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Why does Firefox ask me where to save my file when I've already set a location?

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I use Windows XP. I've set a location on Mozilla Firefox for downloading each file, but every time I try to download something, it asks me where I want to save it. I don't want to tell Firefox every time where I want to save a file. Thanks for your help. Love your browser.

I use Windows XP. I've set a location on Mozilla Firefox for downloading each file, but every time I try to download something, it asks me where I want to save it. I don't want to tell Firefox every time where I want to save a file. Thanks for your help. Love your browser.

All Replies (13)

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Good evening,

click on Tools --> Options --> General. In the general options you can choose where you want the files(which you will download) downloading. Your selection should look like: Save files to: (Here you select the folder where your files download). If you in doubt, write. :)

Best regards, David-Walczysko Volunteer supporter

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I have that already set!!! I need a real fix!

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I'm having this problem too. It worked fine recently now the download window appears & disappears right way :( I changed it to use a specific location, cleared download history & it still does not work

It seems a recent update introduced a problem. Please fix!

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Try the Firefox SafeMode.

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How would that help? Even if it works, I'd always have to use it that way (no help)

Modified by KevinRt66

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Hi KevinRt66, if it works in Safe Mode, then most likely one of your extensions is causing the problem and you can investigate that angle. If it doesn't work in Safe Mode, then it must be a problem with Firefox or another setting that isn't defaulted in Safe Mode. So testing in Safe Mode narrows the range of things to investigate.

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Hi CastleMiner94, it partly depends on how you are downloading.

If the site automatically pushes the download, you may get an Open/Save/Cancel dialog. If you check the box to do the same thing every time, then choose Save, the setting should just work from then on for that type of file.

However, if you use anything that says "Save ... As" such as "Save Link As" or "Save Image As" or "Save Page As" from a Firefox menu, then Firefox will ask you where you want to save. There might be an add-on which works around that, but I can't recall any specifically.

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ok, the "Reset Firefox" feature seemed to do it though now I lost the FF startup tabs I prefer opened. Which of the Profiles files has that info saved in it?

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Hi KevinRt66, Safe Mode is the other button! Okay, if you clicked the Refresh button, your old settings folder was moved to the desktop inside an Old Firefox Data folder. Do you see that?

If so, click into it and see whether you find a file named sessionstore.js (note that Windows normally hides the .js extension; to show it, see: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/k.../865219).

If that file doesn't exit, double-click into the sessionstore-backups folder and look for recovery.js.

Can you find either of those?

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Hi KevinRt66, if you meant your startup page setting instead of your last session tabs, it's simpler. Look for the old prefs.js file, right-click > Edit it. If you search for home in the file you can find your old home page setting.

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Old Firefox Data folder? Can you all be more specific on this & in the future? else that's not much help, I don't see it though it could be somewhere else & I'm not seeing it :(

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The home page setting would be this pref line in the prefs.js file in the "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop

  • browser.startup.homepage_override.mstone

If you want to recover open tabs then you would need the sessionstore.js file in the "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop.

You can use this button to go to the current Firefox profile folder:


When you refresh/reset Firefox then a new profile is created and some personal data (bookmarks, history, cookies, passwords, form data) is automatically imported. The current profile folder will be moved to an "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop. Installed extensions and other customizations (toolbars, prefs) that you have made are lost and need to be redone.

It is possible to recover data from the "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop, but be cautious not to copy corrupted files to avoid carrying over problems.

See also;

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KevinRt66 said

Old Firefox Data folder? Can you all be more specific on this & in the future?

That's the actual name of the folder: Old Firefox Data

The standard location where Firefox creates it is the Windows desktop.