Why does biber increase compilation time of pdflatex runs dramatically (factor 2.8!!)?

Question

Since I am using biber, the compilation time for my document has increased dramatically. It's a dissertation with <300 pages and a full latexmk compilation suddenly needed 26 minutes which is not acceptable IMHO.

I already read, that biber might be slower than bibtex (see https://tex.stackexchange.com/a/53302/4009), but can it really make such a difference?

I already described the problem here (https://tex.stackexchange.com/a/230749/4009 ) and narrowed the problem down to biber which seems to have a large impact on compiling time.

I use the following biblatex setup:

\usepackage[natbib=true, style=numeric-comp, backend=biber, 
 defernumbers,useprefix,firstinits=true, maxnames=99, maxcitenames=3]{biblatex}

My question

Is biber really that much slower than bibtex
Can I do anything to still use biber but decrease compiling time?
It seems that it is not the biber run itself, that makes compilation slow, but using backend=biber slows down pdflatex a lot
can I use other options (kind of a draft mode) to speed up biber and only use the slow compilation for the final versions?

Unfortunately, I've switched all my input files (.tex, .bib) to UTF-8 encoding, as I head problems with exotic characters and it seems to me there is no easy way back to the good old latin1 times. And it seems, that UTF8 requires the biber backend.

Test setup

my LaTeX document, limited to one long chapter by \includeonly,
98 pages with many many references, many of them in large tables.
large .bib file (5.6 MB) with >3000 references, 350 of them cited in the document
I'm compiling from OS X terminal to measure the duration of the compilation:
latexmk -C; time pdflatex main.tex

Test results

with biber:

biber cache removed once with rm -rf `biber --cache`
latexmk -C; time pdflatex Diss.tex
Output written on Diss.pdf (83 pages, 2130562 bytes).
real 2m17.499s
user 1m47.626s
sys 0m1.030s
biber Diss
real 0m27.257s
user 0m20.568s
sys 0m1.247s
pdflatex Diss.tex Output written on Diss.pdf (95 pages, 2453607 bytes).
real 4m7.708s
user 3m27.864s
sys 0m1.029s
again pdflatex Diss.tex Output written on Diss.pdf (95 pages, 2452370 bytes). real 4m33.769s user 3m36.491s sys 0m1.252s

with `bibtex8`

remove all aux and bbl files etc.
latexmk -C; time pdflatex Diss.tex
Output written on Diss.pdf (82 pages, 2130383 bytes).
real 0m48.470s
user 0m19.161s
sys 0m0.522s
time bibtex Diss
(There were 200 error messages) sure :-(
real 0m1.258s
user 0m0.850s
sys 0m0.061s
time pdflatex Diss.tex
Output written on Diss.pdf (95 pages, 2452225 bytes).
real 2m26.433s
user 1m44.921s
sys 0m0.932s
second pdflatex Diss.tex
Output written on Diss.pdf (95 pages, 2450936 bytes).
real 2m27.148s
user 1m51.958s
sys 0m0.953s

My `.biber.conf`

path: ~/.biber.conf

<config>
  <sourcemap>
    <maps datatype="bibtex" map_overwrite="1">
      <map>
        <map_step map_field_set="Annote" map_null="1"/>
        <map_step map_field_set="Abstract" map_null="1"/>
        <map_step map_field_set="Keywords" map_null="1"/>
        <map_step map_field_set="comment" map_null="1"/>
      </map>
     </maps>
   </sourcemap>
</config>

Is this ok?
Are the field names case sensitive?
is something missing here?

Test 2 with example document

I set up an example document using the biblatex-example.bib file included in TeXLive 2014. For details please see my answer below , as it seems to crash the question, if I insert that much text here. The sample document compiles 80% faster with bibtex! Maybe you want to try it on your machine and see how long it takes?

Mhh, obviously Biber takes longer to compile as you already hinted at. It should not make your pdflatex run significantly longer though (sure, if you use BibTeX you cannot use all of Biber's features and we load biblatex1.sty and not biblatex2.sty). But I doubt that we can actually compare pdflatex's compile times here since due to the errors you don't get the same output (probably a lot of entries are skipped - less for pdflatex to write out). — moewe, Mar 1, 2015 at 16:33
@MaxNoe: as I wrote in my question, it is not the biber run itself but the pdflatex runs which take much longer with biber! — MostlyHarmless, Mar 1, 2015 at 16:33
Where does the 26 minutes come from? The times you show don't seem to support that.... — cfr, Mar 1, 2015 at 16:37
biber --output_format=bibtex file should give you a .bib file with only the cited entries. If you have time you could try and replicate your problem with biblatex-examples.bib (comes with biblatex and is automatically found by LaTeX) and some blind text, so you don't have to upload sensitive things. — moewe, Mar 1, 2015 at 16:52
On my pc using pdflatex in "biber-mode" slows down the compilation by a factor around 2. I don't find this surprising. You only have to compare the bbl-files created by biber and bibtex: biber provides much more information and pdflatex has to handle it. — Ulrike Fischer, Mar 1, 2015 at 17:16

MostlyHarmless · Accepted Answer · 2015-03-03 08:12:48Z

General Test setup for performance comparison

I've set up a test file which uses the biblatex-examples.bib References included in TeXLive 2014. It cites each reference 10 times (not very elegant, but it works).

Results:

with `biber` backend

If I cite each source only 1 time (instead of 10), it takes 29 seconds for the whole script to run with biber (3x pdflatex, 1x biber).
If I cite each source 10 times, it takes already 1min36sec for the script (with biber).

with `bibtex` backend

If I change to backend=bibtex (still each source cited 10 times), the whole script needs less then 18 seconds - this is 80% less than with biber!!

further tests:

using 10 times \nocite{*} instead of citing each source separately reduces the time with biber to 21 sec!
removing all options from biblatex (except backend=biber) and again citing each source 10 times separately does not decrease compiling time (1min40sec)

Compiler scripts:

run: `time compile-bibtex.sh`

#!/bin/bash

rm -rf `biber -cache`

time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex

time bibtex Biberperformance

time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex
time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex

run: `time compile-biber.sh`

#!/bin/bash

rm -rf `biber -cache`

time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex

time biber Biberperformance

time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex
time pdflatex -interaction=batchmode BiberPerformance.tex

LaTeX source code `BiberPerformance.tex`

## \documentclass{scrbook}

%%%% {PACKAGES} %%%%
\usepackage[UKenglish, ngerman]{babel} %Sprachpakete Brit. Englisch, Deutsch Neue Rechtschreibung
\usepackage[utf8]{inputenc}
\usepackage[TS1, T1]{fontenc} %Kodierungen für Text 1 und Text Symbols
\usepackage{aecompl}
\usepackage{textcomp} %für Mü-Symbol
\usepackage{blindtext}

%Pakete für Zusatzfunktionen
\usepackage{hyperref} %Automatisches Verlinken der PDF-Datei


%Weitere Pakete
\usepackage[natbib=true, style=numeric-comp, backend=bibtex, defernumbers, useprefix,firstinits=true, maxnames=99, maxcitenames=3]{biblatex}  % für bessere Literaturverzeichnisse
\renewcommand{\bibfont}{\normalfont\small}
\renewcommand\multicitedelim{\addsemicolon\space}
\addbibresource{biblatex-examples.bib}



%In Biblatex URL ignorieren, wenn DOI existiert (Quelle: http://tex.stackexchange.com/a/5779/4009) 
\DeclareFieldFormat{url}{%
  \iffieldundef{doi}{%
    \mkbibacro{URL}\addcolon\space\url{#1}%
  }{%
  }%
}

\DeclareFieldFormat{urldate}{%
  \iffieldundef{doi}{%
    \mkbibparens{\bibstring{urlseen}\space#1}%
  }{%
  }%
}


\usepackage{csquotes} % Empfohlen bei Verwendung von biblatex



\begin{document}

%\nocite{*}


\chapter{Test}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}


\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}

\cite{westfahl:space}
\cite{set}
\cite{stdmodel}
\cite{aksin}
\cite{angenendt}
\cite{baez/article}
\cite{bertram}
\cite{gillies}
\cite{glashow}
\cite{herrmann}
\cite{kastenholz}
\cite{murray}
\cite{reese}
\cite{shore}
\cite{sigfridsson}
\cite{spiegelberg}
\cite{springer}
\cite{weinberg}
\cite{yoon}
\cite{aristotle:anima}
\cite{aristotle:physics}
\cite{aristotle:poetics}
\cite{aristotle:rhetoric}
\cite{augustine}
\cite{averroes/bland}
\cite{averroes/hannes}
\cite{averroes/hercz}
\cite{cicero}
\cite{coleridge}
\cite{companion}
\cite{cotton}
\cite{gerhardt}
\cite{gonzalez}
\cite{hammond}
\cite{iliad}
\cite{knuth:ct}
\cite{knuth:ct:a}
\cite{knuth:ct:b}
\cite{knuth:ct:c}
\cite{knuth:ct:d}
\cite{knuth:ct:e}
\cite{knuth:ct:related}
\cite{malinowski}
\cite{maron}
\cite{massa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa}
\cite{nietzsche:ksa1}
\cite{nussbaum}
\cite{piccato}
\cite{vangennep}
\cite{vangennep:related}
\cite{vazques-de-parga}
\cite{worman}
\cite{britannica}
\cite{gaonkar}
\cite{gaonkar:in}
\cite{jaffe}
\cite{westfahl:frontier}
\cite{kant:kpv}
\cite{kant:ku}
\cite{nietzsche:historie}
\cite{brandt}
\cite{hyman}
\cite{pines}
\cite{moraux}
\cite{salam}
\cite{cms}
\cite{baez/online}
\cite{ctan}
\cite{itzhaki}
\cite{markey}
\cite{wassenberg}
\cite{almendro}
\cite{kowalik}
\cite{laufenberg}
\cite{sorace}
\cite{chiu}
\cite{padhye}
\cite{geer}
\cite{loh}
\cite{jcg}
\cite{sarfraz}
\cite{moore:related}
\cite{kullback:reprint}
\cite{kullback:related}
\cite{matuz:doody}
\cite{doody}
\cite{moore}
\cite{vangennep:trans}
\cite{vizedom:related}
\cite{kullback}
\cite{wilde}


 \printbibliography


\end{document}

You do realise that your MWE would have been slightly shorter had you used \nocite{*} instead of citing each item manually? — moewe, Mar 3, 2015 at 7:55
yes, I do, but I wanted to make pdflatex print each single citation and not only [1-90]. I'm not sure, if that makes a difference in compiling time. — MostlyHarmless, Mar 3, 2015 at 7:57
It is rather inevitable - biber is not comparable to bibtex any more. Its functional set is a large superset of bibtex.It's also not in C, which bibtex is. I may look into adding options to disable parts of the internals whe.n drafting or when certain things are not needed. — PLK, Apr 28, 2015 at 13:59
One thing to note is that if you are using the unpacked perl install, make sure you are not using Unicode::Collate version 1.18+ at the moment because that removed XS code and this makes it a lot slower. The new release enforces version 1.17 for unpacked installs. — PLK, Apr 28, 2015 at 14:07
Finally... What should we do to get a faster Biber? Can we try to compile anything with tools such as pp? — skan, Jun 26, 2018 at 16:23

PLK · Accepted Answer · 2016-03-13 19:49:55Z

3

If not using a binary biber release, that is if you are downloading biber perl source and installing yourself, make sure you have Unicode::Normalize >= 1.22 as this reinstated the XSUB version and is dramatically faster. When you do perl Build.PL, you will be warned if you don't have the latest Unicode::Normalize and as usual, Build installdeps will install the latest version along with all other dependencies.

answered Mar 13, 2016 at 19:49

PLK

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Why does biber increase compilation time of pdflatex runs dramatically (factor 2.8!!)?

My question

Test setup

Test results

with biber:

with `bibtex8`

My `.biber.conf`

Test 2 with example document

2 Answers 2

General Test setup for performance comparison

Results:

with `biber` backend

with `bibtex` backend

further tests:

Compiler scripts:

run: `time compile-bibtex.sh`

run: `time compile-biber.sh`

LaTeX source code `BiberPerformance.tex`

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Why does biber increase compilation time of pdflatex runs dramatically (factor 2.8!!)?

My question

Test setup

Test results

with biber:

with bibtex8

My .biber.conf

Test 2 with example document

2 Answers 2

General Test setup for performance comparison

Results:

with biber backend

with bibtex backend

further tests:

Compiler scripts:

run: time compile-bibtex.sh

run: time compile-biber.sh

LaTeX source code BiberPerformance.tex

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Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged biblatexbibtexpdftexbiberperformance.

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Related

Hot Network Questions

with `bibtex8`

My `.biber.conf`

with `biber` backend

with `bibtex` backend

run: `time compile-bibtex.sh`

run: `time compile-biber.sh`

LaTeX source code `BiberPerformance.tex`

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged
biblatex
bibtex
pdftex
biber
performance
.