Start in Private Browsing Mode in Chrome, Firefox, IE 8, and Opera by Default
Posted on June 1, 2010 at 5:31 am
Private Browsing Mode is a mode for web browsers in which details, such as cookies and browsing history, aren’t stored. Once you close the browser, the data gets deleted automatically and all traces of your browsing session no longer exist.
This post shows you how to alter the shortcuts for Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer 8, and Opera with a command line switch that will enable you to open these browsers in private mode by default, using desktop shortcuts.
If you don’t have a shortcut for all these browsers, you can create them by navigating to the folder that contains each program and right-click on the executable file.
You may see the following dialog box display. If so, click Yes to create a shortcut on the desktop instead of in the program folder.
To edit a shortcut, right-click the shortcut on the desktop and select Properties from the pop-up menu.
The Properties dialog box displays. To set up each shortcut such that each program starts in private browsing mode by default, you will edit the text in the Target edit box. See the following sections for the text to add to the end of the command for each browser.
Google Chrome
Google Chrome calls their private browsing mode Incognito mode. To learn how to turn on Incognito mode within Chrome, see our previous post Turn on Private Browsing Mode in Chrome and Opera.
To start Chrome in Incognito mode by default when using the shortcut, edit the shortcut as mentioned above, and add the command line switch –incognito at the end of the line in the Target edit box.
NOTE: It’s a double dash/hyphen before incognito and a space before the dashes.
Chrome displays a detective-like icon in the upper, left corner of the window to indicate you are running in Incognito mode.
Mozilla Firefox
To learn how to turn on Firefox’s Private Browsing Mode temporarily and permanently from within the program, see our previous post, Turn on Private Browsing in Firefox.
To start Firefox in private browsing mode by default when using the shortcut, edit the shortcut as mentioned above, and add the command line switch -private at the end of the line in the Target edit box.
NOTE: It’s a single hyphen before private and a space before the hyphen.
Firefox behaves differently depending on whether you have any Firefox windows open at the time you open a private browsing window using the shortcut.
If you start Firefox in private browsing mode and you currently do not have any Firefox windows open, one Firefox window opens, seemingly in standard mode. To ensure you are in private browsing mode, open the Tools menu. There will be a Stop Private Browsing option and it will be grayed-out. To stop using private browsing mode, simply close the Firefox window.
If you have one or more Firefox windows open, and you start another instance of Firefox in private browsing mode using your modified shortcut, your open Firefox windows are converted to one window labeled Private Browsing and the Private Browsing notification displays.
A second Firefox window also opens in what seems like standard mode. The Stop Private Browsing option displays under the Tools menu, but is unavailable. To stop using the private browsing mode, go back to the first (Private Browsing) window and select Stop Private Browsing from the Tools menu. Both Firefox private browsing windows close and your previously open Firefox windows are restored, including the tabs you had open.
Internet Explorer 8
Internet Explorer calls their private browsing mode InPrivate and it is a new feature to version 8. To learn how to turn on Internet Explorer’s InPrivate Mode from within the program, see our previous post, How to use IE 8’s InPrivate Browsing?.
To start Internet Explorer in InPrivate browsing mode by default when using the shortcut, edit the shortcut as mentioned above, and add the same command line switch as for Firefox, -private, at the end of the line in the Target edit box.
NOTE: It’s a single hyphen before private and a space before the hyphen.
You can also easily start Internet Explorer in InPrivate browsing mode using the default icon on the taskbar. Right-click the Internet Explorer button on the taskbar and select Start InPrivate Browsing from the pop-up menu.
Once you start Internet Explorer in InPrivate browsing mode, the program indicates you are in InPrivate mode in several ways. InPrivate displays in brackets in the title bar of the window, an InPrivate favicon displays in the address bar, and an InPrivate tab with a notification message displays. As mentioned in the notification message, to turn off InPrivate browsing, close the Internet Explorer window.
Opera
To learn how to turn on Opera’s private browsing mode from within the program, see our previous post, Turn on Private Browsing Mode in Chrome and Opera.
Unlike the other browsers, Opera has two methods of browsing the web privately. You can open a separate private browsing window, or you can open a tab in private browsing mode in the current window.
NOTE: The command line switch uses the private browsing tab method. Any new tabs you create after opening Opera using your modified shortcut, are normal tabs, not private browsing tabs. The command line switch to start a full private browsing Opera window, if it exists, is not listed in Opera’s documentation on their site that we could find (http://www.opera.com/docs/switches/). If you have any information about a command line switch for Opera to start a full private browsing Opera window, let us know.
To start Opera with a private browsing tab open by default when using the shortcut, edit the shortcut as mentioned above, and add the the command line switch -newprivatetab, at the end of the line in the Target edit box.
NOTE: It’s a single hyphen before newprivatetab and a space before the hyphen.
A new Opera window with a blank, private browsing tab displays with your default startup option (home page, speed dial, etc.) available on the tab.
We tried to cover the major browsers in this post. If you know of command line options for starting other browsers in private browsing mode, let us know. [via DownloadSquad]
by Lori Kaufman
» Filed Under Computer Tips
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Does it really help to start a web browser in private mode?
As there won’t be any record of the search and browsing history. So, every time it would be a fresh session.
If you set your command line for firfox by passing the “about:privatebrowsing” bookmark like so:
—–
“C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe” -private “about:privatebrowsing”
—–
then you have the normal indicators that you’ve started Fx in private browsing mode, ie. the title bar, the mask icon, and the private mode screen.
Now you’ll know you’re in private mode right away!