Inertia.js v3.9: Pause Polling in Background Tabs | Mohamed Said [Skip to content](#main) [ ![](https://cdn.msaied.com/01KT78WE565VEMM3PSNQAAB0MH.png) Mohamed SaidLaravel Backend Engineer ](https://www.msaied.com) - [Home](https://www.msaied.com) - [Projects](https://www.msaied.com/projects) - [Articles](https://www.msaied.com/articles) - [Certificates](https://www.msaied.com/certificates) - [About](https://www.msaied.com#about) [ Contact](https://www.msaied.com#contact) Menu Menu ---- Close - [HomeStart here](https://www.msaied.com) - [ProjectsCase studies](https://www.msaied.com/projects) - [ArticlesEngineering notes](https://www.msaied.com/articles) - [CertificatesCredentials](https://www.msaied.com/certificates) - [AboutHow I work](https://www.msaied.com#about) - [ContactGet in touch](https://www.msaied.com#contact) [Start a conversation](https://www.msaied.com#contact) [WhatsApp](https://wa.me/201094619204) [Email](mailto:hello@msaied.com) 1. [Home](https://www.msaied.com) 2. / 3. [Articles](https://www.msaied.com/articles) 4. / 5. [Laravel](https://www.msaied.com/articles?category=laravel) 6. / 7. Inertia.js v3.9: Pause Polling in Background Tabs and More [Laravel](https://www.msaied.com/articles?category=laravel) Inertia.js v3.9: Pause Polling in Background Tabs and More =========================================================== Inertia.js v3.9.0 ships a `background` option to pause or throttle polling in hidden tabs, a `type` property on the `navigate` event to detect history restores, a prefetch cache flush on history clear, and several back-button fixes. ![](https://cdn.msaied.com/01M22N44A70A5MC2S599JP0MPH.webp) [Mohamed Said](https://www.msaied.com#person) Published 12 Oct 2026 · Updated 16 Oct 2026 · 4 min read ShareCopy linkCopied ![Inertia.js v3.9: Pause Polling in Background Tabs and More](https://cdn.msaied.com/785/603931b250899e15c76e16c8d9278c82.png) On this page +1. [Pause Polling in Background Tabs](#pause-polling-in-background-tabs) 2. [Detect History Restores in the navigate Event](#detect-history-restores-in-the-codenavigatecode-event) 3. [Prefetch Cache Flushed When History Is Cleared](#prefetch-cache-flushed-when-history-is-cleared) 4. [Back Button Fixes](#back-button-fixes) 5. [InfiniteScroll Requests After Navigation](#infinitescroll-requests-after-navigation) 6. [Key Takeaways](#key-takeaways) Inertia.js v3.9.0 was released on October 13, 2026, bringing a handful of quality-of-life improvements and bug fixes that matter for real-world Laravel + Inertia applications. Here is a breakdown of everything that changed. Pause Polling in Background Tabs -------------------------------- The headline feature is a new `background` option for `usePoll()` and `router.poll()`. Before this release, a poll running in a hidden tab fired on every 10th interval by default, and there was no way to stop it entirely. The new option accepts three values: - **`throttle`** (default) — keeps the previous behavior, running every 10th interval while the tab is hidden. - **`pause`** — stops polling completely until the tab becomes visible again. - **`continue`** — polls at the full interval regardless of tab visibility. ```javascript import { usePoll } from '@inertiajs/vue3' usePoll(5000, {}, { background: 'pause' }) ``` When `pause` is set and a poll was due while the tab was hidden, a request fires as soon as the tab becomes visible again. Switching tabs rapidly does not trigger a burst of requests. The existing `keepAlive` option still works but is now **deprecated**. Replace it with `background: 'continue'`. Detect History Restores in the `navigate` Event ----------------------------------------------- Pascal Baljet added a `type` property to the `navigate` event detail. The three possible values are: - `initial` — first page load or a full reload. - `visit` — a regular Inertia visit. - `history` — the browser's back or forward button restored the page from history. This is useful because a history-restored page shows the props it had when the user left, which may be stale. You can now reload only the props you care about: ```javascript import { router } from '@inertiajs/vue3' router.on('navigate', (event) => { if (event.detail.type === 'history') { router.reload({ only: ['messages'] }) } }) ``` A full-page load that the browser restores from history also reports `history`, because its props come from the history state. Prefetch Cache Flushed When History Is Cleared ---------------------------------------------- Calling `router.clearHistory()` or returning `Inertia::clearHistory()` from a Laravel controller previously cleared encrypted history entries but left the prefetch cache intact. This meant a user who logged out and pressed the back button could see a protected page served from the prefetch cache until the entry expired. v3.9.0 fixes this: clearing history now flushes the prefetch cache immediately. Any prefetch request still in flight at flush time is discarded when it completes. The same behaviour applies to `router.flushAll()`. Back Button Fixes ----------------- Two contributors addressed back-button edge cases: - **Mohammed Sohail** fixed a race condition where a deferred prop, poll, or partial reload response that arrived while Inertia was resolving the page component could overwrite a history-restored page. A history restore now cancels any pending page update. - **Gianpiero Puleo** fixed `useRemember` incorrectly restoring state from an earlier page on new visits. A remembered value from the first decrypted history entry could bleed into later fresh visits — for example, a previously cleared tab selection reappearing after switching tabs. InfiniteScroll Requests After Navigation ---------------------------------------- `` requests that started after a navigation had begun were not cancelled by the router, causing callback errors on the new page. When navigating to the same URL with a different query string (e.g., a new sort order), the stale response was merged into the new list. The component now cancels its in-flight request on unmount and ignores callbacks from responses that already arrived. Key Takeaways ------------- - Use `background: 'pause'` in `usePoll()` to stop unnecessary server requests from hidden tabs. - Replace deprecated `keepAlive` with `background: 'continue'`. - Use `event.detail.type === 'history'` in the `navigate` event to reload stale props after a back/forward navigation. - Clearing history now also flushes the prefetch cache, closing a potential data-exposure gap after logout. - Several back-button and `` race conditions are resolved. --- *Source: [Pause Polling in Background Tabs in Inertia.js v3.9 — Laravel News](https://laravel-news.com/inertia-3-9-0)* - [Inertia.js](https://www.msaied.com/articles?search=Inertia.js) - [Laravel](https://www.msaied.com/articles?search=Laravel) - [Vue](https://www.msaied.com/articles?search=Vue) - [SPA](https://www.msaied.com/articles?search=SPA) - [Polling](https://www.msaied.com/articles?search=Polling) Frequently asked questions --------------------------- How do I stop Inertia.js from polling when a tab is hidden?Pass `background: 'pause'` as the third argument to `usePoll()`: `usePoll(5000, {}, { background: 'pause' })`. Polling resumes as soon as the tab becomes visible again, and a single catch-up request fires if one was due while the tab was hidden. How can I tell whether an Inertia navigate event is a history restore or a regular visit?Check `event.detail.type` inside your `navigate` listener. It returns `'history'` for back/forward navigations, `'visit'` for regular Inertia visits, and `'initial'` for the first page load or a full reload. Is the `keepAlive` option in Inertia.js polling still supported?`keepAlive` still works in v3.9.0 but is deprecated. You should replace it with `background: 'continue'`, which keeps polling at the full interval even when the tab is hidden. ![Mohamed Said](https://cdn.msaied.com/01M22N44A70A5MC2S599JP0MPH.webp)About the author ---------------- [Mohamed Said](https://www.msaied.com#person)Senior Backend Engineer specializing in Laravel, scalable SaaS platforms, APIs, and cloud infrastructure. I build secure, high-performance web applications that help businesses grow. [About](https://www.msaied.com#about) [GitHub ↗](https://github.com/EG-Mohamed) [LinkedIn ↗](https://www.linkedin.com/in/msaiedm/) [WhatsApp ↗](https://wa.me/201094619204) [Email Address ↗](mailto:hello@msaied.com) [My CV ↗](https://drive.google.com/file/u/0/d/1MF20IPRJyzfy32mhEutjL5EpSls0w2Q8/view) [Previous articleBuilding Puzzle Party with Laravel Cloud, Reverb, Flutter, and AI](https://www.msaied.com/articles/building-puzzle-party-with-laravel-cloud-reverb-flutter-and-ai) [Next articlePHP News: A New Site for PHP Releases, RFCs, and Packages](https://www.msaied.com/articles/php-news-a-new-site-for-php-releases-rfcs-and-packages) On this page ------------- 1. [Pause Polling in Background Tabs](#pause-polling-in-background-tabs) 2. [Detect History Restores in the navigate Event](#detect-history-restores-in-the-codenavigatecode-event) 3. [Prefetch Cache Flushed When History Is Cleared](#prefetch-cache-flushed-when-history-is-cleared) 4. [Back Button Fixes](#back-button-fixes) 5. [InfiniteScroll Requests After Navigation](#infinitescroll-requests-after-navigation) 6. [Key Takeaways](#key-takeaways) ### Have a technical challenge? Tell me what you’re building. I reply within two working days. 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