Mozilla Foundation has released a new feature update for the Firefox browser. Version 127 is now available in the Release channel with a few important changes, such as the ability to autostart the browser when you turn on your Windows computer, a new "Close duplicated tabs" command, additional protections for saved passwords (the browser will prompt you to authenticate using your system password and biometrics), and security fixes.
Firefox 127 also brings a big update for the built-in screenshot tool. You can now take screenshots in SVG and XML and screenshot more pages. Also, the tool now features better accessibility and additional keyboard shortcuts.
What is new in Firefox 127?
New features:
- You can now set Firefox to automatically launch whenever you start or restart your Windows computer. Setting Firefox to auto-launch optimizes efficiency in our browser-centric digital routines, eliminating manual startup delays and facilitating immediate web access. (Learn more)
- We completed work to optimize and enable DNS prefetching for HTTPS documents via the rel="dns-prefetch" link hint. This standard allows web developers to specify domain names for important assets that should be resolved preemptively.
- It is now possible to close all duplicate tabs in a window with the Close duplicate tabs command available from the List all tabs widget in the tab bar or a tab context menu.
- Firefox will now automatically try to upgrade img, audio, and video elements from HTTP to HTTPS if they are embedded within an HTTPS page. If these so-called mixed content elements do not support HTTPS, they will no longer load.
- For added protection on MacOS and Windows, a device sign in (e.g. your operating system password, fingerprint, face or voice login if enabled) can be required when accessing and filling stored passwords in the Firefox Password Manager about:logins page.
Changes:
- To reduce user fingerprinting information and the risk of some website compatibility issues, the CPU architecture for 32-bit x86 Linux will now be reported as x86_64 in Firefox"s User-Agent string and navigator.platform and navigator.oscpu Web APIs.
- Links and other focusable elements are now tab-navigable by default on macOS, instead of following macOS" "Keyboard navigation" setting. This is a more accessible default and matches the default in all other platforms. A checkbox in the settings page still allows users to restore the old behavior.
- The Screenshots feature in Firefox has gotten a big update! It now supports taking screenshots of file types like SVG, XML, and more as well as various about: pages within Firefox. We"ve also made the screenshot tool more accessible to everyone by implementing new keyboard shortcuts and adding theme compatibility and High Contrast Mode (HCM) support. And finally, performance for capturing large screenshots has been improved.
Security fixes in Firefox 127 are listed here. Developer information is available here, and Firefox for Enterprise 127 release notes are available here. You can update Firefox to version 127 by heading to Menu > Help > About Firefox.