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Links sometimes open in new windows instead of new tabs

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Software used: Firefox ESR 102.15.1 on RedHat Enterprise Linux 8 with the Xfce4 desktop environment in version 4.16.3.

I run two Firefox windows on two different virtual desktops. Most open tabs in each of them are tied to the workflow I use on each desktop, in case this is somehow important.

Problem description: Sometimes, Ctrl+clicking on HTTP or HTTPS links will open the resource in a new window instead of in a new tab. This appears to be random, and does not depend on the link target. It is also not properly reproducible, so the same link may work just fine and open the resource in a new tab as expected on another attempt to Ctrl+click it.

Properties like browser.link.open_newwindow or browser.link.open_newwindow.override.external are unmodified and set at their default values.

I can drag the new window's only tab back into the browser window in which I originally clicked on such a link, but this is becoming tedious. Sometimes I overlook this, resulting in a chaos of multiple open Firefox windows with multiple open tabs in each of them.

The behavior I would expect: When Ctrl+clicking on links, their resources should always open in a new tab, never in a new window, unless it's a link with a protocol that Firefox by itself won't handle and where it will have to rely on another program to open it (e.g. ftp://, ssh:// or mailto:somebody@somedomain.com).

My request: I would like this to be fixed if it's a real bug. If I am somehow responsible myself without knowing why, please just let me know what I might be doing wrong.

If there are some workarounds for this, e.g. some properties I could set in about:config, help with those would be appreciated as well.

Most information I can find about similar problems is pretty old by now and pre-dates Firefox 102.15.1 by many releases and years. All suggestions I could find about what one would need to change in about:config to fix this seem to be the default by now anyway.

Thank you very much!

Software used: Firefox ESR 102.15.1 on RedHat Enterprise Linux 8 with the Xfce4 desktop environment in version 4.16.3. I run two Firefox windows on two different virtual desktops. Most open tabs in each of them are tied to the workflow I use on each desktop, in case this is somehow important. Problem description: Sometimes, Ctrl+clicking on HTTP or HTTPS links will open the resource in a new window instead of in a new tab. This appears to be random, and does not depend on the link target. It is also not properly reproducible, so the same link may work just fine and open the resource in a new tab as expected on another attempt to Ctrl+click it. Properties like browser.link.open_newwindow or browser.link.open_newwindow.override.external are unmodified and set at their default values. I can drag the new window's only tab back into the browser window in which I originally clicked on such a link, but this is becoming tedious. Sometimes I overlook this, resulting in a chaos of multiple open Firefox windows with multiple open tabs in each of them. The behavior I would expect: When Ctrl+clicking on links, their resources should always open in a new tab, never in a new window, unless it's a link with a protocol that Firefox by itself won't handle and where it will have to rely on another program to open it (e.g. ftp://, ssh:// or mailto:somebody@somedomain.com). My request: I would like this to be fixed if it's a real bug. If I am somehow responsible myself without knowing why, please just let me know what I might be doing wrong. If there are some workarounds for this, e.g. some properties I could set in about:config, help with those would be appreciated as well. Most information I can find about similar problems is pretty old by now and pre-dates Firefox 102.15.1 by many releases and years. All suggestions I could find about what one would need to change in about:config to fix this seem to be the default by now anyway. Thank you very much!

Modified by michael.lackner1

All Replies (5)

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This sounds like something that might be better reported at bugzilla.mozilla.org as a bug versus here.

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Mike Kaply said

This sounds like something that might be better reported at bugzilla.mozilla.org as a bug versus here.

Alright, I will do that, thanks!

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Does this still happen if you set browser.link.open_newwindow.restriction to '0' from its default of '2' as otherwise links with a JavaScript onclick handler that use window.open() and specify features open in a new window ?

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Bug report created:

  • 1871531 - Links sometimes open in new windows instead of new tabs
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cor-el said

Does this still happen if you set browser.link.open_newwindow.restriction to '0' from its default of '2' as otherwise links with a JavaScript onclick handler that use window.open() and specify features open in a new window ?

Thank you for your reply, I've changed that setting just now. I'll keep using it like that for a few days to see whether the behavior changes.

Though I have noticed one additional thing: This can also happen when I enter a URL manually and then hit "Enter" to load it. Sometimes it would open the URL in a new window then as well.