Performance Issues

Optimize Supamode performance for large datasets. Add indexes, configure pagination, and reduce query complexity.

If Supamode feels slow when loading tables, searching, or navigating, this guide helps identify and fix performance bottlenecks.

Slow Table Loading

Symptoms

  • Data Explorer takes several seconds to load a table
  • Spinner shows for extended periods
  • Browser becomes unresponsive

Diagnosis

  1. Open browser DevTools → Network tab
  2. Reload the page
  3. Look for slow API requests (sort by Time column)
  4. Check the request time in the Timing tab

Fixes

1. Add database indexes

For columns you frequently filter or sort on, add indexes:

-- Add index for commonly filtered column
CREATE INDEX idx_orders_status ON orders(status);
-- Add index for date columns used in filters
CREATE INDEX idx_orders_created_at ON orders(created_at);
-- Composite index for common filter combinations
CREATE INDEX idx_orders_status_created ON orders(status, created_at);

2. Limit default data

Configure the table to show fewer records by default. In Settings > Tables, set a default filter or limit.

3. Disable full-text search on large tables

In Settings > Tables, disable searchability for tables with millions of rows. Use specific filters instead.

Cause

Global search queries all searchable tables. With many tables or large datasets, this becomes slow.

Fixes

1. Disable search on non-essential tables

In Settings > Tables, disable searchability for:

  • Audit logs
  • System tables
  • Large historical data tables

2. Add text search indexes

For tables that need search, add GIN indexes:

-- Full-text search index
CREATE INDEX idx_posts_search ON posts
USING GIN (to_tsvector('english', title || ' ' || content));

Slow Record Detail View

Cause

Loading a record with many relationships (one-to-many, many-to-many) triggers multiple queries.

Fixes

1. Check relationship cardinality

If a record has thousands of related records, consider:

  • Paginating relationship views
  • Hiding high-cardinality relationships in the detail view

2. Add foreign key indexes

Ensure foreign keys have indexes:

-- Index on foreign key columns
CREATE INDEX idx_order_items_order_id ON order_items(order_id);
CREATE INDEX idx_posts_author_id ON posts(author_id);

Slow Dashboard Widgets

Symptoms

Dashboard widgets show stale data or take long to refresh.

Fixes

1. Add time-based filters

When creating widgets, add filters like "last 30 days" to limit the data scanned.

2. Create materialized views for complex metrics

For dashboards with complex aggregations:

-- Materialized view for daily metrics
CREATE MATERIALIZED VIEW daily_order_stats AS
SELECT
  date_trunc('day', created_at) as day,
  COUNT(*) as order_count,
  SUM(total) as revenue
FROM orders
GROUP BY 1;
-- Refresh periodically
REFRESH MATERIALIZED VIEW daily_order_stats;

Then sync this view into Supamode and use it for widgets.

API Server Performance

Symptoms

  • High latency on all requests
  • Server CPU or memory usage is high

Diagnosis

Enable performance logging:

# In apps/api/.env
PERF_LOG_LEVEL=detailed

Fixes

1. Use connection pooling

Use Supabase's connection pooler (Supavisor) instead of direct connections:

# Use pooler URL
SUPABASE_DATABASE_URL=postgresql://postgres.YOUR_PROJECT:PASSWORD@aws-0-us-east-1.pooler.supabase.com:5432/postgres

2. Scale horizontally

For production, run multiple API instances behind a load balancer.

3. Add caching

Supamode caches some queries. For custom implementations, consider Redis for frequently accessed data.

Database-Level Optimization

Check Slow Queries

Use PostgreSQL's query analyzer:

-- Enable query logging
ALTER SYSTEM SET log_min_duration_statement = 1000; -- Log queries > 1s
-- Find slow queries
SELECT query, calls, mean_time, total_time
FROM pg_stat_statements
ORDER BY mean_time DESC
LIMIT 10;

Analyze Query Plans

For specific slow queries:

EXPLAIN ANALYZE
SELECT * FROM orders
WHERE status = 'pending'
ORDER BY created_at DESC
LIMIT 100;

Look for:

  • Sequential scans on large tables (add index)
  • High row estimates (add filters)
  • Nested loops (check join conditions)

Vacuum and Analyze

Keep table statistics updated:

-- Update statistics for query planner
ANALYZE orders;
-- Clean up dead tuples
VACUUM orders;
-- Or do both
VACUUM ANALYZE orders;

Browser Performance

Symptoms

  • UI is sluggish even after data loads
  • Scrolling is choppy
  • High memory usage

Fixes

1. Reduce visible columns

In table settings, hide columns users don't need. Fewer columns means less rendering.

2. Use pagination

Avoid loading thousands of records. Use pagination controls to limit visible data.

3. Clear browser cache

Sometimes stale cached data causes issues:

Cmd+Shift+R (Mac) or Ctrl+Shift+R (Windows) for hard refresh

Monitoring

Track Performance Over Time

  1. Use Supabase Dashboard → Reports for database metrics
  2. Check API response times in your hosting platform's metrics
  3. Set up alerting for slow responses

Performance Checklist

Before production:

  • [ ] All filtered columns have indexes
  • [ ] Foreign keys have indexes
  • [ ] Searchability disabled on large tables
  • [ ] Connection pooling enabled
  • [ ] Time-based filters on dashboard widgets
  • [ ] Pagination configured for large tables