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How do I stop automatically downloading exe files before I see the file size?

  • 2 replies
  • 6 have this problem
  • 3 views
  • Last reply by ah815102

ah815102
ah815102
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When I click on a file link (eg "setup.exe" or "setup.zip") from a website it asks where I want to save the file and shows the file size, but the download has already started in the background before I have clicked save. I have a fairly fast connection but limited download allowance so if the file is large I will cancel it, but a few MB may be downloaded before I can stop it. If I use right click -> "save link as..." then it does not start downloading before I click save but it does not tell me the file size either, I have also changed the prefetch settings which has not solved the issue.

When I click on a file link (eg "setup.exe" or "setup.zip") from a website it asks where I want to save the file and shows the file size, but the download has already started in the background before I have clicked save. I have a fairly fast connection but limited download allowance so if the file is large I will cancel it, but a few MB may be downloaded before I can stop it. If I use right click -> "save link as..." then it does not start downloading before I click save but it does not tell me the file size either, I have also changed the prefetch settings which has not solved the issue.

Chosen solution

You would have to use an external Downloads Manager that supports this feature.

You can use the FlashGot extension to integrate an external Download Manager in Firefox.

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All Replies (2)

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
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Chosen Solution

You would have to use an external Downloads Manager that supports this feature.

You can use the FlashGot extension to integrate an external Download Manager in Firefox.

ah815102
ah815102 Question owner
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I installed FlashGot and Free Download Manager, after changing a few settings I an able to query the size of a file before downloading it. Thank You.