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Print button saves file

gmichaelbargas
gmichaelbargas
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Why does the Firefox print button launch the save window? When I open an attachment from an email to print, the print button automatically wants to save the document as a PDF. If you try to open the PDF after being saved, it will launch the printer function on my MacBook Pro.

I have tried the procedures in the "Fix Printer Problem" article, which does not resolve the problem. If I refresh Firefox, the print button will work for a few days and then reverts to saving files.

I have removed and redownloaded Firefox multiple times, and I get the same results. I have used Firefox for quite a while and never had this problem. This issue is something that has started about two months ago.

Why does the Firefox print button launch the save window? When I open an attachment from an email to print, the print button automatically wants to save the document as a PDF. If you try to open the PDF after being saved, it will launch the printer function on my MacBook Pro. I have tried the procedures in the "Fix Printer Problem" article, which does not resolve the problem. If I refresh Firefox, the print button will work for a few days and then reverts to saving files. I have removed and redownloaded Firefox multiple times, and I get the same results. I have used Firefox for quite a while and never had this problem. This issue is something that has started about two months ago.

Chosen solution

Firefox's built-in print button throws up a save window, or the site's print button does that?

Some sites' print buttons deliver printable versions of pages as PDFs. In that case, Firefox doesn't get a signal to print, it receives a file to download. You can check your PDF download settings on the Preferences page if you prefer that PDFs open in a tab where you can print them from within Firefox: View PDF files using Firefox’s built-in viewer.

Also, are you using the new print experience (Firefox preview/setup/print overlay) or the classic one (system dialog)?

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All Replies (2)

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 25 Contributor
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Chosen Solution

Firefox's built-in print button throws up a save window, or the site's print button does that?

Some sites' print buttons deliver printable versions of pages as PDFs. In that case, Firefox doesn't get a signal to print, it receives a file to download. You can check your PDF download settings on the Preferences page if you prefer that PDFs open in a tab where you can print them from within Firefox: View PDF files using Firefox’s built-in viewer.

Also, are you using the new print experience (Firefox preview/setup/print overlay) or the classic one (system dialog)?

gmichaelbargas
gmichaelbargas Question owner
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Thank you! I changed PDF's to open in Firefox under applications in preferences and now I can print again. What puzzles me is how this gets changed becasue I didn't know how to make this change previously.