"Always ask you where to save files" does not work

[WD]

Apparently this problem has been going on for years and Mozilla does not see fit to fix it. I download a lot of files and have decided not to use Firefox as my default browser because it always puts files in the Downloads folder even with the "Always ask you where to save files" box checked.

[HMK]

I have never had that issue.  I have a lot of other issues with the File Download, but not that.

Bear with me if these are stupid questions.

1. What version of FF are you using? (An older version did have this problem, but it was quite a while ago and I don't remember which version it was.)
2. Verify that you have the 'Always ask you where to save files' box checked.
3. in the Applications section below that checkbox, have you verified that you have 'Always ask' for each of the appropriate file types.
4. Below that is the 'What should FF do with other files?'.  Did you answer 'Ask whether to open or save'?
5. The process is going to bring up a separate dialog box for every single file. Are you getting the dialog boxes?
6. If you're downloading more than one file at a time, all of the dialog boxes are going to load, one after the other before you can actually interact with them.  (lots of files will take lots of time).  Are you changing the location in just one of those dialog boxes then just hitting enter on each of the others? 
7. Are you changing the location on each one?
8. Are you DL just one file, setting the location, then choosing to DL the others?

Anything else you can tell us?

[WD]

I rarely download anything other than pdf or csv. Everything was checked in FF 117.0.1. Today when I started FF it said that an update was available. I updated to 118.0.1 and asking me where to save appears to be working.

Thanks for the reply.

[contactngir]

I have 126.0.1. But 'Always ask where to save files' just doesn't work. I have tried all the articles that google has shown up. This simple thing not working is really disappointing

[jscher2000]

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@contactngir wrote:

I have 126.0.1. But 'Always ask where to save files' just doesn't work. I have tried all the articles that google has shown up. This simple thing not working is really disappointing

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Hi, this option only applies when you save a file. If you have Firefox open a download (either in a tab for a PDF, or in an external application), then you can't choose where to save it or how to name it.

(You can choose whether to save a file you Open in your downloads folder or in the Windows Temp folder. If you would prefer the temp folder, I can post the steps to make that change.)

[HMK]

Why would you make the assumption that contactngir isn't using FF to save a file, when they clearly state that?

The redesigned file download process is horrible and should be redone, the right way.

[jscher2000]

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@HMK wrote:

Why would you make the assumption that contactngir isn't using FF to save a file, when they clearly state that?

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I don't know what is happening, but I think it is important to point out that the setting is only applied when you tell Firefox to save the download -- when Firefox does not take any action to open/display the download.

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The redesigned file download process is horrible and should be redone, the right way.

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When was the last time it worked the way you like? In Firefox 88 and earlier, when you told Firefox to Open a file, it was saved in the Temp folder instead of Downloads. But if you are saying you have a problem when you choose to Save files instead of opening them, that hasn't changed.

[HMK]

I guess I misunderstood your comment.  It came off as if you were telling them that FF doesn't control how other applications handle DLs.  It appears that you're trying to make a distinction between choosing to save a file and where the temp file gets put when you choose to open it directly through FF?  Asking what they're trying to do is usually a good first step for clarity.

I have no idea which versions worked in what ways.  I don't live and breath FF.  It's a tool.  If you want to know what I have suggested, numerous times, see here

https://connect.mozilla.org/t5/discussions/firefox-are-there-any-plans-to-fix-the-horribly-redesigne...

Each time I posted this idea (or any), the moderator wouldn't publish it until a week or more after I posted it (if at all), so they never showed up on the front page.  They always got buried 5 or 6 pages down so I finally gave up even trying.

[akarollil]

I actually thought the save dialog not showing up was a bug, but it was just for PDFs, and it was because I had set PDFs to be opened by Firefox after download rather than saved. Once I configured Firefox to save rather than open PDFs after download, downloading PDFs (e.g. an attachment in GMail) results in the save dialog showing up. So this is not an issue for me. Guess it is a user interface issue that is subjective - I didn't connect the Downloads section to the Applications section in Settings. But now it makes sense. Not sure how to avoid that confusion - maybe a dialog box the first time you are saving something that is also set to be opened? Or maybe save first and open after? Or maybe not open at all unless explicitly asked by user?

[Alexaali]

It's really frustrating that this issue has been around for so long without a fix. The 'Always ask you where to save files' option should work as expected, but it's disappointing when Firefox defaults to the Downloads folder anyway. I've experienced the same problem, which can be unpleasant, especially when downloading multiple files. Hopefully, Mozilla will address this soon. In the meantime, switching to a different browser might be the best workaround. Thanks for sharing your experience!

[DonT007]

Not only is the Always Ask option NOT working (still), Firefox is automatically displaying files when I ask to download them.  Specifically, I am on Citi's website tonight retrieving statements.  The statements are listed, with columns to click to View or Download.  It doesn't matter which option you pick, Firefox ALWAYS downloads the document to the Downloads folder and displays the document.  Chrome does not have this problem.  When I click Download, I get the dialog box that lets me select a folder and rename the file, which I am always doing with these.  My Downloads folder is stuffed full of useless documents with unintelligible file names.  The optimal implementation is this:  If I ask to view the file, download it to the Temp directory.  Once I am looking at it, I still have the option to download it or not.  If I ask to download the file, obey the "Always Ask" option selector in settings.  If I have just asked to download a file, please do not waste my time showing me the file too.  I have been a programmer for 50 years and I am getting more and more irritated with developers who try to decide what I want to do.  Does anybody remember the KISS principle any more?  (Keep it simple, stupid)  In case somebody wonders, I'm using version 133.0.3 (64-bit).

[jscher2000]

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@DonT007 wrote:

Not only is the Always Ask option NOT working (still), Firefox is automatically displaying files when I ask to download them. 

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Below the section where you specify a directory and whether you want Firefox to Always ask where to save files there is a section where you can set content-type actions that override that. I'm guessing you have "Open in Firefox" for PDFs.

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Specifically, I am on Citi's website tonight retrieving statements.  The statements are listed, with columns to click to View or Download.  It doesn't matter which option you pick, Firefox ALWAYS downloads the document to the Downloads folder and displays the document.

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Hmm, usually if a site has two links, one for View and one for Download, they differ in the Content-Disposition header sent with the response:

1. View => Content-Disposition: inline (or not set at all)
2. Download => Content-Disposition: attachment

When you have your PDF action set to "Open in Firefox" on the Settings/Preferences page:

1. For inline disposition, Firefox saves the PDF in the web content cache and displays it from there. You'll notice an http:// or https:// address in the address bar.
2. For attachment disposition, Firefox 98+ saves the PDF in your "Save files to" folder and auto-opens it in a tab from there. You'll notice a file:// address in the address bar. (Firefox 97 and earlier showed the Open/Save/Cancel dialog. For Open, it would save in the system temp folder, and for Save, it did not auto-open the files.)

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My Downloads folder is stuffed full of useless documents with unintelligible file names.  The optimal implementation is this:  If I ask to view the file, download it to the Temp directory.  Once I am looking at it, I still have the option to download it or not.  If I ask to download the file, obey the "Always Ask" option selector in settings.  If I have just asked to download a file, please do not waste my time showing me the file too.

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Firefox doesn't base handling of links on the text of the link. That said, if my guess about how that's site links work, you can override how Firefox handles them:

When you have "Open in Firefox" as your action for PDFs:

(1) Roll back to showing the Open/Save/Cancel dialog for PDFs sent with attachment disposition. This involves setting "browser.download.force_save_internally_handled_attachments" to true in about:config.

If you want Firefox to use the system Temp folder instead of downloads when you choose Open in this dialog: set "browser.download.start_downloads_in_tmp_dir" to true in about:config.

(2) Disregard attachment disposition for PDFs and save them in the web content cache like other PDFs. This involves setting "browser.download.open_pdf_attachments_inline" to true in about:config.

In this scenario: if you want to bypass the built-in viewer, you need to right-click > Save Link As... on the link to the PDF.