Tag Archives: firefox

Vacuum your Firefox 3

Posted by on February 3, 2010 No comments | This post has 1,614 views.

This tip will hopefully speed up your Firefox 3 by optimizing it’s database.
Firefox stores your browsing data using SQLite – self contained, small footprint database.
Having database store your browsing data has one drawback, you have to optimize the database from time to time to get rid of old, deleted data, re-index the columns etc.
Otherwise you keep all the junk data mixed in with your real data.
In SQLite is the statement to do this called VACUUM. So here’s how to vacuum your Firefox:

1. Download sqlite command line client for your platform. In Ubuntu, go to yout terminal and issue the following command:

2. Turn off your Firefox
3. Go to your profile folder
4. Issue the command:
* For Linux

* For Windows

Enjoy!

Install Firefox Add-ons for all Users

Posted by on November 12, 2007 1 comment | This post has 2,056 views.

It is possible to install Firefox add-ons for all users that use a computer instead of installing them for every user separately. This is helpful if you are the computer guy in the family for instance and want everyone to have a basic set of extensions enabled that add functionality and security to the accounts.

The process of installing Firefox add-ons globally looks like the following. Download the xpi file instead of clicking on it which would install it directly. Once the add-on has been downloaded you use the following command at the run prompt (type Windows R):
firefox -install-global-extension

Let me give you an example:
firefox -install-global-extension c:\extension.xpi
The add-on will be silently installed and is available normally afterwards in the Tools > Add-ons menu of Firefox. Only administrators may uninstall the add-on but it is working for all users who are running Firefox.