# How To Speed Up Opera | Flags Tweaks For Better Browsing Experience

**URL:** <https://onehack.st/t/how-to-speed-up-opera-flags-tweaks-for-better-browsing-experience/177016>\
**Category:** Tutorials & Methods\
**Tags:** networking, tips-tricks, windows\
**Created:** [March 13, 2022, 9:49pm UTC](https://onehack.st/t/how-to-speed-up-opera-flags-tweaks-for-better-browsing-experience/177016 "2022-03-13T21:49:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![TheStrength](https://onehack.st/user_avatar/onehack.st/thestrength/32/46753_2.png) [@TheStrength](https://onehack.st/u/TheStrength)\
**Post date:** [March 13, 2022, 9:49pm UTC](https://onehack.st/t/how-to-speed-up-opera-flags-tweaks-for-better-browsing-experience/177016/1 "2022-03-13T21:49:00Z")

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Similar to other browsers, **Opera also comes with experimental features that can enhance your browsing experience**. Whether you are looking to speed up browsing, enhance security or just want to tweak the user interface, you should be able to find **an Opera flag that can help with it.**

Here’s a list of **14 handy Opera flags** that will improve your browsing experience. Though, these experimental features are still **not finalized and may backfire** , but we have tried to pick the most stable ones.

If any of these tweaks negatively affect your browsing, **simply set it to default again.**

#### Access Opera Flags Page

 ![image](https://onehack.st/uploads/default/original/3X/8/f/8f07392d24d694e495ef83d8a3172d928afb44c1.jpeg)

You can **go to Opera Flags page** to access all these experimental features. In the Opera address bar, type **“opera:flags”** and hit **Enter**. All the experimental features will open up and you can use the search bar at the top **to search for specific feature**.

**Note:** To access the features listed below, you can **enter their name** in the above search bar to directly move to them. We have also listed direct links below each flag. If you are **using Opera, simply click on the link** and you will be automatically directed to the particular flag.

#### 1. Enable Opera VPN in private window only

If you are an Opera user, then you may already know that Opera recently added a **free VPN in its browser**. When you enable it, you will see a VPN button next to the address bar that you can **use to turn on/off the VPN**.

I usually don’t use VPN all the time, but when I do use VPN; **I use it in private window for extra anonymity**. If you are like me then there is no need of a big VPN button in normal browsing.

**Here is how you do it:**

1. Enable **“Opera VPN”** flag in the experiments.
2. Then disable the actual Opera VPN option from the Opera **“Privacy & security”** setting.

Now the VPN button will only show up when you will open a private window.

**Opera VPN:** `(opera://flags/#browser-vpn)`

#### 2. Disable Search Box in the Address bar

Right next to the address bar, is a search bar that you can use to **search your required queries**. If you prefer to enter your queries directly in the address bar, you can opt to remove the search bar. Well, the **extra space could be used for managing extensions**.

To remove the search bar, disable the **“Search box in the address bar”** flag. After restarting, you will see that the search bar has been removed.

**Search box in the address bar:** `(opera://flags/#search-box-in-address-bar)`

#### 3. Turn off User Surveys

Have you been **requested to complete a survey to improve browsing experience?** If you don’t like such requests, you can turn them off from these Opera flags.

Search for **“User surveys”** flag and disable it. Now these surveys will leave you alone.

**User surveys:** `(opera://flags/#surveys)`

#### 4. Warn about local, unknown roots

If an **HTTPS connection is being hosted locally with public unknown roots** , you can tell Opera to let you know about it. This is vital if you are visiting an unknown website with locally hosted HTTPS connection, and want to be careful **before trusting them with your data**.

Enable the flag **“Warn about local, unknown roots”** and you see unprotected connection warning whenever you will visit a website with SSL certificates **having public unknown roots**.

**Warn about local, unknown roots:** `(opera://flags/#warn-for-unknown-root)`

#### 5. Enable smooth scrolling

Usually **stuttering happens** when you scroll through web pages using the mouse wheel or the keyboard keys. You can enable an Opera flag to **make scrolling animation smooth and easy on the eyes**.

Enable the “ **Smooth scrolling** ” flag and you will have bumpless read and scroll.

**Smooth scrolling:** `(opera://flags/#smooth-scrolling)`

#### 6. Enable overlay scrollbars

There is a **new minimal scroll bar available for Opera** that can be enabled from these experimental features. It looks similar to Chrome’s scroll bar but sits hidden on the sides and less bulky. Just **move your mouse over to trigger scroll bar to emerge**.

Enable **“Overlay scrollbars”** flag to replace the scroll bar. You will also have to make sure that “ **Threaded scrolling** ” flag is enabled if you want to see the scroll animations.

**Overlay scrollbars:** `(opera://flags/#overlay-scrollbars)`

**Threaded scrolling:** `(opera://flags/#disable-threaded-scrolling)`

#### 7. Enable experimental canvas features

It is one of the best flags to speeds up Chrome and fortunately it is also available for Opera. This feature **speeds up page loading time** by not loading page content that isn’t visible to the user. You will not see any visible difference while this flag is enabled, but **you should see faster page loading speed**.

Just enable “ **Experimental canvas features** ” flag and experience the magic.

**Experimental canvas features:** `(opera://flags/#enable-experimental-canvas-features)`

#### 8. Warn about risky downloads

By default, **Opera will not warn you about potentially malicious download files** , but you can force it to warn you. To receive warnings, you will have to **tweak two different flags**.

Enable “ **Prompt on risky downloads** ” flag, then disable “ **Show save file dialog on risky download** ” flag.

Now you will **receive a warning** whenever you downloaded something from untrusted source. Do keep in mind that Opera is very loose about these warnings, so **many of them will be false**.

**Show save file dialog on risky download:** `(opera://flags/#show-save-file-dialog-on-risky-download)`

**Prompt on risky downloads:** `(opera://flags/#prompt-on-risky-download)`

#### 9. Use simple cache for HTTP web pages

You may already know that **your browser caches web pages data to skip downloading the whole page again when you revisit**. Simple Cache is a new caching system that uses filesystem for space allocation. It is faster than the current caching system, which **makes it worth checking out**.

Enable “ **Simple Cache for HTTP** ” flag and you may notice that HTTP web pages will load faster when you revisit them.

**Simple Cache for HTTP:** `(opera://flags/#enable-simple-cache-backend)`

#### 10. Increase number of raster threads

Raster threads are responsible for **rendering images on a web page**. Therefore, increasing the total number of raster threads will also increase image loading time and overall page loading time. Search for the flag “ **Number of raster threads** ” and set it’s value to “4” (maximum).

**Number of raster threads:** `(opera://flags/#num-raster-threads)`

#### 11. Force Autofill

Some **online forms prevent Autofill feature of your browser** so you have to input all the data manually. It’s a good security measure, but very annoying as well. You can **force Opera to autocomplete such forms** using one of the flags.

Enable the flag “ **Autofill HTML forms even if the ‘autocomplete’ attribute is set to ‘off** ‘” to enable this feature.

**Autofill HTML forms even if the ‘autocomplete’ attribute is set to ‘off’:** `(opera://flags/#enable-autofill-ignore-autocomplete-off)`

#### 12. Use FontCache scaling

This is another **flag to speed up page loading time**. Opera can use existing downloaded fonts in cache to speed up web page using the same fonts.

Enable “ **FontCache scaling** ” flag to take advantage of fonts in cache.

**FontCache scaling:** `(opera://flags/#enable-font-cache-scaling)`

#### 13. TCP Fast Open (Linux Only)

This flag is only available for **Opera users on Linux to speed up page loading time**. It makes the connection process with website server faster when you revisit the same website. If the **connection is created faster, it means that the page starts loading faster**.

Enable “ **TCP Fast Open** ” flag in Opera if you have Linux.

**TCP Fast Open:** `(opera://flags/#enable-tcp-fast-open)`

#### 14. Enable the “stale-while-revalidate” cache directive

This flag basically **increases the life of cache used before update is needed** by the web page content. If " **stale-while-revalidate"** is enabled, the old cache will be used to load the web page and newer version of the page will be updated in the background.

**Any new changes will also be replaced afterwards**. This allows you to efficiently use browser cache to speed up page loading speed and also access the updated version of the page.

Enable the flag “ **Enable the “stale-while-revalidate” cache directive** ” to use this feature.

**Enable the “stale-while-revalidate” cache directive:** `(opera://flags/#enable-stale-while-revalidate)`

**Note:** After tweaking these features, you will have to restart Opera to apply the changes.

#### Final Words

These were some of the handy Opera flags that will help you **improve the browser’s speed, security and design**. I am personally using most of the flags mentioned above and haven’t faced any jitters yet. Let us know if you do experience any **impacts of your browsing experience** , and do share with us in the comments to help other users. `(Source: hongkiat)`

**Happy learning!**