FireFox portable mode needed
It would seem that Mozilla has not yet created an official portable mode for Firefox(Seriously, after all these years?!?). It needs one in a bad way.
Now when I say portable mode what I mean is that the Firefox EXE runs from the folder it's in, using profiles that generated and exist in that same folder and NOT in the user profile. This functionality is needed not just for easy portability, but also for easy migrations from one system to another or one installation of OS to another.
While the portability mode should be exclusive to the platform FireFox is being used on(IE Windows vs Linux, etc), it should be seamless transition otherwise.
Before anyone chimes in and says this is not possible, please don't waste your time. Forks of FF have been doing so nearly effortlessly for more than a decade while maintaining perfectly functionally and security with the same usability.
So Devs, can you please make this happen? We the public would ever so grateful.
Additionally, can we get some fine grained controls over the appearance of UI elements?
This double spacing nonsense is irritating.
Then there is the Extension Icons labels. They've been gone for a while and they need to return, or at least an option to enable them if we wish.
Next we have the "Home page and new windows" option in settings. Those two options should not be combined. When I open a new instance of FF, I would like to open a blank page. I don't want any navigation happening until I click something or type in an address. I expect FF to sit and wait for my input. Then when I click the "Home" icon button does it go to my define home page.
Next problem we have is the auto update feature. This seems to have become an incredibly nasty feature and behavior. For example, I recently updated to Windows 11. After migrating my previous install of FF to it, it swiftly and without ANY warning or user prompt at all updated itself from 78.15.0esr to 91.3. This was NOT desired So how about to folks show respect to us users by ASKING if we want to upgrade! Had a prompt appeared I would have swiftly canceled. Updates should ALWAYS be at the choice and involvement of the user, not at your whim. I had to spend 40minutes manually backtracking and recopying, which was unpleasant.
Please note that while my above statements have had some negativity to them, I am a ardent supporter of Mozilla and will continue to be. These above points are that of increasing frustration. I am of the school of thought that we the users should have complete and fine-grain controls over every aspect of how our browser operates, whether it be UI elements or nitty-gritty functionality.
I look forward to responses by members of the dev team.
Thank You, Lex
All Replies (9)
This is available;
http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/firefox_portable Mozilla Firefox, Portable Edition
https://portableapps.com/apps/internet/firefox-portable-esr Mozilla Firefox ESR, Portable Edition
A fully functional package of Firefox optimized for use on a USB key drive. A specialized launcher will allow most favorite extensions to work as you switch computers.
Firefox Portable is a 3rd-party build. Support is available here: http://portableapps.com/forums/support/firefox_portable
You can use sync to share passwords, bookmarks, and history. Anything else may not be compatible between different browser versions or computer systems.
Some time ago, the 'powers that be' removed the option to not update the browser.
Step one: How do you completely turn off update checks in Firefox v64? You can use a policies.json file to disable updates for all users. https://github.com/mozilla/policy-templates/blob/master/README.md or https://winaero.com/blog/disable-updates-firefox-63-above/
You can use a policies.json file in the distribution folder in the Firefox installation folder instead as also listed in the article, so no need to use GPO keys in the Windows Registry. • https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/customizing-firefox-using-policiesjson ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ You can use the ManualAppUpdateOnly policy in Firefox 87+ to enable only manual updates e.g. via "Help -> About Firefox".
- https://github.com/mozilla/policy-templates#manualappupdateonly
- https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/customizing-firefox-using-policiesjson
Note that it is important to stay up to date and install the latest security patches.
Note: The program files are in a different folder than the profile data. In this way, trouble with the program files can be repaired/replaced just in case.
FredMcD said
This is available; http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/firefox_portable Mozilla Firefox, Portable Edition https://portableapps.com/apps/internet/firefox-portable-esr Mozilla Firefox ESR, Portable Edition A fully functional package of Firefox optimized for use on a USB key drive. A specialized launcher will allow most favorite extensions to work as you switch computers. Firefox Portable is a 3rd-party build. Support is available here: http://portableapps.com/forums/support/firefox_portable You can use sync to share passwords, bookmarks, and history. Anything else may not be compatible between different browser versions or computer systems.
This is not helpful as it is not officially supported.
FredMcD said
Some time ago, the 'powers that be' removed the option to not update the browser. Step one: How do you completely turn off update checks in Firefox v64? You can use a policies.json file to disable updates for all users. https://github.com/mozilla/policy-templates/blob/master/README.md or https://winaero.com/blog/disable-updates-firefox-63-above/ You can use a policies.json file in the distribution folder in the Firefox installation folder instead as also listed in the article, so no need to use GPO keys in the Windows Registry. • https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/customizing-firefox-using-policiesjson ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ You can use the ManualAppUpdateOnly policy in Firefox 87+ to enable only manual updates e.g. via "Help -> About Firefox". Note that it is important to stay up to date and install the latest security patches.
Also not really helpful. This point of this message is to get the attention of the dev team and perhaps motivate alteration to the way they treat the user by not forcing updates. You don't need to state how important to security updates. It is common knowledge. However, when or if to apply them needs ALWAYS be the choice of the user.
Hi,
The people who answer questions here, for the most part, are other users volunteering their time (like me), not Mozilla employees or Firefox developers. If you want to leave feedback for Firefox developers, you can go to the Firefox Help menu and select Submit Feedback... or use this link. Your feedback gets collected by a team of people who read it and gather data about the most common issues.
You can also file a bug report or feature request. See File a bug report or feature request for Mozilla products for details.
FredMcD said
Note: The program files are in a different folder than the profile data. In this way, trouble with the program files can be repaired/replaced just in case.
Also not helpful. I am well aware of this as detailed in the OP. My statement suggests moving the profile folders into the execution folder to make for easier migration and portability. There are no limiting factors to doing so, even on a per-user. This is purely a programmatical limitation and would not adversely affect how FireFox operates.
Seburo said
Hi, The people who answer questions here, for the most part, are other users volunteering their time (like me), not Mozilla employees or Firefox developers. If you want to leave feedback for Firefox developers, you can go to the Firefox Help menu and select Submit Feedback... or use this link. Your feedback gets collected by a team of people who read it and gather data about the most common issues. You can also file a bug report or feature request. See File a bug report or feature request for Mozilla products for details.
This however, is helpful. I will try to reach out to the devs using that link.
No problem, glad we could help.