memory leaks, faulty third party applications, and a change in the habits of web users. This article describes how to make Firefox use less memory (RAM).
This issue is among many that can be solved by upgrading to Firefox 3.
Extensions and themes
Extensions and themes can cause Firefox to use more memory than it normally would. Starting Firefox in Firefox Safe Mode and observing its memory usage, will tell you whether extensions and themes are significant memory consumers for you. If you notice a significant improvement, you can try disabling or uninstalling extensions.
* To start Firefox in Firefox Safe Mode, see the Troubleshooting Add-ons? article.
Plugins
Older versions of plugins can consume large amounts of memory. You should make sure you're using the latest versions of your plugins.
If your are still having problems, there are some workarounds for specific plugins listed below.
Adobe PDF Reader
Adobe Reader SpeedUp is a free Windows utility that disables various features of Adobe PDF Reader to improve performance and decrease memory usage.
Flash
Flash content is among the most common content that requires a plugin. Often, Flash isn't required for a site to function. The Flashblock extension will stop Flash content from loading automatically; it will replace Flash content with a button you can press if you wish to see it. Because less Flash content will load, the Flash plugin will be invoked fewer times and use less memory.
* To download Flashblock, go to addons.mozilla.org.
Download history
Firefox can use excessive memory if you have a large download history. The solution is to simply clear your download history.
1. At the top of the Firefox window, click the Tools menu, and select Clear Private Data.... The Clear Private Data window will open.
2. In the Clear Private Data window, select Download History and deselect the other items.
3. Click Clear Private Data Now.
Settings that reduce memory usage
Firefox has hidden settings that let you change how it uses memory.
Memory cache
Firefox caches image and interface data in memory so they can be displayed quickly. You can see how much memory Firefox uses for this purpose.
1. Type about:cache in the Location Bar at the top of the Firefox window and press Enter.
2. A page listing your Firefox cache information should appear. Under the Memory cache device heading, Maximum storage size refers to the maximum amount of memory Firefox will use for this purpose, and Storage in use refers to the current amount of memory Firefox is using for this purpose.
By default, Firefox will use more memory on computers with more memory installed. You can change the limit for your computer.
Lowering the amount of memory available for caching will increase the amount of time Firefox takes to display web pages and dialogs.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. The about:config page should appear. Right-clickHold down the Ctrl key while you click anywhere in the grid and choose New, then Integer.
3. In the Enter the preference name prompt, type browser.cache.memory.capacity and press OK.
4. Next, type the maximum number of kilobytes you want Firefox to use for cache and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference browser.cache.memory.capacity.
3. Right-click the entry for browser.cache.memory.capacity and press Reset.
Blazingly fast back
Firefox stores pages in memory so they can be displayed quickly when you press Back or Forward. By default, Firefox will use more memory on computers that have more memory installed. You can change the maximum number of pages Firefox will store for this purpose on your computer.
Lowering the number of stored pages will slow down Firefox when you press Back or Forward.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2.The about:config page should appear. Search for the preference browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers, and double-click on it.
3. In the browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers prompt, type the maximum number of pages you want Firefox to store and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers.
3. Right-click the entry for browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers and press Reset.
Behavior on minimize
By default, Firefox will allow Windows to reclaim its memory when Windows needs it for other programs. Firefox can be configured to allow Windows to reclaim its memory immediately.
Allowing Windows to reclaim the memory immediately will make Firefox slower to come up after being minimized.
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press Enter.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. The about:config page should appear. Right-click anywhere in the grid and choose New, then Boolean.
3. In the Enter the preference name prompt, type config.trim_on_minimize and press OK.
4. Next, choose True and press OK.
If you want to set the preference back to its default value:
1. In the Location bar, type about:config, and press EnterReturn.
* The about:config "This might void your warranty!" warning page may appear. Click I'll be careful, I promise!, to continue to the about:config page.
2. Search for the preference config.trim_on_minimize.
3. Right-click the entry for config.trim_on_minimize and press Reset.
Restarting Firefox
Firefox's memory usage may increase if it's left open for long periods of time. A workaround for this is to periodically restart Firefox. You can configure Firefox to save your tabs and windows so that when you start it again, you can start where you left off.
more tips at supportmozilla
ZoSo
July 20, 2008 3:00 AM
Thanks a lot for this tips man.
Got a question, in browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers, the default numer is -1. What is it means?
Thanks again.-
aren
July 20, 2008 3:11 AM
Firefox has a preference browser.sessionhistory.max_total_viewers which by default is set to -1. When set to this value, Firefox calculates the amount of memory in the system, according to this breakdown:
RAM Number of Cached Pages
32MB 0
64MB 1
128MB 2
256MB 3
512MB 5
1GB 8
2GB 8
4GB 8
No more than 8 pages are ever cached in this fashion, by default. If you set this preference to another value, e.g. 25, 25 pages will be cached. You can set it to 0 to disable the feature, but your page load performance will suffer.
The numbers on the right determine how many pages will be kept in history and the amount on the left is how much memory will be used for keeping the history.
Decide which on you would like to use, this will depend on your personal browsing habits.
if you want to know more there's a lots of info you can find here-weblogs.mozillazine.org.
ZoSo
July 20, 2008 3:21 AM
Thanks, your tips are really usefull.