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What are the differences between the different versions of Firefox ?

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  • Last reply by AMAillot

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Hello,

I went into the home page of Firefox to see when do the 57.0 version will be available for all users. On the Firefox's dedicated page (https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/channel/desktop/#beta), I've seen different versions of it, like Firefox developers edition, Firefox Nightly or Firefox Beta.

What is Firefox Nightly compare to Firefox Beta ?

Hello, I went into the home page of Firefox to see when do the 57.0 version will be available for all users. On the Firefox's dedicated page (https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/channel/desktop/#beta), I've seen different versions of it, like Firefox developers edition, Firefox Nightly or Firefox Beta. What is Firefox Nightly compare to Firefox Beta ?

Modified by AMAillot

Chosen solution

Firefox 57.0 is scheduled for Nov 14 if all goes well.

There are different development channels.

It used to be Release < Beta (b#) < Developers Edition aka Aurora (a2) < Nightly (a1)

Now it is Release < Beta (b#) < Nightly (a1)

The Developers Edition has same version as Beta now but with Developers Edition features.

A version on Beta channel can get say nine to fourteen builds in testing. The Nightly channel gets checkins each day and gets update two times a day in Testing. This can sometimes lead to issues until fixed, finished or reverted. If you want to be a Tester the Beta channel builds are much more stable compared to the Nightly channel which is meant more for Testers and not regular users.

There is also ESR channels as current version is based on 52.0 as in 52.4.1 which came out when 56.0.1 was Released and 52.8.0esr will likely be the last update next May. This is meant more for organizations in mind but regular users can use it also. It is also the only updated option for WinXP/Vista users since 53.0 and later has dropped WinXP/Vista.

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Nightly is released nightly. It is the most unstable build.

Beta is more stable and intended for general use at own risk.

RC(#) is Release Candidate and is where Quantum is at now.

Note: all 3 can be released at the same time as it is on-going testing before final release.

Developers Edition has java debuggers and a whole bunch of tools at your disposal from the menu or a right click to diagnose issues with web pages you might be working on or contracted to work on to find issues with a web page. Can still be used by a everyone if so want to. I have it installed, has a Blue Firefox and Black Theme.

Note : Firefox 57 Quantum release date Nov 14th https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/quantum/ Note : Legacy Extensions will be disabled and or removed.

https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/3020724/firefox-quantum-everything-you-need-to-know-ahead-of-next-weeks-release

This page has the current version 56.0.2 Full Version Installer. https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/ I expect it to change to 57 on the 14th.

Please let us know if this solved your issue or if need further assistance.

Modified by Shadow110

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Chosen Solution

Firefox 57.0 is scheduled for Nov 14 if all goes well.

There are different development channels.

It used to be Release < Beta (b#) < Developers Edition aka Aurora (a2) < Nightly (a1)

Now it is Release < Beta (b#) < Nightly (a1)

The Developers Edition has same version as Beta now but with Developers Edition features.

A version on Beta channel can get say nine to fourteen builds in testing. The Nightly channel gets checkins each day and gets update two times a day in Testing. This can sometimes lead to issues until fixed, finished or reverted. If you want to be a Tester the Beta channel builds are much more stable compared to the Nightly channel which is meant more for Testers and not regular users.

There is also ESR channels as current version is based on 52.0 as in 52.4.1 which came out when 56.0.1 was Released and 52.8.0esr will likely be the last update next May. This is meant more for organizations in mind but regular users can use it also. It is also the only updated option for WinXP/Vista users since 53.0 and later has dropped WinXP/Vista.

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Thank you for your good explanations !