Is it possible to leave Firefox open when closing its only tab?

Question

I am using Firefox 59.0.2 (64-bit) on Ubuntu 16.04 (Xenial Xerus).

When there is only one tab opened in Firefox, closing the tab will also close the web browser. This is contrary to that in Chrome browser, closing the only tab doesn't close the Chrome browser.

I'm pretty sure closing the last tab will close Chromium, but there is a setting for "Continue running background apps when Chromium is closed" (whatever that's useful for). Isn't just leaving one blank / new tab good enough? (If it's all the distracting stuff that's in a new tab, it can be set to be empty/blank) — Xen2050, Apr 01 '18 at 16:58
You can pin a blank tab in Firefox. Pinned tab does not close with Ctrl+W. — Biswapriyo, Apr 01 '18 at 18:05
@Xen2050: Chromium Apps don't necessarily need to have a GUI, or at least, they don't necessarily need to live in a browser tab. The Google Hangouts app for Chromium, for example, usually lives in a small window outside of the browser GUI. If you use the Hangouts app for, say, video chatting, it would be annoying if your chat were aborted just because you closed the last browser tab, maybe even on a different screen or virtual workspace! — Jörg W Mittag, Apr 01 '18 at 20:08
there are a lot of questions about this on Mozilla support forum: [How to stop firefox quiting last tab(when only one tab is open) without warning??](https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1067915), [Where is the option for keeping Firefox open when I close the last tab?](https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1088400) — phuclv, Apr 02 '18 at 01:19
*"There are a lot of questions about this on Mozilla support forum..."* Honestly, that is rather surprising. I have been utilizing the same `about:config` setup described in Pippik's answer for several years. That capability has been around for quite some time. — Run5k, Apr 02 '18 at 16:34
Despite the fact I have no idea why you dont want to close it, If you will open download box- by default probably CTRL + J, then you can close all tabs, but firefox fill be still "running" :D — xxxvodnikxxx, Apr 03 '18 at 14:11
In Opera, this is the default functionality. Closing the last tab opens up a new tab. — yaakov, Apr 03 '18 at 19:22
Easy with both chrome and firefox: Be in any situation where the described behaviour is completely undesirable - you can rely on it happening :) — rackandboneman, Apr 04 '18 at 11:11
(To explain: Both browsers can behave like that if there is any window that bugged itself into being offscreen, 0x0px, or similar...) — rackandboneman, Apr 04 '18 at 11:13
@Xen2050 It's useful if you're downloading something but want to close chrome to free up a little bit of resources. — LateralTerminal, Apr 04 '18 at 16:06
@xxxvodnikxxx in that case Ctrl+Shift+B and Ctrl+Shift+H also work — phuclv, Apr 07 '18 at 16:38

score 132 · Answer 1 · edited Apr 03 '18 at 16:15

132

While it isn't possible to keep Firefox open with no tab showing, you can prevent quitting the application when the last tab is closed by having a new tab created automatically (your choice of home page or blank tab). Use about:config to change this behavior.

In the URL box, type about:config and press Enter.
If you get a warning that emphasizes "Changing these advanced settings can be harmful...," click the button that says I accept the risk!
Find the Preference name browser.tabs.closeWindowWithLastTab by typing it in the Search box or copy-and-paste it from here.
Double-click the Preference to change it to false.

edited Apr 03 '18 at 16:15

Run5k

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answered Apr 01 '18 at 18:37

DrMoishe Pippik

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You may add the details of that preference from this article http://kb.mozillazine.org/About:config_entries – Biswapriyo Apr 02 '18 at 04:47
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You could also leave a non-tab open like the history or downloads window – user2813274 Apr 03 '18 at 00:53
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Just curious: I thought Firefox is _free_; what warranty are we talking about? – alwayslearning Apr 03 '18 at 04:00
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@alwayslearning: It's just to prevent people who know nothing about computers from changing anything there and then complaining that it does not work after they broke it. – user21820 Apr 03 '18 at 04:49
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@alwayslearning it's not voiding the warranty. It's in quotes because it tries to convey the spirit of the message, not the actual contents. In reality it starts off with "Here be dragons!" (literally) and then explains that changes made there can be cause a problem and it'd be your fault if that happens. – VLAZ Apr 03 '18 at 08:00
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@alwayslearning: There isn't one. DrMoishe is using an analogy for brevity (or as a joke). – Lightness Races in Orbit Apr 03 '18 at 10:13
@LightnessRacesinOrbit, there really is a warning in Firefox about "voiding the warranty". viaz is correct about the explanation of the message. It's just warning you to be careful with what you configure. – oldtechaa Apr 03 '18 at 12:24
@vlaz , we have discussed this many times before. The *"Here be dragons!"* message appears to be a regional and/or version option, so while it might literally say that for **you**, I always see "[This might void your warranty!](https://i.stack.imgur.com/jYeMQ.jpg)" In other words, DrMoishe Pippik's "reality" is different from yours. ;-) – Run5k Apr 03 '18 at 12:39
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So I guess we can all agree that Mozilla should change the message to *"Here be dragons!"* – mbomb007 Apr 03 '18 at 15:42
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@Run5k <<"This might void your warranty!" is displayed for the English (US) locale. "Here be dragons!" is displayed for the English (British) locale, and possibly other English locales.>> [Source](https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/986855) – mbomb007 Apr 03 '18 at 15:45
@mbomb007 , good find. That being said, the only thing where *"we can all agree"* is that people who post Firefox-related answers should probably avoid referencing their regional Mozilla joke phrasing within their `about:config` page descriptions to help avoid confusion. – Run5k Apr 03 '18 at 15:50
@Run5k that's actually the first time I ever heard it's a regional thing. I've even seen the "here be dragons" message mentioned in articles and by other people, so I assumed it's every version of Firefox that has said it. – VLAZ Apr 03 '18 at 15:59
@vlaz that is totally understandable. I have mentioned it in reference to [other answers](https://superuser.com/a/1300132/650163), but some people find it rather hard to believe without a screen shot. The bottom line is that it can be confusing because the funny wording isn't universal, so I try to avoid using it. – Run5k Apr 03 '18 at 16:16
Thanks all for clarifying on the "warranty". I missed the pun as I didn't read between the _characters_. – alwayslearning Apr 03 '18 at 20:21

Is it possible to leave Firefox open when closing its only tab?

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