Skip to content
Waterfox
Blog

Configuration Editor for Waterfox

The Configuration Editor, about:config lists Waterfox settings known as preferences that are read from the prefs.js and user.js files in the Waterfox profile and from application defaults. Many of these preferences are advanced settings that are not present in the Options panel. This article describes how to use the about:config page to view, change, or reset Waterfox preference settings, if you need to do so.

Opening about:config

Type about:config in the address bar and press Enter. A warning page may appear. Click Accept the Risk and Continue to go to the about:config page.

Fx71aboutconfig

Click Show All to view all preferences currently set in the profile or use the Search preference name box to filter the list.

Searching for preferences

You can use the Search preference name box at the top of the about:config page to quickly find specific preferences. For example, if you enter ocsp in the Search box, it will bring up the security.OCSP.enabled preference.

If you enter a search term and a preference does not exist, you will have the option to add a new preference (see below).

Modifying preferences

Fx71aboutconfigShowAll

You can double-click on a preference to change its value or you can do the following:

For a boolean (true-false) preference, click the Toggle Fx71aboutconfig-ToggleButton button.

For a string (text) or a number preference, click the Edit Fx71aboutconfig-EditButton button and enter a new value.

Fx71aboutconfig-editpref

Click on the checkmark Fx71aboutconfig-Checkmark to save the change.

Resetting or deleting preferences

To reset a preference to its default value, click the Reset Fx71aboutconfig-ResetButton button.

To remove an added preference, click the Delete Fx71aboutconfig-DeleteButton button.

If you added the preference entry yourself, it will no longer be listed after restarting Waterfox.

You can only reset or remove modified preferences, which are listed in bold type. (To reset all preferences, see the article Reset Waterfox preferences to troubleshoot and fix problems).

Adding preferences

Fx71aboutconfig-addnewpref

To add a new preference, enter its name into the Search preference name box at the top of the about:config page. At the bottom of the search results (if any), there will be the option to create a new preference. To do so, specify the type of value that preference will store:

  • String is any sequence of text
  • Number is an integer
  • Boolean is true or false

Click the Add Fx71aboutconfig-AddButton button to create the new preference and set its value. Boolean preferences are set to true by default; use the Toggle Fx71aboutconfig-ToggleButton button to change the value. For String or Number preferences, click the Save Fx71aboutconfig-Checkmark button. Click the Delete Fx71aboutconfig-DeleteButton button to discard the new preference.

Based on information from About:config (mozillaZine KB)