Memory leak with Firefox?

[fj12ryder]

I'm running Firefox Rev. 82.0 and having horrible issues with memory leaks. Leaving one window, with one tab open results in over 2 gig of memory being tied up over a couple hours. And eventually it locks up the computer.

Anyone else having issues?

I'm also using Chrome and IE, and neither of them show any such problem.

Windows 7 Pro.

[fj12ryder]

Garry, that really helped a bunch. Thanks for the help, it's still using too much memory, and not releasing as it should, but it is tons better. It no longer crashes after a few hours of usage.

[garry1p]

I really wanted to continue using Firefox but memory usage was out of site.
What I did.

click on tools / options / scroll down to performance uncheck hardware acceleration / change processor limit to 2.

cut my memory usage from over 1GB to 400/500 MB no noticeable changes in performance that I could tell.

Let me know if this helps since I discovered this by trial and error would like to know if others have the same results.

[CFerguson]

gemsworld wrote:
I have been a faithful Firefox user for many years, mainly because of the add-ons. I finally threw the towel in a few weeks ago and switched to Edge. I could no longer take the constant freezes and lockups caused by Firefox.

Wow, interesting. I've run FF for years but without addons and have never experienced a lockup. fwiw, i usually have 10-12 tabs open at a time.

[1492]

No, not really seeing memory leak through memory usage appears higher than previous versions. Firefox is releasing memory, slow in my case. In fact, seeing 603MB with 2-tabs open, one being media heavy. In Chrome, which is also open, I'm currently using 1,500 MB. Though on Adobe Max streaming webinars all day, not really surprising? BTW, Adobe Max is free this year, which ends today. Many of the workshop sessions will still be available on-demand. Helpful expert tips if you are using Adobe CC apps.

Are you using any Firefox add-on/extensions which can be a source of memory leaks? You can try restarting in 'Help > Restart with Add-ons Disabled'. And check if memory leaks still exists?

Also, modern websites rely heavily on media and scripting, and poorly written scripts in particular, can result in browser memory leaks.

[Ramblin__Ralph]

I just updated to FF 82.0 yesterday and ran into the same "slow" problem and noticed a couple of FF processes using 2+ gigs. I do keep a lot of tabs open, but never had this problem before.

[zigzagrv]

Been using 'BRAVE' browser now for about a year and have had no problems on my Windows 7 desktop, Windows 10 laptop and phone and tablet. Loads fast and blocks ads. Not a memory hog either.

[Community Alumni]

I have been a faithful Firefox user for many years, mainly because of the add-ons. I finally threw the towel in a few weeks ago and switched to Edge. I could no longer take the constant freezes and lockups caused by Firefox.

[theoldwizard1]

One of the best diagnostic tools Microsoft ever invent is perfmon /res. Start it from a command prompt window. It will show you who is being the memory hog.

[fj12ryder]

I usually have Chrome and FF open at the same time, but it hasn't been an issue until just a couple days ago. Got so bad one night, it crashed the computer. That's never happened before. I don't run many add-ons and the ones I have don't show any problems using the FF task manager. I'll just have to keep shutting it down when not active using it, and hope it's their problem, and they're working on it.

[CFerguson]

Gdetrailer is dead on re security. Anything microsoft will report your every move back to Central for future sales. And they are far from the only big offender.
I run every anonymizer i can think of, clear all data after a login (like to here) when i leave the site, and switch VPN IPs regularly. I'm not trying to beat the NSA, just the sleazebags that want to sell my privacy.

As to OP, I'm not seeing any problem with FF (latest version whatever that is) and agree with shut down and restart as a first option. Could it be competing browsers if you have them open at the same time?

[fj12ryder]

Thanks for the info about their forum. I may drop by and see if I'm an anomaly. I had heard some stuff about Win 10 that I didn't care for, and as far as Win 7...if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

[Gdetrailer]

fj12ryder wrote:
Very true, I just haven't seen anything that Win10 will do that I can't live without. Security could be an issue, but so far so good, as the optimist said when he passed the 3rd floor after falling off the roof.

Saying Win10, Edge AND "Security" all in the same sentence is an oxymoron.

Win 10 and all of it's internal components leak information back to the "homeland" at MS. That information is collected to learn your computing and web surfing habits. What you use, how much you use and what you consume, YOU ARE "THE PRODUCT".

Your personal habits and the information generated from using the software is a huge money maker and MS has made considerable attempts to prevent you from opting out.

MS takes that information that their OS and software collects and now can target you with intrusive ads, they can sell that information to anyone they want to and there is zero you can do to stop it other than stop using Win10 products.

That is the single main reason as to why MS "Gave" Win 10 away from Win7, Win8 products which MS gave a "free" upgrade to Win10, NO company just gives something away for nothing and stay in business without having some backdoor to make more money.

Pretty much same model is used by inkjet printer companies, they sell the printer for less than the cost to manufacture, but beat you over the head on insanely expensive ink refills.. Yeah, $40 ink cartridge has less than two cents worth of ink..

Granted FF and all of its' other variations along with Chrome does the same thing but at least with FF you can have options to allow you to trim back a lot of those security issues.

If you are using Win10, I would recommend using O&O Shutup win10 which allows you to opt out of a lot of the unneeded intrusive telementry.

As far as the FF memory leak, sometimes excessive memory leaks can be traced to poorly written addons it it just may be the nature of that release version.. May have to wait until the next release to see if it gets fixed..

FF does have feedback on their forums, you might wish to take it up there?

[fj12ryder]

Very true, I just haven't seen anything that Win10 will do that I can't live without. Security could be an issue, but so far so good, as the optimist said when he passed the 3rd floor after falling off the roof.

I agree, FF has always had issues, but this is beyond anything that's come before. With one window open on RV.net, memory usage will exceed 2 gig in a couple hours not even viewing the page. Totally insane.

[Gdetrailer]

Nothing new, FF has always had an history of being a memory hog with plenty of memory leaks.

Close browser and restart when that happens.

However, in spite of this, FF IS my preferred go to browser because I can add a few addons like AdBlockPlus NoScript which makes it a much more secure browser with a lot less chance of driveby malware taking a stab at my PCs.

Win7 Pro? Yeah, like myself running some PCs with XP, you NEED to run a browser with as many types of lockdowns as possible since MS has discontinued all support for non commercial customers.

Chrome and IE, no so much for security and in a lot of cases the last version of IE 11 which can be run on Win7 is not accepted by many websites like ADP and banks. Ironically meaning even Win8, Win8.1 and Win10 folks using IE11 have the same issue of some websites rejecting IE11.