Firefox's Profile launches in Runtime. Error launching my profile in Firefox

[Rexadev]

Description

I uninstalled and reinstalled both Firefox and Runtime and I end up using only RunTime as my main browser. Which also caused these errors -

Error: You've launched an older version of Firefox when opening via command and Firefox is closed No problem if Firefox is already running but if firefox is closed and I run this command "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\private_browsing.exe" "https://google.com/"

I get this error -

"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -private-window https://example.com/

gives the same problem​

-private instead of -private-windows - "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" -private https://example.com/

or without -private - "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" https://example.com/

gives this​

​

Steps to Reproduce

Additional Information

Affected Websites

Environment

• Operating system: Windows 11
• System architecture: x64
• Desktop environment:
• Installation method:
• PWAsForFirefox extension version: 2.12.1
• PWAsForFirefox native version:
• PWAsForFirefox runtime version: 129.0
• Firefox version:

[filips123]

I end up using only RunTime as my main browser

What do you mean with this? Were you previously using Beta or Nightly version?

You can probably run Firefox with firefox.exe --allow-downgrade, but I recommend you back up your profiles first just in case this corrupts them. But I don't know how this happened.

[Rexadev]

I was not able to use my main Firefox's profile in the main Firefox installed it launched in RunTime so now only have the runtime

[filips123]

Your normal/main Firefox and the runtime for PWAsForFirefox should be separate, and you shouldn't use the same profile for both.

If you have opened your normal profile in the PWAsForFirefox runtime, and the runtime was at different version, you should install normal Firefox again, backup your profile, and start it with firefox.exe --allow-downgrade.

[ite-jankl]

I have noticed that the installation of FirefoxPWA creates/replaces Firefox start menu shortcuts.

Even after uninstalling FirefoxPWA via installer, the installation runtime as well as shortcuts remain.

Confusion between user profiles may be due to confusion in which Firefox installation is being launched due to PWA replacing shortcuts of the normal Firefox installation.

[Rexadev]

I also having problem setting firefox as default brower

[filips123]

Oh, so the problem is that runtime Firefox registers itself as a normal Firefox, and so it replaces your main Firefox installation (menu shortcuts and default browser)? That shouldn't happen, and I think I disabled this in the past, but I guess that it somehow still happens sometimes... This looks similar to #210.

Did you see any prompts for adding Firefox as default browser or creating menu shortcuts inside the PWA?

[ite-jankl]

The extension onboarding offered to install the separate Firefox PWA installation. Which it did, without asking about creating start menu shortcuts.

IIRC launching the first installed PWA it had "standard firefox onboarding popovers" like asking whether to use it as a default browser - which I declined.

[ite-jankl]

I only saw that a "Private Browsing" shortcut exists. I checked further just now.

In %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs I have Firefox Private Browsing which links to %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\FirefoxPWA\runtime\private_browsing.exe. There is no "normal mode" shortcut next to it.

In C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs I have the standard installation Firefox and Firefox Privater Modus shortcuts.

I conclude that the shortcuts may only be created if one with the same name does not already exist anywhere in the start menu. Or it may create only the private mode shortcut always (which seems more likely).

[filips123]

IIRC launching the first installed PWA it had "standard firefox onboarding popovers" like asking whether to use it as a default browser - which I declined.

I think this onboarding process alone can register Firefox as a browser (protocol handler) and create shortcuts, even if you decline setting it as a default browser.

I've already tried to disable this process multiple times in the past, but it seems I haven't covered everything. But it's weird that it doesn't happen everytime and for all users, so it's harder to fix...

[Rexadev]

[filips123]

You should install normal Firefox again if you haven't already, backup your profile, and start it with:

"C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" --allow-downgrade

From CMD.

You should close and PWAs or Firefox instances before doing this.

---

I tried again but I still didn't get the onboarding process popup. So I'm not sure yet why it only happens for some users.

[filips123]

I will close this issue as it appears to be caused by runtime Firefox sometimes displaying onboarding process and creating incorrect shortcuts, which is already tracked in #210.