Overview of uBlock's network filtering engine: details

Overview

Overview of uBlock's network filtering engine

Dynamic URL filtering rules

Advantages:

• Little overhead creating/deleting dynamic URL rules.
• Precedence over both dynamic filtering rules and static filters.
  • Useful to diagnose/fix in a very narrow way websites broken by either dynamic filtering rules or static filtering.
  • Useful to create override to current dynamic filtering rules or static filtering.
• A point and click UI for easy management of rules.

Disadvantages:

• Can only match URLs which "start with".
• Can't be loaded from a filter list.

Dynamic filtering rules

Advantages:

• Little overhead creating/deleting dynamic rules.
• Precedence over static filters.
• A point and click UI for easy management of rules.

Disadvantages:

• Rules are broad: whole sites or class of types.
• Can't be loaded from a filter list.

Static filtering

Advantages:

• Flexible syntax: from very broad to very narrow targeting, with support of wildcards at any position.
• Support cosmetic filtering (removal of DOM elements).
• Can be loaded from a filter list: facilitate community-supported filter lists.
• Compatibility: can be used in other blockers supporting ABP-compatible filter syntax.
  • Except for a few filter syntax extensions specific to uBlock not adopted by other blockers.

Disadvantages:

• High overhead creating/deleting network/cosmetic filters (high memory churn).
• In case of 3rd-party filter lists, forced to use all filters, including those which may not be wanted.