How to Fix a Firefox Memory Leak
The open source web browser Firefox has grown increasingly popular due to its extensibility, enhanced security and a slate of other features that make browsing the web easier. One drawback to the modular model of development, however, is that Firefox is especially prone to memory leaks. Memory leaks occur when an application is unable to release or reduce memory consumption when the program is open. Many users are plagued with Firefox memory leak issues that cause their system to become unstable or slow. Resolving the memory leak issues requires assessing a variety of possible causes, but with a careful check, you can ensure that Firefox is running optimally.
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Instructions
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Remove and/or Update Extensions
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1
Launch Firefox. Review the list of problematic extensions supplied by Mozilla.
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2
Remove any problematic extensions. Select "Tools," "Add-ons" to load the Firefox extensions manager. Highlight the extension you wish to uninstall and click "Uninstall."
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3
Update all extensions by clicking "Find Updates" in the Firefox extensions manager. Restart Firefox.
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4
Examine memory usage to ensure that the problem was resolved. If Firefox continues to suffer memory leaks, proceed to the next step.
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5
Restart Firefox in safe mode. Click "Start," "Run," and then enter the following command to start Firefox in safe mode:
firefox -safe-mode -
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Examine memory usage to determine if another extension is causing the memory leak. If Firefox experiences any memory leaks, then it is likely that an extension is causing the problem.
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7
Restart Firefox in normal mode. Disable all extensions. Select "Tools" and "Add-ons" to load the Firefox extensions manager. Highlight each installed extension and click "Disable."
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8
Enable one extension at a time and then restart Firefox. Examine memory usage while just one extension is enabled to determine which extensions in particular are causing memory leaks. If you are able to isolate specific extensions that cause an unreasonable increase in memory usage, uninstall it as per Step 2.
Clear Private Data
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9
Launch Firefox. Select "Tools," "Clear Recent History." Select "Everything" from the time range to clear.
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10
Click "Details" and ensure that "Browsing & Download History," "Form & Search History," "Cookies," and "Cache" are all checked.
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11
Click "Clear Now." Firefox stores all user data in SQL databases that can slow down performance if they become too large.
Block Scripts and Flash
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12
Launch Firefox.
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13
Install either the NoScript extension or the Flashblock extension. Simply click "Add to Firefox" and restart to enable. These extensions will prevent Firefox from loading memory consuming scripts and Flash objects until you explicitly allow those elements to be displayed.
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14
Restart Firefox.
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Tips & Warnings
If you use the WindowBlinds application to install themes on your computer, you should block Firefox from being included in the theme. WindowBlinds is known to cause high levels of memory usage in Firefox.
