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I found this question about the same topic: Is there a setting to make Firefox not directly download PDFs to Downloads when using "Open With"?

A solution is given there but there is also a warning that "if you are using snap package, this might cause issues with temp folders". Apparently I am using a snap package because it says "Mozilla Firefox Snap for Ubuntu" in the About Firefox section.

So I am wondering if there is another solution which might work in my case?

I don't know anything about the difference between snap packages and other kinds of packages or whether you can actually choose between them, I just installed Ubuntu 22.04 on my desktop computer and 24.04 on my laptop and I am having the same problem on both machines. It wasn't a problem before on my Ubuntu 16.04 machine so I assume snap is something new that has been invented in the meantime.

Thank you very much in advance for any suggestions. Please explain things in detail as my technical knowledge and understanding is limited.

marie
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1 Answers1

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You are encountering this issue because Snap packages manage security for you. Mozilla uses a conservative, multi-layered security scheme to prevent a browser vulnerability from compromising your entire system. The Firefox Snap is denied access to ALL directories outside your /home. This includes denying access to /tmp directories that are deleted at each boot. Users cannot override this.

You have a few options:

  1. You could file a request with Mozilla that they restore this feature in their Snap packages. Perhaps they might.

  2. Technically knowledgeable users can create a "temporary" folder inside their /home directory, and create boot job to empty that directory. As you said that you are NOT skilled, I won't create a step-by-step guide; you won't be able to maintain it. You must learn how to to:

    • Create a directory
    • Change your Mozilla download setting to point to that directory
    • Create a systemd startup service (This is the hard part. Learn it first)

  3. Another alternative for technically knowledgeable folks is to forego the Snap package and manage security yourself. Learn the skills to install Firefox using another method with less stringent security features, and learn how to keep it updated using that method. That also means learning how to mitigate and manage the risks yourself.

user535733
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