Filed under: Mozilla, Browser Tips, How-Tos, Browsers
Speed up Firefox by cleaning out your SQLite databases
At Mozilla Links, they've shared another handy tip from Mozilla developer Jeremy Orem.
His advice: take a vacuum to your SQLite databases. Here's how to do it:
- Open the Firefox tools menu and click on error console.
- Paste the following command into the code box as a single line (as pictured):
Components.classes["@mozilla.org/browser/nav-history-service;1"].getService(Components.interfaces.nsPIPlacesDatabase).DBConnection.executeSimpleSQL("VACUUM"); - Hit [enter] or click the evaluate button.
[via Lifehacker]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Taai said 6:14PM on 8-24-2009
And all the time I tough that huge pile of bookmarks are slowing down my browser... This does the job just fine. Thank you!
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Simon said 6:39PM on 8-24-2009
Appears to work in FF 3.5 only (I haven't yet upgraded for various reasons).
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der_tuxman said 6:42PM on 8-24-2009
You can also do that via batch file / shell script:
http://www.gettingclever.com/2008/06/vacuum-your-firefox-3.html
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Kevin said 7:03PM on 8-24-2009
Can you explain further what the SQlite database is responsible for in Firefox and how often it can/should be done? Seems weird to just explain how to fix something without explaining what it's fixing or how often it can be done.
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iofthestorm said 7:38PM on 8-24-2009
The SQLite database is the backend for bookmarks and history. The bookmarks/history system has been this way since Firefox 3, and is called Places.
Kevin said 9:35PM on 8-24-2009
@iof
Thanks for the info.
minibar said 1:55AM on 8-25-2009
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox
according to mozilla urlclassifier3.sqlite is for phishing (malware) protection.
however, i'm unsure why it fragments and bloats so much or how important this becomes. from what i'm reading before these are typically around 50mb and after around 30mb--mine is 44mb after.
while looking into this i discovered an important settings in about:config that deals with the issue in tools->options where history or cache is kept for a minimum number of days but typically grows far beyond. dls's thesmilkman on comment number 5 in this post covers it. idk if there's any performance gain, but i'm pretty sure i don't need a copy of some webpage i viewed a month ago.
http://www.downloadsquad.com/2009/03/31/firefox-slow-limit-history-size-for-speed-improvement?icid=sphere_blogsmith_inpage_downloadsquad
minibar said 7:08PM on 8-24-2009
apparently, there's also an addon for this?
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/13824
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minibar said 7:38PM on 8-24-2009
here's an improved version (good config) i tried.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/13878
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Bryan Price said 9:35PM on 8-24-2009
Well, this seems to be working. But I had to do it for my installed 3.5.2, my portable 3.5.3 nightly, my portable 3.6 nightly, and my portable 3.7 nightly (what I'm responding with atm)
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hao said 10:27AM on 8-25-2009
Yeah its working great for me so far. :)
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Peter said 8:36AM on 9-07-2009
Thanks for this tip. FF is much faster now.
It took my places db from 70 Megs down to 3!!!
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