The default behavior of Firefox is to show a File Download dialog window when you start to download a file. You can then choose to save the file or open it directly by choosing an application or use the default application for the file type.
Sometimes however things get messed up and the download window is not showing up anymore.
This can be because you have selected a default action for a file type or because of a software that you have installed which interferes with the downloads.
Thankfully though changing the default action is not complicated at all and it even is not a problem to bring back the dialog if you prefer that.
Actions are defined per file type in Firefox, tap on the Alt-key on your keyboard and go to Tools > Options > Applications and wait for the page to load
The page lists all known content types and their action in the interface. You will notice right away that you can assign actions to each file type individually depending on your preferences.
Maybe you want doc files to be opened in Word right away, zip files saved automatically without download dialog, and asked when you save images.
You can use the search at the top to find a file type that you want to manage using the applications menu or browse the selection manually instead.To modify a file type’s action simply select it with the mouse and use the menu displayed on the item’s action field to pick a new action for it.
- Always Ask – This setting displays the download dialog which you use to select actions for files that you download.Save File – Files are automatically saved without download dialog.Use … – Automatically load the file in the selected application.
So, all you need to do to display the file download dialog again is to switch the file type’s action to Always Ask again.