Having several tabs opened is perfectly normal. You want to search for something else but you do not want to close the previous tabs so you try to open another tab. The cycle goes on until you can see at least 5 tabs opened in Google Chrome browser.
While this is okay, you might notice that the tabs in your Chrome keeps reloading. Some people might be frustrated by the refreshing of Chrome tabs they do not use while others just do not want to wait when the tabs have completely loaded.
Why does Chrome Keeps on Refreshing Tabs?
Chrome wants to help its users save on resources as much as possible. That is why, it has a function called Tab Discarding and Reloading where it loads a page upon request. This means that if you want to use a particular tab that is already opened, Chrome will automatically refresh it for you.
So, why does Chrome need to refresh an open tab? When you open a tab and left it on the background, Chrome will pause it to conserve resources. The page will simply sit on the RAM and wait until you want to get back to it. The memory that is supposed to be used on that page will be used in other tabs, so it maximizes the use of your computer resources.
By the time you want to get back on that page, Chrome will then reload it as it has been purged from memory. That is why, you can see your page even if you have lost your Internet connection.
What To Do – How to Prevent Chrome from Automatically Reloading Open Tabs
What you can do is to disable Tab Discarding in the Chrome browser settings. Before following the solutions below, make sure that you are not running Google Chrome version 75 and up as these methods only work on versions before that.
To do so, follow the steps below:
- On a new tab, type chrome://flags and press Enter.
- On the search box, type Tab Discarding and press Enter.
- Look for Automatic tab discarding and click to open.
- From the drop-down menu on the right, choose Disabled.
- Click Relaunch Now to save the changes.
You can also disable auto-reloading of visible tabs.
- On a new tab, type chrome://flags and press Enter.
- On the search box, type Only Auto-Reload Visible Tabs and press Enter.
- Click Only Auto-Reload Visible Tabs to open.
- Choose Disabled from the drop-down menu.
- Click Relaunch Now.
Final Thoughts!
There may be some good opinions on Tab Discarding while other people wants to have more control. It all depends on what you need at the moment. So, best to test out both sides and see which ones work for you.
What do you think Chrome’s Tab Discarding? Are you in favor of enabling it or disabling it? Tell us which side are you and why.
Please note that flags are experimental features in Google Chrome. They may be removed in the next iterations of the browser.
None of these options show in my chrome
It doesn’t work for me
doesn’t work
Wanted to point out that the flags have already been removed since Google Chrome 75. So, you won’t see the options mentioned in this post if you are using the latest version of Chrome. Shout out to one of our readers for pointing that out. Cheers!
So is there a fix or are you just gonna say “oops sorry figure it out yourself”?
There is no fix, some extensions work for it. But for the most part there is no fix, it is in no way their fault for chrome removing that feature, and they are not obligated to provide an update.
Then remove the f*ing article or post that clearly at the top of it. I, for one, am sick of Google adding “features” like Microsoft that no one asked for, and/or then structuring search results so that “turning the damn things off” brings up an article that is out of date and irrelevant.
My ship has a slow internet connection and chrome is constantly sitting for ten minutes of my workday reloading a tab I was literally just using because some dumb*ss developer decided it was “helpful”.
What about newer versions of Chrome? Is there a way? I have version 86
lier t does not work
It’s messing up Youtube video because it reloads and forgets where you left off. Most irritating
I’m on a newer Chrome version, have no idea how to work around the problem. I just want some sort of suspend function back, just like in the older browsers
chrome://discards/ and auto discardable disable
it doesn’t show the options givene above, what to do?
This not even a thing anymore.
dude go to chrome://discards/ thats where you can do it just make sure each one has a x on it
Its not to “save memory” its so they can load new advertisements and make money..
doesnt work-
“Only Auto-Reload Visible Tabs” doesn’t exist anymore. Any other option? Thanks!