topic Re: How to view files from the web without saving them to disk? in Discussions

How to view files from the web without saving them to disk?

E_ch — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 06:35:24 GMT

Why does it automatically save it to disk when I view a file from the web (for example a PDF) even if I didn't request it and, in fact, I would like to avoid it? To view the PDF I chose to use an external program (the default one). In older versions of Firefox this didn't happen.

Re: How to view files from the web without saving them to disk?

Agentvirtuel — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 06:44:18 GMT

Hello

Take a look https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/forums/searchpage/tab/message?advanced=false&allow_punctuation=false&q=browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir

Frequently asked questions https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/manage-downloads-preferences-using-downloads-menu#w_frequently-asked-questions

When I open a file with an application, why is it also saved to my Downloads folder?
Before Firefox version 98, files you opened in Firefox with an application were also saved to the system Temp folder on Windows and Linux, even though you may not have been aware of it.

SUMO community discussions
Fx102 will include about:config pref to re-enable the Temp folder for downloads when opening files
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/forums/contributors/715745

Configuration Editor for Firefox https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/about-config-editor-firefox
Search browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir
If true, then the file will be saved in the temporary folder

Re: How to view files from the web without saving them to disk?

jscher2000 — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 17:58:01 GMT

@E_ch wrote:
Why does it automatically save it to disk when I view a file from the web (for example a PDF) even if I didn't request it and, in fact, I would like to avoid it?

Anything you view from the web needs to be saved somewhere. By default, Firefox will save a PDF in the web content cache (instead of in a normal folder on disk), assuming both of these are true:

The default action for "Portable Document File (PDF)" is set to "Open in Firefox"
The websites does NOT send a "Content-Disposition: attachment" header with the file

Otherwise, the file needs to be saved to disk in a folder. (The only way to avoid Firefox downloading the file is to share the URL of the PDF with your other application and let it handle the download itself.)

To view the PDF I chose to use an external program (the default one). In older versions of Firefox this didn't happen.

As noted by Agentvirtuel, Firefox 97 and earlier used the system temp folder when you set Firefox to open a file with an external program. Due to reports of users losing important downloads, Firefox 98 changed this to the "Save files to:" folder listed on the Settings/Preferences page. You can change it back to the temp folder using a preference if you prefer. Probably you have found the steps by now.