At 01:31 AM 26/04/2006, you wrote:

>We have firebird super server installed.
>
>The one problem I observed is that the database size keeps on increasing
>even when we cleanup up the data after usage. An initial 9 MB file
>increases to 505 MB ....
>
>I tried doing garbage collection using gfix utility with sweep option
>but was of no use.
>
>The other method tried was using backup and restore using gbak which
>worked fine and reduced the database size to the original.
>
>Is there a method known for not increasing the db size without using
>backup and restore?

No. But stop worrying about it. It's not a "problem" and it is not
a sign that the database size will increase in size exponentially for
ever. Firebird stores data on "pages" - these are blocks of disk
that the server requests from the operating system. It never gives
pages back to the OS.

When garbage gets cleared out, the space on these pages is released
for re-use. So, as long as you take regular care with database
hygiene, at some point your database file size will settle down and
growth will be more in keeping with your expectations.

./heLen