Unlike Google Chrome that is being managed by Google, Mozilla Firefox is an open source software that is managed by a community of professional developers. It was originally from a non-profit organization which has dedicated Firefox to protect the online privacy of its over 200 million monthly users. Firefox is also the original browser to include add-ons that are widely popular on all browsers today.
As the originator for add-ons, Firefox has a lot of added features to make browsing faster and safer for you. It has a variety of extensions, themes, tab managers, and even youtube customizations. But, perhaps Firefox’s most important add-on would be its strong password managers. Password managers help you save and remember all your complex passwords from multiple accounts. It would even suggest stronger passwords for you to use. This helps in protecting your accounts and having a strong security for it.
Another thing with Mozilla Firefox that can help you secure your privacy would be using a proxy server. Proxies help in protecting you from online threats and allows you to anonymously browse the internet. Mozilla Firefox is a great browser option for utilizing proxies because you can easily change Firefox proxy settings to send the web browser traffic through a proxy. Not only will Firefox allow you to directly use proxy settings from your operating system, Firefox also allows you to use settings that are different from your system's proxy settings.
Here’s a comprehensive guide of how to integrate proxies with your Mozilla Firefox browser. This is applicable to both Windows and MacOS.
Here are the steps you need to follow:
- Go to the Connection Settings in Mozilla Firefox
- Choose between three proxy options: Use your system’s proxy settings, manually configure the settings yourself, or automatically configure your proxy settings
- Input the necessary information for the chosen option
- Click “OK” to save!
Setting Up Proxy Settings In Mozilla Firefox
Step 1. Open the Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the three layered lines at the top-right part of your screen.
Step 2. From the drop-down box, click Settings. Note: For MacOS, click on Preferences.
Step 3. On the General tab, scroll down towards the bottom of the page to locate the network settings section and click on “Settings”. Alternatively, you can search “Network” on the search bar located at the top right then click on the settings button in the search results.
A pop-up window on Mozilla Firefox’s connection settings should then appear. Below is a detailed description of how to configure it’s proxy server settings.
Configuring Mozilla Firefox’s Proxy Settings
At the connection setting window, there are three options for you: Use your system’s proxy settings, manually configure the settings yourself, or automatically configure your proxy settings.
Use the first option if you want to use your operating system’s proxy settings. If you want a separate proxy server for Firefox and specifically utilize different proxy servers and ports for various kinds of traffic, choose manual configuration. If you want Firefox to configure the settings for you, choose automatic configuration and have a script address ready.
If you choose “Use your system’s proxy settings”, simply set up your system’s proxy settings. There are separate guides for this. Then, just click **“Ok” **to save.
If you chose “manual proxy configuration” then,
- Tap on Manual Proxy Configuration
- Set the server ip address and port numbers for the protocol you want to use. Note that you can use different proxy servers and ports for various kinds of traffic.
- Click OK to save the configurations
If you chose “Automatic proxy configuration” then,
- Tap on Automatic proxy configuration URL
- Enter the script address you want to utilize
- Click OK to save the configurations
Note: You can enter addresses in the “No proxy for” tab for websites you don’t want to use with a proxy server
Congratulations! You have now set up your proxy in the Mozilla Firefox browser. Do note that the first website you visit after setting up a proxy server, a prompt will appear asking for your login credentials from your proxy account.
