Chrome for Android is set to receive an important update that will enhance the prioritization of background tabs containing user edits, such as forms and drafts. This new feature aims to reduce the risk of these tabs being prematurely closed by Android’s memory management system. Currently, this update is available in the Chrome Canary build (version 137), with an anticipated release in the stable channel around mid-May 2025. The primary goal of this improvement is to provide higher memory priority to certain tabs, which will effectively minimize data loss caused by the Android Low Memory Killer Daemon (LMKD).
In circumstances where memory is under pressure, LMKD can terminate less critical processes. Users of Chrome on Android often find that inactive tabs are automatically discarded if they have not been accessed for a while, or when the device faces memory constraints. Although the discarded tabs are moved to an “inactive tab folder” and can be restored later, any user edits made in those tabs, such as filled forms or drafts, are typically not saved. While most users might not leave important drafts inactive for extended periods, the new feature will ensure that populated fields in these tabs remain intact, providing peace of mind.
Analyst @Leopeva64 highlighted Google’s efforts on “protected tab memory priority” for Chrome on Android back in March. The associated patch has been merged into Chrome Canary, making it functional for testing in this experimental version. Users wishing to try the feature before it officially launches can activate two specific flags in the Canary build to enable the necessary memory management policies.
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