We're calling on all EU-based Mozillians with iOS or iPadOS devices to help us monitor Apple’s new browser choice screens. Join the effort to hold Big Tech to account!

This site will have limited functionality while we undergo maintenance to improve your experience. If an article doesn't solve your issue and you want to ask a question, we have our support community waiting to help you at @FirefoxSupport on Twitter and/r/firefox on Reddit.

Avatar for Username

Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

Thread ini telah diarkib. Sila tanya soalan baru jika anda perlu bantuan.

I just want to open a .pdf file online . . . but Firefox insists on downloading it!

  • 5 balasan
  • 0 ada masalah ini
  • 2 paparan
  • Balasan terakhir oleh cor-el

nhcowboy1
nhcowboy1
more options

OS: Mac OS 10.14.5 Firefox Version: 113.0.2

Settings gives me multiple options for handling a .pdf file. The first three are (1) Open in Firefox; (2) Always ask; and (3) Save File.

If I select "Open in Firefox," the file will open in my existing window. If I select "Save File," the file downloads to my desktop.

The problem arises when I select "Always ask." If I then select "Open in Firefox," the file opens (in a new tab!) and simultaneously downloads to my desktop!

Is this a system glitch, or am I somehow doing something wrong?

OS: Mac OS 10.14.5 Firefox Version: 113.0.2 Settings gives me multiple options for handling a .pdf file. The first three are (1) Open in Firefox; (2) Always ask; and (3) Save File. If I select "Open in Firefox," the file will open in my existing window. If I select "Save File," the file downloads to my desktop. The problem arises when I select "Always ask." If I then select "Open in Firefox," the file opens (in a new tab!) and simultaneously downloads to my desktop! Is this a system glitch, or am I somehow doing something wrong?

All Replies (5)

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
more options

You can set browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir = true on the about:config page to make Firefox use the OS temp folder for downloads you open in an external application.

You can open the about:config page via the location/address bar. On the warning page, you can click "Accept the Risk and Continue" to open about:config.

James
James
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
more options

nhcowboy1 said
OS: Mac OS 10.14.5

Just a heads up. Since you use the old macOS 10.14.5 the most current version of Firefox you will be able to use will be Fx 115.0 ESR as 116.0 and later will require macOS 10.15 (ten.fifteen) at minimum to run. Firefox 115 is to be released on July 4th.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/firefox-users-macos-1012-1013-1014-moving-to-extended-support

nhcowboy1
nhcowboy1 Pemilik Soalan
more options

cor-el wrote: "You can set browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir = true on the about:config page to make Firefox use the OS temp folder for downloads you open in an external application."

I have no idea what this means.

To be clear, some of the .pdf files I access need to be downloaded to my desktop (and nowhere else). Others I do NOT want to download - to my desktop or anywhere else that'll take up space on my hard drive.

All I want is for Firefox to do what I ASK when that's what it's set to! And I'm apparently not the first person to post about this issue . . . but I've yet to see a resolution.

James - Thanks for the heads up!

Terry
Terry
more options

You get the about:config page by entering about:config in the address bar. Having done that (and accepted the warning), search for the preference mentioned.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/about-config-editor-firefox

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
more options

Firefox needs to download a file to be able to open this file for viewing. Currently Firefox downloads such a file always to the default download location (in your case the desktop) whereas previously Firefox saved the file to the OS temp folder in case you aren't downloading and saving the file. The browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir pref I mentioned above reverts this change and saves the file to the OS temp folder.