Make Firefox for Enterprise the default browser

As an administrator, you can configure the computers in your domain to use Firefox for Enterprise as the default browser. First, make sure all computers have installed Firefox for Enterprise, and then follow the instructions below.

Step 1

To set Firefox for Enterprise as the default browser on all computers in your environment, you’ll have to create a single shared XML file that sets Firefox for Enterprise as the default browser. The XML file must be placed on a shared server folder accessible by all of the computers in your environment.

See below for an example xml that sets Firefox for Enterprise as the default browser opening html, htm, http, and https files and links.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<DefaultAssociations>
  <Association Identifier=".htm" ProgId="FirefoxHTML-308046B0AF4A39CB" ApplicationName="Firefox" />
  <Association Identifier=".html" ProgId="FirefoxHTML-308046B0AF4A39CB" ApplicationName="Firefox" />
  <Association Identifier="http" ProgId="FirefoxURL-308046B0AF4A39CB" ApplicationName="Firefox" />
  <Association Identifier="https" ProgId="FirefoxURL-308046B0AF4A39CB" ApplicationName="Firefox" />
</DefaultAssociations>

Step 2

On Windows, policy support is implemented using the Group Policy Management console. Firefox supports setting policies via Active Directory as well as by using Local Group Policy.

Read this support article to learn how to use a group policy object to set Firefox for Enterprise as the default browser.

Step 3

To set up the default associations configuration file for the computers in your environment, you must edit the related Group Policy Object on your domain’s server. To do so, follow the instructions below:

1. Open the Group Policy Management Console by going to Start > All Programs > Administrative Tools > Group Policy Management.
2. Click Group Policy Management > Domains > example.com
3. Open the Linked Group Policy Objects tab.
4. Right-click the GPO you want to select and click Edit.
5. From the Group Policy Management Editor, navigate to Computer Configuration > Policies > Administrative Template > Windows Components > File Explore and double-click on Set a default associations configuration file.
6. Select Enabled from the Set a default associations configuration file window.
7. Enter the location of your default application association XML file from the Options box. You can use the provided sample XML file or one you’ve created yourself.

Step 4

To verify that your Group Policy Object has been applied to computers in your environment, make sure the GPO has been applied by refreshing the Windows Client or running the GPUdate.exe /force command to manually refresh.

1. Go to Windows > System32 and right-click rsop.msc and click run as administrator.
2. Log in with your administrator credentials and click Yes.
3. To confirm that Set a default associations configuration file is available, go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > File Explore.
4. Open the Set a default associations configuration file to confirm that the setting is enabled and that the location of the XML file is accurate.
5. Once Firefox for Enterprise has been set as the default browser, all files with htm and html extensions will show the Firefox icon.