This site will have limited functionality while we undergo maintenance to improve your experience. If an article doesn't solve your issue and you want to ask a question, we have our support community waiting to help you at @FirefoxSupport on Twitter and/r/firefox on Reddit.

Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Too many spawn child processess and browser freeze

  • 5 replies
  • 3 have this problem
  • 14 views
  • Last reply by Mcgiwer

more options

Firefox spawn too many child processess, with cause the browser to freeze.

Proposed solution:

Reduce to absolute minimum the spawn child processess. The value should be set according to the device performance and additionally show allow the user to set manually the limits.

Example: 1 (maximal 3) child process per tab/window

Firefox spawn too many child processess, with cause the browser to freeze. Proposed solution: Reduce to absolute minimum the spawn child processess. The value should be set according to the device performance and additionally show allow the user to set manually the limits. Example: 1 (maximal 3) child process per tab/window

All Replies (5)

more options

FISSION: The links are sites explaining the Firefox's Project Fission. This is the reason for the processes you see in task manager.

You can turn fission off by setting it to false on the about:config page. see screenshot Here is more info. https://www.ghacks.net/2016/02/15/change-how-many-processes-multi-process-firefox-uses/

Introducing Firefox’s new Site Isolation Security Architecture https://hacks.mozilla.org/2021/05/introducing-firefox-new-site-isolation-security-architecture/

Firefox's Project Fission: better security and more processes https://www.ghacks.net/2019/02/07/firefoxs-project-fission-better-security-and-more-processes/

more options

The change didn't worked and even after changing the config value to a smaller number, firefox was independantly spawning a loot of child processess (minimum 30), even if there was opened only the dashboard or a about:blank page.

Any attempt's of clossing them thru a process manager were failing because them were restarted (restored) short after killing.

more options

Prefered solution:

When starting Firefox, there should be created few "container" child-processess (one for each kind) in with remaining child processes would be spawned. The example main "containers":

  • for extensions
  • for browser utilities
  • for content

In the content container, each page should have own sub-container. This way, It would be able to close it separatelly (for example if it stop ro response), without need to close firefox or kill it's process.

Additionally:

  • there should exist in "about:config" options to precise control the processess
  • garbage collectors, etc. should do anything instead of pretending doing it

Modified by Mcgiwer

more options
more options

After unchecking the "performance" option, the next options to control the efficiency not always appear.

Additionally, changing of some performance settings in the "about:config" seem to have no effect