Mozilla has launched Firefox 135, the newest iteration of its well-known open-source web browser. This release focuses on delivering notable enhancements to performance, security protocols, and overall user experience, in addition to improvements tailored for developers.
This guide outlines the key features introduced in Firefox 135 and provides detailed instructions on how to install it on Linux-based operating systems.
What’s New in Firefox 135?
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Improved Linux Packaging – Utilizes XZ compression to reduce file sizes and accelerate unpacking.
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Better Tab Management – The quit shortcut on Linux/macOS now closes only the current tab instead of exiting Firefox.
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Enhanced Privacy & Security – Implements measures to block history manipulation, reinforces certificate transparency, and activates CRLite revocation checking.
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User Experience Tweaks – Replaces “Copy Without Site Tracking” with “Copy Clean Link”; introduces the new Tab layout globally.
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Built-in Translation Updates – Incorporates Simplified Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages with enhanced accuracy.
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Autofill & Privacy Updates – Enables payment autofill globally; removes the “Do Not Track” option.
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Developer Enhancements – Features WebAuthn
getClientCapabilities(), post-quantum key exchange for HTTP/3, and more precise pointer event handling. -
AI Features – Firefox Labs AI chatbot is enabled by default.
Install Firefox Manually Using Binary Package
Installing Firefox manually using the binary package ensures you get the latest version directly from Mozilla. Here’s how to do it.
Step 1: Go to the official Mozilla Firefox download page and download the latest version for your system architecture.
Step 2: Navigate to the directory where you saved the downloaded file and extract the archive’s contents using the following command:
tar xjf firefox-*.tar.bz2
Step 3: Move the extracted firefox directory to the /opt directory:
sudo mv firefox /opt
Step 4: Create a symbolic link to the Firefox executable in /usr/local/bin:
sudo ln -s /opt/firefox/firefox /usr/local/bin/firefox
Step 5: To make Firefox appear in your application menu, create a desktop entry file:
sudo nano /usr/share/applications/firefox.desktop
Step 6: Add the following content to the file:
[Desktop Entry]
Name=Firefox
Comment=Web Browser
GenericName=Web Browser
Exec=/opt/firefox/firefox %u
Icon=/opt/firefox/browser/chrome/icons/default/default128.png
Terminal=false
Type=Application
Categories=Network;WebBrowser;
MimeType=text/html;text/xml;application/xhtml+xml;application/xml;application/vnd.mozilla.xul+xml;application/rss+xml;application/rdf+xml;
Step 7: Save and close the file (Ctrl+O, Enter, Ctrl+X in nano).
Step 8: Launch Firefox using the command:
firefox
Install Firefox Using Your Package Manager (Recommended)
Most Linux distributions include Firefox in their default repositories. Using the package manager ensures proper installation and configuration. Note that there might be a delay between the official release and the availability of the updated package.
sudo apt install firefox [On Debian, Ubuntu and Mint]
sudo yum install firefox [On RHEL/CentOS/Fedora and Rocky/AlmaLinux]
sudo emerge -a sys-apps/firefox [On Gentoo Linux]
sudo apk add firefox [On Alpine Linux]
sudo pacman -S firefox [On Arch Linux]
sudo zypper install firefox [On OpenSUSE]
sudo pkg install firefox [On FreeBSD]
Step 1: For Ubuntu users who want the latest version before it’s available through the standard update channel, add the official Mozilla PPA:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mozillateam/ppa
Step 2: Update the package list:
sudo apt update
Step 3: Install Firefox:
sudo apt install firefox
Install Firefox Using Snap
Step 1: Ensure that Snap is installed on your Linux system. Instructions can be found here.
Step 2: Install Firefox using Snap with the following command:
sudo snap install firefox
Install Firefox Using Flatpak
Step 1: Ensure that Flatpak is installed and configured on your Linux system. Instructions can be found here.
Step 2: Install Firefox from Flathub using the following command:
flatpak install flathub org.mozilla.firefox
Firefox 135 delivers key enhancements focused on security, privacy, and usability, offering an improved browsing experience for all users on Linux.