How To Restart Firefox Without Closing Tabs

If you have Firefox as your default browser, there is no doubt you are proficient in it. However, Firefox has features like restarting the browser without closing tabs that most users are unaware of.

For instance, this feature can be particularly useful when you have too many tabs open. You can use it to restart Firefox to clear some memory, and you also won’t have to go through the trouble of finding and reopening your previous tabs.

So, if you are curious about how to restart your browser without losing tabs, we have covered information on how to do so.

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How to Restart Firefox Without Closing Tabs?

There are many ways you can restart your Firefox browser without closing it, and all of them utilize a specific browser feature. The methods vary in their functions a little, and some of them also do this automatically.

Restart Through About:profiles

The easiest method to restart Firefox with your previous tabs intact is from the about profile page. It uses Firefox’s built-in feature of restarting your browser normally, which also saves your opened tabs.

Here’s how you can use this method:

Open Firefox.
Open a new tab, and type about:profiles in the search bar.
In the About Profiles tab, click on Restart normally.
It will quickly restart the browser with all your tabs intact.

Open Previous Windows and Tabs Settings

Another setting in Firefox that replicates the feature of restarting Firefox without closing tabs is the open previous windows and tabs setting. When it is enabled, your previous session data will automatically get restored whenever you open Firefox.

Follow the steps below to enable this method:

In Firefox, click on the three horizontal lines in the upper right.
Choose Settings and select General from the left bar.
Under Startup, ensure the Open previous windows and tabs settings are checked.

Restart Through About:restartrequired

Rather than an intentional feature to restart Firefox with all your session data saved, it is more of a by-product that perfectly gets the job done.

Whenever you finish a Firefox update, it will prompt you to restart your browser. When you accept the prompt, Firefox will restart with all your previous session data saved.

The great thing is that you can easily access the restart required menu. Here’s how you can do so:

In Firefox, open a new tab.
Enter about:restartrequired in the search bar.
Click on Restart Firefox.

Pin Your Tabs

Whenever you pin your tabs, they will permanently stay in your Firefox browser. No matter how often you restart your browser, it will always open up automatically.

While this isn’t useful when you have a lot of tabs, it is perfect for tabs you have to access daily for work or other stuff.

Here’s how you can pin your tabs:

In Firefox, right-click the tab you want to pin.
Select Pin Tab.
This tab will always stay pinned (until you unpin it) no matter how often you restart Firefox.

Restart From Task Manager

Whenever your Firefox crashes, it will either directly restore your previous session or ask you if you want to restore them.

When you close your Firefox browser from the task manager, it will think the browser crashed. So, you can also use this method to restart the browser with previous session data.

Right-click your start menu.
Select Task Manager.
Choose Firefox and click on End task.
Reopen your Firefox.

Use Add-Ons

Another easy method to replicate this function is by using a Firefox add-on. You can choose from various add-ons available on the official Mozilla website that include this feature.

Furthermore, add-ons include some extra features like saving multiple session data and pausing tabs until you open them.

Manually Restore Session

Lastly, you can manually restore previous session data after your Firefox browser has been closed. It is especially useful when you have closed Firefox but haven’t saved your last session data.

However, the session data only gets saved for the first time you open Firefox after the last close. So, if you restart your PC or reopen the browser without restoring your previous session, you won’t be able to restore it.

Nonetheless, here’s how you can manually restore session data: