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Is it possible to run multiple (separate) instances of Firefox?

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I work online and I have to keep flipping between client accounts on certain websites. Each time, I have to log into multiple client accounts, I have to open 2 or more browsers... for example, if I'm on FireFox and another client messages me with an urgent request, I have to open Chrome; for a third client, I will then need to open Edge, then IE, and so on. It's frustrating and I am desperately searching for a solution. I have tried a few tutorials and so far, nothing works.

Is there any way to have two or more FireFox instances open simultaneously but not all on the same profile?

Thanks.

I work online and I have to keep flipping between client accounts on certain websites. Each time, I have to log into multiple client accounts, I have to open 2 or more browsers... for example, if I'm on FireFox and another client messages me with an urgent request, I have to open Chrome; for a third client, I will then need to open Edge, then IE, and so on. It's frustrating and I am desperately searching for a solution. I have tried a few tutorials and so far, nothing works. Is there any way to have two or more FireFox instances open simultaneously but not all on the same profile? Thanks.

All Replies (12)

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Hi Funbox, Absolutely. You can create as many Profiles as you like and open as many New Windows from each one.

Suggestion: You should think about using a different Theme for each Profile to distinguish them more quickly.

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(Better late than never)

This article should help with all of the details: Profile Manager - Create, remove, or switch Firefox profiles https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-remove-switch-firefox-profiles#firefox:win10:fx73

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How though?

When I open a new instance it is automatically logged in to my profile. If I log out on one, it logs out on all...

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Do you mean when you are logged into a site? That behavior is the same when you use multiple tabs.

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RobertJ said

(Better late than never) This article should help with all of the details: Profile Manager - Create, remove, or switch Firefox profiles https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-remove-switch-firefox-profiles#firefox:win10:fx73

Ah, I see... Now, the final question is then, how do we access this in an easier way then having to type that into the search bar every time?

Is there a way to access this from an icon which we can place in the bookmark bar or add-ons?

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That article will explain how to create Profiles and use a Profile Manager which you can create a desktop shortcut for. You can create desktop shortcuts for each Profile, also.

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This might help later on with your shortcuts:

Desktop Shortcuts - For your Profile Manager: In a New Shortcut enter "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -P for the Location and name the shortcut your choice.

For your Profile(s): First you need the actual Profile name. Press Win key + R enter %AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles and click OK Your Profile folders will be listed. The names might look something like hey1hw7n.Feb2020 Copy one of the Profile folder names and paste it into this path where it says paste here (inside of the quotation mark):

"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -profile "%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\paste here"

Now, create your New Shortcut with that entire path, including spaces and quotation marks, in the Location and name your Profile shortcut your choice. ____________________________________________________________________

I know, I know, the icons all look alike.

Right-click on the Shortcut and select Properties In the Properties dialog select Change Icon... button in the Change Icon dialog, select the icon that you want to use and click on OK

This can be done in the folder where your files are kept and then the shortcut can be moved to another folder.

For more icons, in the Change Icons dialog under Look For Icons In This File... change the path in the field to one of these:

  • %windir%\explorer.exe
  • %SystemRoot%\system32\imageres.dll
  • %SystemRoot%\System32\SHELL32.dll

For Mozilla icons:

  • C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe
  • C:\Program Files\Mozilla Thunderbird\thunderbird.exe

and click OK. A new list of icons to select from will be generated. ___________________________________________________________

Or, you can create your very own Custom Shortcut Icons: You can use an image or create an image of your own. To finally save the image to be used as a shortcut icon resize the image to 256 x 256 pixels and save it as a bitmap (.bmp) file to a location of your choice.

Right-click on the Shortcut and select Properties. In the Properties dialog window click the Change Icon... button In the Change Icon window, click the Browse button next to the file field Navigate to where you saved your custom icon - you'll have to change file types to All Files - click on the image and select Open Then select OK in the Change Icon dialog. Close the Properties window.

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I appreciate the answers but I'm no longer sure I want to use Firefox. I was looking for something a bit more user-friendly and now I learned that every time my laptop restarts, Chrome resets to all stock settings (including being in Spanish) which means I just spent the past few hours customizing all the settings and organizing all my bookmarks for nothing.

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I meant FireFox* not Chrome...

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Super bummed about all the time I just wasted.

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If every time I open FireFox, all the text switches to pink, the language is in Spanish and I have no way of restoring all of the work tabs I had open then... theres no way I can see any reason to continue working on this browser. It appears to be really unstable. This was a terrible first impression. My spirits are crushed.

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Take a look at this article:

How to fix preferences that won't save https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-to-fix-preferences-wont-save#firefox:win10:fx73

Note: Some software, like Advanced SystemCare with Surfing Protection, can protect files in the Firefox profile folder against changes. If you have such software then check the settings or uninstall this software.