Use Sync to share your Firefox bookmarks, passwords and more with Firefox for mobile

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  • Revision id: 899
  • Created:
  • Creator: Michael Verdi
  • Comment: Added a link to sync download
  • Reviewed: No
  • Ready for localization: Yes
  • Readied for localization by: AnonymousUser
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Firefox Sync is a Firefox add-on that will allow you to sync your bookmarks, passwords, preferences, history, and/or tabs with other installations of Firefox. To start using Firefox Sync, you'll need to install and set up an account on your desktop installation of Firefox and then enter your Sync information on your mobile device.

Note: If you are using the integrated Sync feature of Firefox 4 Beta you will need to install the new Sync add-on version 1.5 in order for Sync to continue to work. Once you update to 1.5 on one of your computers, you will need to update all of your other computers to that version as well to continue syncing.

Step 1: Install and set up a Firefox Sync account

  1. Go to the Mozilla Add-ons Firefox Sync page, and click Add to Firefox.
  2. When you have finished installing Firefox Sync, click Restart Firefox. Firefox will restart with the Add-ons window open.
  3. In the Add-ons window, click OptionsPreferences to open the Sync panel.
  4. Click Set Up Firefox Sync.

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  5. Click I've never used Sync before.

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  6. Create a username and password. Enter your email address, and check "I agree to the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy". Then click NextContinue.
    Usernames and passwords can contain these characters: ||a-z|0-9|`|~|!|@|#|$|%|^|&|*|(|)|-|_|=|+|[ ]|{|}|\|;|:|'|"|,|.|<|>|/|?||

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  7. Create a secret phrase, then click NextContinue.
    The secret phrase is what Firefox Sync uses to encrypt your data before it sends it to the server, keeping your data more secure. You can read more about it here.

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  8. Choose what information to sync. By default, Firefox Sync will sync everything. We strongly recommend that you use this setting for the best experience. For Advanced Users, if you really want to customize your settings, you can click on Sync Everything and set it to Use my custom settings to pick which items to sync, then click NextContinue.

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  9. Enter text from the image, then click NextContinue.
  10. You will see a Setup Complete! message. Click FinishDone to close the setup window and take you back to the Sync panel.
  11. You do not need to do anything else. Firefox Sync will automatically sync your data in the background from here on. Note: The sync should happen very quickly but may take a few minutes or a few hours depending on how much data you need to sync and your network connection. Please leave Firefox open on your desktop to complete this sync process.
  12. Make sure the initial sync has completed before you use Firefox Home or Firefox Sync on another device. To see if the initial sync is complete, mouse over the Firefox Sync icon in the bottom right corner of the Firefox window. A tool tip should appear with a Last Update time. If there isn't a time listed or the time is a while ago, the Firefox Sync servers will not have your most recent data.
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Step 2: Set up Firefox Sync on Firefox for mobile.

Firefox Sync is built into Firefox for mobile so all you have to do is enter your information in the Preferences panel.

  1. Swipe to the left, tap the Tools button, then tap the Preferences button.
  2. Scroll down to the Sync section and enter your Firefox Sync Username, Password, and Sync Key (or Secret Phrase), then tap Connect. Your info will be automatically synced.

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Any time you want to view tabs from other computers, just tap the Awesome Bar and select the Desktop icon to see a list of open tabs.

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