Eva's Guide to speeding up Firefox (multi-platform)
Posted: 24 Jun 2007, 17:47
Eva's Guide to speeding up Firefox
Here I'll provide you with simple steps for increasing your performance with Mozilla Firefox.
1. Enable pipe-lining (all platforms)
With pipe-lining enabled, your web browser will make multiple page requests simultaneously. Normally it makes only one request at a time.
In the address field type:- about:config. Hit Enter.
Look for the following entries and change their values to the provided:-
Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to "100".
Now right-click anywhere and go New > Integer.
Enter "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set the value to "0".
2. Optimise your Firefox profile with Firetune (Windows only)
Firetune is for unlocking the "many hidden speed tweaks for your computer and internet connection type. FireTune for Mozilla Firefox v1.x/v2.x was developed for an easy and fast optimization of your browsing experience with Firefox. It is based on a collection of popular and well working optimization settings used and tested by the experts. Usually you have to optimize Firefox manually, which can be time consuming and difficult for the novice user. FireTune helps you here - it includes all the performance optimizations. The only thing you must do is: make your selection. FireTune does the rest for you."
Ok, first grab MozBackup and use it to backup your profile, just in case.
Be sure to tick the "Extensions" box.
Now download and install Firetune. Now run Firetune and optimise your profile. Naturally "Fast computer / fast connection" will the best option for most people (1.5GHz+ CPU and 512MB+ RAM / broadband connection).
3. Utilise prefetching (All platforms)
Many of you maybe already doing this by running the Fasterfox extension. Uninstall that extension and install Fastererfox, the aforementioned extension with even more options.
In case you don't know what prefetching does:- Wikipedia to the rescue.
On the "Presets" tabs select "Turbo Charged".
On the "Thrash" tab tick all the checkboxes. This improvement of Fastererfox over the original Fasterfox extension lets you thwart the attempts by webmasters's at disabling Fasterfox's prefetching.
As for the "define how many number are items preloaded" radio buttons, set it to whatever you like. I've left it on the default "100".
NOTE: Many webmasters (especially those with limited bandwidth) hate Fasterfox. Prefetching can potentially eat a lot of a site's bandwidth. Whether you want to show courtesy or screw them is up to you.
On the "Fastererfox" tab, whether you tick the "Enable Enhanced Prefetching" tab is at your discretion. IMO fuck the webmasters, I want my pages to load faster.
Configuring Fastererfox will undo some of your pipelining settings from Step 1 (change the number of maxrequests). You'll have to restore this value every time after you've played around Fastererfox.
To restore this setting:-
Either A.
In the address field type:- about:config. Hit Enter.
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to "100".
or B.
Install and use the "Tweak Settings Settings" extension.
4. Run a build of Firefox optimised for your CPU and operating system (all platforms)
For Windows:- Go here. If you're running a 32-bit Windows then just grab one with the best instruction set supported by your CPU. Most CPUs of recent years should support SSE2. If you're unsure of the what instruction sets your CPU supports then download and run CPU-Z.
If you're running 64-bit Windows then grab the x64 AND x86 (32-bit) SSE2 builds. The commonly used plugins Flash and Java VM do not support 64-bit browsers (There is 64-bit Java, but fuck all is compiled with it). Run the x64 build as much as possible and use the x86 SSE2 build when neccessary (eg watching vids on Youtube).
For MacOS X (G4, G5, Intel Macs):-
Go here.
For Linux:-
Use the appropriate build of Swiftfox.
NOTE: Don't be alarmed by the build being titled Eg "Bon Echo" or "Minefield" (etc) rather than "Mozilla Firefox". (Bon Echo is the codename of the FF 2.x branch and Minefield is that of 3.x)
The Firefox name and icon are trademarked and cannot be used with non-official builds. These are non-official builds, so they cannot have the official branding. Pretty straight-forward. Please don’t ask me to build versions with the official branding.
5. (Windows only) Optimise Windows for net connection.
Download and run SG TCP Optimizer.
Click the "Optimal settings" radio button. Now adjust the "Connection Speed" slider to your ISP plan's maximum download speed.
Finally click "Apply changes" and reboot.
6. (Windows only) Increase the number of half-open connections
Since Windows XP SP2, the number of simultaneous outgoing connections you've been allowed has been limited to 10. This was to help stop the spread of worms to others once you've been infected. This comes at a price, in particular your P2P performance is severely crippled.
A much more in-depth explanation is available here.
If you're running WinXP SP2:-
Download this patch and set your number of half-opens to between 50-100. I've set mine to 100.
Alternatively you could use XP-antispy. Again set the value to between 50-100.
If you're using WinXP x64 SP2 or Win2003 x64 SP2:-
You may have to boot into safe mode for this part.
Download and install this modified "tcpip.sys" into your windows\system\drivers directory. Beforehand rename the existing "tcpip.sys" to something like "tcpip.sys.bak", just in case.
Reboot after applying any patch or utilising a hacked system file.
For Vista (both x86 and x64 flavours):-
Reportedly XPantispy does the job here too, just make sure you're running the latest version from the official site. (source)
Vista users give this link a look as well.
I don't have Vista installed so I can't verify anything. You're on your own.
Here I'll provide you with simple steps for increasing your performance with Mozilla Firefox.
1. Enable pipe-lining (all platforms)
With pipe-lining enabled, your web browser will make multiple page requests simultaneously. Normally it makes only one request at a time.
In the address field type:- about:config. Hit Enter.
Look for the following entries and change their values to the provided:-
Set "network.http.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.proxy.pipelining" to "true"
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to "100".
Now right-click anywhere and go New > Integer.
Enter "nglayout.initialpaint.delay" and set the value to "0".
2. Optimise your Firefox profile with Firetune (Windows only)
Firetune is for unlocking the "many hidden speed tweaks for your computer and internet connection type. FireTune for Mozilla Firefox v1.x/v2.x was developed for an easy and fast optimization of your browsing experience with Firefox. It is based on a collection of popular and well working optimization settings used and tested by the experts. Usually you have to optimize Firefox manually, which can be time consuming and difficult for the novice user. FireTune helps you here - it includes all the performance optimizations. The only thing you must do is: make your selection. FireTune does the rest for you."
Ok, first grab MozBackup and use it to backup your profile, just in case.
Be sure to tick the "Extensions" box.
Now download and install Firetune. Now run Firetune and optimise your profile. Naturally "Fast computer / fast connection" will the best option for most people (1.5GHz+ CPU and 512MB+ RAM / broadband connection).
3. Utilise prefetching (All platforms)
Many of you maybe already doing this by running the Fasterfox extension. Uninstall that extension and install Fastererfox, the aforementioned extension with even more options.
In case you don't know what prefetching does:- Wikipedia to the rescue.
On the "Presets" tabs select "Turbo Charged".
On the "Thrash" tab tick all the checkboxes. This improvement of Fastererfox over the original Fasterfox extension lets you thwart the attempts by webmasters's at disabling Fasterfox's prefetching.
As for the "define how many number are items preloaded" radio buttons, set it to whatever you like. I've left it on the default "100".
NOTE: Many webmasters (especially those with limited bandwidth) hate Fasterfox. Prefetching can potentially eat a lot of a site's bandwidth. Whether you want to show courtesy or screw them is up to you.
On the "Fastererfox" tab, whether you tick the "Enable Enhanced Prefetching" tab is at your discretion. IMO fuck the webmasters, I want my pages to load faster.
Configuring Fastererfox will undo some of your pipelining settings from Step 1 (change the number of maxrequests). You'll have to restore this value every time after you've played around Fastererfox.
To restore this setting:-
Either A.
In the address field type:- about:config. Hit Enter.
Set "network.http.pipelining.maxrequests" to "100".
or B.
Install and use the "Tweak Settings Settings" extension.
4. Run a build of Firefox optimised for your CPU and operating system (all platforms)
For Windows:- Go here. If you're running a 32-bit Windows then just grab one with the best instruction set supported by your CPU. Most CPUs of recent years should support SSE2. If you're unsure of the what instruction sets your CPU supports then download and run CPU-Z.
If you're running 64-bit Windows then grab the x64 AND x86 (32-bit) SSE2 builds. The commonly used plugins Flash and Java VM do not support 64-bit browsers (There is 64-bit Java, but fuck all is compiled with it). Run the x64 build as much as possible and use the x86 SSE2 build when neccessary (eg watching vids on Youtube).
For MacOS X (G4, G5, Intel Macs):-
Go here.
For Linux:-
Use the appropriate build of Swiftfox.
NOTE: Don't be alarmed by the build being titled Eg "Bon Echo" or "Minefield" (etc) rather than "Mozilla Firefox". (Bon Echo is the codename of the FF 2.x branch and Minefield is that of 3.x)
The Firefox name and icon are trademarked and cannot be used with non-official builds. These are non-official builds, so they cannot have the official branding. Pretty straight-forward. Please don’t ask me to build versions with the official branding.
5. (Windows only) Optimise Windows for net connection.
Download and run SG TCP Optimizer.
Click the "Optimal settings" radio button. Now adjust the "Connection Speed" slider to your ISP plan's maximum download speed.
Finally click "Apply changes" and reboot.
6. (Windows only) Increase the number of half-open connections
Since Windows XP SP2, the number of simultaneous outgoing connections you've been allowed has been limited to 10. This was to help stop the spread of worms to others once you've been infected. This comes at a price, in particular your P2P performance is severely crippled.
A much more in-depth explanation is available here.
If you're running WinXP SP2:-
Download this patch and set your number of half-opens to between 50-100. I've set mine to 100.
Alternatively you could use XP-antispy. Again set the value to between 50-100.
If you're using WinXP x64 SP2 or Win2003 x64 SP2:-
You may have to boot into safe mode for this part.
Download and install this modified "tcpip.sys" into your windows\system\drivers directory. Beforehand rename the existing "tcpip.sys" to something like "tcpip.sys.bak", just in case.
Reboot after applying any patch or utilising a hacked system file.
For Vista (both x86 and x64 flavours):-
Reportedly XPantispy does the job here too, just make sure you're running the latest version from the official site. (source)
Vista users give this link a look as well.
I don't have Vista installed so I can't verify anything. You're on your own.