Open Bug 2069171 Opened 2 months ago Updated 10 days ago

[Firefox 159] New KB article + in-product link: Closed-browser web notifications (background helper + settings checkbox)

Categories

(support.mozilla.org :: Knowledge Base Content, enhancement)

Product:
support.mozilla.org
Component:
Knowledge Base Content
Platform:
Desktop
Windows
Type:
enhancement

Tracking

(Not tracked)

Status:
ASSIGNED

People

(Reporter: asavransky, Assigned: ffloare, NeedInfo)

References

Details

Did you check out the steps and FAQs for submitting requests to the CX content team?

Yes

Content access restriction: Is the content restricted to staff or under embargo?

No

Product (ensure to select only one product for each ticket. If your request involves multiple products, file an individual Bugzilla for each)

Firefox for Desktop (Windows)

Select the type of request.

Please summarize the request, emphasizing any user-facing changes. Include historical context or background information if it helps users understand the new features or changes.

Request summary
Firefox 159 adds delivery of web push notifications on Windows while Firefox is closed. Today, when a user has clicked "Allow" on a site's prompt, notifications sent while Firefox isn't running wait on Mozilla's push server until next launch and can expire. With this feature, a small companion process — "Firefox Web Notifications" (notification-helper.exe), installed with Firefox and signed by Mozilla — watches for pending notifications while Firefox is closed; when one arrives it starts Firefox in the background with no window so the notification shows as a normal Windows toast. Clicking opens the site in Firefox. Users can turn it off via a new checkbox in Settings → Privacy & Security → Permissions → Notifications.

We need one KB article that (1) explains what this is, why users see a new process in Task Manager, and what it can/can't access, and (2) shows how to turn it off. Feature is Nimbus-gated, so write it as "if you have this feature."

Proposed title: Get notifications from websites while Firefox is closed (Windows)
Proposed slug: closed-browser-notifications

Release number and date

  • Fx159 — releases 2026-10-27. Code lands off-by-default; enabled only for Nimbus-enrolled users. Note that we will only turn this feature on in the experiment for users that have allowed web notifications from at least one site.
  • Experiment launch 2026-10-28 (Windows release, ~1.5M enrollments).
  • Rollout decision TBD, but most likely in early 2027 since it may be too late to impact 2026 EOY goals.

Draft article here.

Important notes:

  • The helper cannot read your notifications. It reads the profile's UAID and server URL and nothing else. Payloads stay end-to-end encrypted and are only decrypted inside Gecko.
  • Only "push notifications" are delivered via the helper. Some sites send "tab notifications," which are triggered by the tab itself and do not leverage our autopush server, so those will not be delivered while the browser is closed.

Are the user-facing changes mentioned above for the production release, or is the feature/change experimental/ beta? (Production, Experimental or Beta)

Experimental, but we expect to move it to production soon after the experiment.

Publishing requirements

  • en-US live by 2026-10-27.
  • Localization: Please include your standard priority-locale list by the same date (so that the experiment can be shipped in multiple locales and also in anticipation of a global rollout).
  • In-product links: (1) "Learn more" on the settings checkbox — https://support.mozilla.org/1/firefox/%VERSION%/%OS%/%LOCALE%/closed-browser-notifications + UTMs (utm_source=preferences); (2) the one-time infobar shown to existing profiles when it's turned on for them (utm_source=infobar). Ideally we have this slug ASAP since it has to be final before Fx158 string freeze regardless of article status.

Are the new features or changes region-specific? Are they going to be released in a gradual rollout?

This will be a global rollout but Windows only, so not macOS/Linux; enterprise (policy-managed) excluded.

Please indicate if this is an on- or off-train release

On-train, Fx159 as noted above.

What is the anticipated release date?

On-train, Fx159 as noted above.

Does the content need to be published prior to the release date? If so, when?

Content can be published on the release date.

Does the content need to be localized in any languages outside of EN-US? If yes, please indicate which languages.

Yes, your standard priority-locale list as noted above.

Please include any related JIRA/Github/Bugzilla tickets, documentation, demos or practical use cases.

Please include links to any design assets, visuals, figma files, etc.

See designs here.

Please add instructions for testing that will enable us to replicate the expected product behavior.

There will be a pref you can turn on, but we can provide that once we are closer to landing it in Nightly.

Does the content need approval before publishing? If yes, identify the one approver responsible for this task.

Yes, Alejandro Savransky (approver) and Alex Davis (reviewer).

Group: mozilla-employee-confidential
OS: Unspecified → Windows
Hardware: Unspecified → Desktop
Group: mozilla-employee-confidential
Summary: [Firefox 158] New KB article + in-product link: Closed-browser web notifications on Windows (background helper + settings checkbox) → [Firefox 158] New KB article + in-product link: Closed-browser web notifications (background helper + settings checkbox)

Two updates from the #sumo-team thread, plus one request.

  • Embargo: correcting the description — this content is NOT embargoed. The feature code is public in mozilla-central and the experiment will be public on Experimenter. I've made the bug public. No hold on publishing.
  • Title: per Paul's suggestion on the thread, dropping the OS from the title so the same URL works when we bring this to other platforms. New proposed title: "Get notifications from websites while Firefox is closed". Windows-only scope moves into the article body.

Slug (needinfo): can you confirm closed-browser-notifications as the slug, or propose an alternative, by 2026-09-16? It's needed for the in-product "Learn more" link (Settings checkbox + infobar) ahead of the Fx158 string freeze on 2026-09-23. The article body can keep iterating after that; only the slug needs to be final.

Thank you in advance!

Flags: needinfo?(dkelly)
Assignee: nobody → ffloare
Status: NEW → ASSIGNED
Flags: needinfo?(dkelly)

Update from Alejandro that development is running behind and they're now aiming to ship the experiment with Fx159

Summary: [Firefox 158] New KB article + in-product link: Closed-browser web notifications (background helper + settings checkbox) → [Firefox 159] New KB article + in-product link: Closed-browser web notifications (background helper + settings checkbox)

Updates to the draft article after testing feedback from engineering:

  • Title changed to "Let websites notify you while Firefox is closed." The old wording promised delivery, but whether a notification arrives while Firefox is closed depends on how each site sends it. Slug unchanged (closed-browser-notifications).
  • Expect "missing notification" reports. Many sites only send notifications while they're open in a tab, including some you'd expect to use push. Gmail is one we've confirmed: allowing its prompt doesn't produce notifications while Firefox is closed. The permission prompt looks the same either way, and Firefox can't reliably tell which kind a site uses. The article now says this and points users to the site's own notification settings. We've deliberately not named sites in the article since their behavior can change.
  • Testing: please don't use Gmail to check the feature. We'll share the pref and a push test page when it lands in Nightly.

I worked on the draft here, and Alejandro already reviewed it: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-0Ze7sghks4rCarXpIfHcqjvDW2IaKz4yRbA_vGeQT4/edit?tab=t.0

The new article: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/closed-browser-notifications
The existing article update: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/push-notifications-firefox

Both are live. This bug can be closed.

Hello everyone,
I was working on the localization of the article into Italian. Since I use a Mac (and this feature is currently only available for Windows) I checked Pontoon for the translation of the string "Allow website notifications when Firefox is closed," but it isn't there yet.

I also asked an Italian contributor who uses Windows and Firefox 159 for help, but they couldn't find this notification-related option in the Firefox settings either. Could someone help me understand what’s going on? Is this a feature that will be introduced via a gradual rollout?

Thanks in advance ;)

(In reply to Michele Rodaro [:michro] from comment #8)

Hello everyone,
I was working on the localization of the article into Italian. Since I use a Mac (and this feature is currently only available for Windows) I checked Pontoon for the translation of the string "Allow website notifications when Firefox is closed," but it isn't there yet.

I also asked an Italian contributor who uses Windows and Firefox 159 for help, but they couldn't find this notification-related option in the Firefox settings either. Could someone help me understand what’s going on? Is this a feature that will be introduced via a gradual rollout?

I also don't see the Allow website notifications when Firefox is closed option in Firefox settings, using Firefox 159 on Windows 11 en-US.

(from comment #0)

Release number and date

  • Fx159 — releases 2026-10-27. Code lands off-by-default; enabled only for Nimbus-enrolled users. Note that we will only turn this feature on in the experiment for users that have allowed web notifications from at least one site.
  • Experiment launch 2026-10-28 (Windows release, ~1.5M enrollments).
  • Rollout decision TBD, but most likely in early 2027 since it may be too late to impact 2026 EOY goals.

I read that to mean this is a progressive rollout. The https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/closed-browser-notifications article Intro currently says, Note: This feature is currently available starting in Firefox version 159, to some Firefox users on Windows. It is not available on macOS or Linux, or on Firefox installations managed by an organization. The https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/push-notifications-firefox article has a similar note in the Receive website notifications while Firefox is closed section for fx159. I think that the articles should specify that this feature is part of a progressive rollout for users who have allowed web notifications from at least one site and should include the Template:progressiverollout.

(Alice Wyman from comment #9)

(from comment #0)

Release number and date

  • Fx159 — releases 2026-10-27. Code lands off-by-default; enabled only for Nimbus-enrolled users. Note that we will only turn this feature on in the experiment for users that have allowed web notifications from at least one site.
  • Experiment launch 2026-10-28 (Windows release, ~1.5M enrollments).
  • Rollout decision TBD, but most likely in early 2027 since it may be too late to impact 2026 EOY goals.

I read that to mean this is a progressive rollout. The https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/closed-browser-notifications article Intro currently says, Note: This feature is currently available starting in Firefox version 159, to some Firefox users on Windows. It is not available on macOS or Linux, or on Firefox installations managed by an organization. The https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/push-notifications-firefox article has a similar note in the Receive website notifications while Firefox is closed section for fx159. I think that the articles should specify that this feature is part of a progressive rollout for users who have allowed web notifications from at least one site and should include the Template:progressiverollout.

I submitted revisions to both articles that are pending review. See:

Note: This feature is currently available starting in Firefox version 159, to some Firefox users on Windows who have allowed web notifications from at least one website. It is not available on macOS or Linux, or on Firefox installations managed by an organization.

I think the documentation should refer to Fx 161, since that's the version in which the last relevant bug was fixed (Bug 2078262) and a setting was added for users to enable or disable background notifications (Bug 2073606).

Alejandro, what do you think?

Flags: needinfo?(asavransky)
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