Install Real Firefox in Debian

Mozilla Firefox is a widely used web browser in many GNU/Linux distibution, including Debian OS. But, due to the brand/name restriction, Debian use Iceweasel, a rebranded Firefox browser, as its the default web browser instead of "real" Mozilla Firefox.

Iceweasel is Firefox, only with different name and logo. It looks and performs exactly like Firefox, Firefox extensions/add-ons are 100% compatible and thus can be installed and used in Iceweasel.

But for many people, using the rebranded browser of Firefox somehow doesn't give a "real" Firefox eperience. And also, although in very rare cases, some websites reportedly can't recognize Iceweasel as Firefox, so the site can't be used smoothly on it. Another reason why some people prefer the real Firefox instead of Iceweasel, is because Iceweasel in Debian is a bit outdated, not updated to the latest Firefox (as of this writing, Iceweasel version in Debian Wheezy is Iceweasel ESR 10.0.7, while the latest Mozilla Firefox is Firefox 15.0).

For whatever reason, if you want to install the real Firefox in Debian OS, here I will show a little step-by-step tutorial/guide.

Debian doesn't provide Firefox in its official repository, so we need to install it in another way. In this method, I will show you a manual installation: how to install the real Mozilla Firefox web browser in Debian OS.

Install Firefox

1. Download Firefox

   Download latest version of the original Mozilla Firefox for Linux from the official Mozilla website here, and put it in the Downloads folder within your Home directory (/home/$USER/Downloads).
   .

2. Install Firefox

   • Copy and extract Firefox archive
     Open Terminal, and change directory (cd) to the Downloads folder:
     

     cd Downloads

     Then run the following commands (one-by-one):
     

     sudo cp firefox-*.tar.bz2 /opt
     cd /opt
     sudo tar -xvf firefox-*.tar.bz2
     sudo rm firefox-*.tar.bz2

     .
   • Create symbolic link to firefox binary
     UPDATE (2013.11.17-080056-utc)
     Added "firefox.real" symlink (thanks to Wilbert van Bakel):
     Backup (move) any existing firefox bin:
     

     sudo mv -f /usr/bin/firefox /usr/bin/firefox.backup
     sudo mv -f /usr/bin/firefox /usr/bin/firefox.real.backup

     Create symbolic link to the real firefox binary:
     

     sudo ln -sf /opt/firefox/firefox /usr/bin/firefox
     sudo ln -sf /opt/firefox/firefox /usr/bin/firefox.real

     .

3. Create Firefox Application Shortcut

   • Create symbolic links for firefox icon
     sudo ln -s /opt/firefox/icons/mozicon128.png /usr/share/icons/hicolor/128x128/apps/firefox.png & sudo ln -s /opt/firefox/icons/mozicon128.png /usr/share/pixmaps/firefox.png
     UPDATE (2013.11.08-135813-utc)
     Changed Firefox app icon location (thanks to Naveen P Suthar):
     

     sudo ln -sf /opt/firefox/browser/icons/mozicon128.png /usr/share/icons/hicolor/128x128/apps/firefox.png
     sudo ln -sf /opt/firefox/browser/icons/mozicon128.png /usr/share/pixmaps/firefox.png

     .
   • Create firefox.desktop file in /usr/share/applications
     Open gedit (or another text editor app) with root privilege:
     

     sudo gedit /usr/share/applications/firefox.desktop

     Then copy-paste the following text:
     

     [Desktop Entry]
     Encoding=UTF-8
     Name=Firefox
     Comment=Browse the World Wide Web
     GenericName=Web Browser
     X-GNOME-FullName=Firefox Web Browser
     Exec=/opt/firefox/firefox %u
     Terminal=false
     X-MultipleArgs=false
     Type=Application
     Icon=firefox
     Categories=Network;WebBrowser;
     MimeType=text/html;text/xml;application/xhtml+xml;application/xml;application/vnd.mozilla.xul+xml;application/rss+xml;application/rdf+xml;image/gif;image/jpeg;image/png;x-scheme-handler/http;x-scheme-handler/https;
     StartupWMClass=Firefox-bin
     StartupNotify=true

     Save the file as firefox.desktop in the /usr/share/applications folder

Done.
You should now have Firefox Web Browser in GNOME applications menu.

***

Update Firefox

If you install Firefox on your system using the above method, you can update your Firefox installation by running Firefox browser as Root, and then update using build-in updater in Firefox window.

• Open up a Terminal window, and then run the following command:
  

  sudo /opt/firefox/firefox

  .
• In Firefox window, navigate to the Help menu ==> About Firefox. From the About Mozilla Firefox window, you can see update status and perform update process.
  .

NOTE
Running Firefox as Root should not be used for regular web browsing.

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Install Real Firefox in Debian by fanDigital

PS: Still, sorry for my English :)