Firefox 115 is the last version of the Firefox browser that is compatible with older versions of Windows and macOS, specifically Windows 7, 8, and 8.1, as well as macOS versions 10.12 to 10.14.
If you try to install Firefox 116 or any future versions on these operating systems, the installation will fail.
Support Extension Announcement
In July, Mozilla announced plans to extend support for these systems. Just last week, they released Firefox 115 to users. However, there wasn’t any information regarding the continued support for these older systems, leading to uncertainty about forthcoming updates for users’ devices.
Key Information:
- The Extended Support Release (ESR) allows users on these older platforms to keep using Firefox.
- Major competitors like Google and Microsoft have already ceased support for Windows 7.
Firefox ESR 115 has now upgraded to Firefox ESR 128 for systems that are fully supported. However, this has put users on older systems in a tough spot as they cannot install Firefox 128.
Now, there is official word on an extension of that support.
Extension Details:
- Support for Firefox 115 ESR will remain available until at least March 2025.
- This support is expected to last until the release of Firefox ESR 115.21.
- Users will continue to receive security updates for a minimum of an additional six months.
Mozilla has yet to confirm if this extension is permanent or if there’s a chance that support could be renewed again in March 2025 for these older systems.
The organization indicated that they are reviewing usage data to make decisions regarding support extension. Currently, approximately 10% of Firefox users are on these legacy systems, a percentage that is slowly declining as users upgrade their devices.
If a significant number of users still rely on these systems, it’s possible that Mozilla could extend support again in March 2025.
Firefox users on unsupported systems utilizing Firefox ESR 115 will receive updates automatically via the built-in update feature in the browser.
The number of active users has been on a decline since Google launched Chrome over ten years ago. Mozilla reported over 200 million active users in 2021, but that number has fallen to around 160 million today. Despite this decrease, other user engagement metrics like daily usage are increasing.
Mozilla is working hard to reverse this downward trend, with Google being a factor in this situation too. Google plans to drop support for Chrome’s legacy extension system this year, which may affect the functionality of adblockers and disable extensions that developers do not update regularly.
While many Chrome users may not depend on extensions, this change could encourage some extension users to switch to Firefox, which will continue to support both legacy and modern extension systems in the future.
Additionally, Firefox for Android now fully supports browser extensions, potentially attracting Android users to explore it, especially as Chrome and similar browsers do not offer this capability.
Image Source: PREMIO STOCK / Shutterstock
