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flort's avatar
flort
Copper Contributor
Nov 10, 2021

Edge on Linux, cannot import from Chrome or Chromium?

When I go to the import wizard, only Firefox profiles are listed, not Chrome/Chromium that I have installed.

 

Is this type of import not supported on Linux Edge?

  • tomscharbach's avatar
    tomscharbach
    Bronze Contributor

    I wouldn't take this as a definitive answer, but this issue has been mentioned on a number of Linux forums, with respect to Chrome and other user-installed browsers.

    Based on those discussions, my guess is that your distro comes with Firefox as the pre-installed, default browser.

     

    Edge-Linux picks up bookmarks for import when the location of the bookmarks is "registered" with the distro. If Firefox is the default browser and the location of Firefox bookmarks are "registered" with the distro. Because you added Chrome/Chromium (presumably as a .deb or .rpm), the Chrome bookmarks may not be "registered" with the distro in a way that Edge-Linux recognizes. 

     

    I can't personally test the issue because I refuse to use Chrome, period.  But that is what the discussions on other forums suggest is going on.

    The workaround is to export your Chrome/Chromium (or other user-installed browser) bookmarks as an .html file, and then import the bookmarks into Edge-Linux from the .html file.

    • flort's avatar
      flort
      Copper Contributor
      Thanks for the reply here. I'm a tad lost on some of your terminology; I've been doing Unix/Linux for 25+ years, not sure what you mean by "registered". Usually, an app will just probe under $HOME/.config, etc.

      Either way, bookmarks aren't what I'm after; I'm looking for it to import current session/tabs.

      I'm concur with the not wanting to use Chrome (note though, I use Chromium at least). This issue is making it hard to migrate though.
      • tomscharbach's avatar
        tomscharbach
        Bronze Contributor

        flort "I'm a tad lost on some of your terminology; I've been doing Unix/Linux for 25+ years, not sure what you mean by "registered". Usually, an app will just probe under $HOME/.config, etc."

         

        I used "registered" (in scare quotes) with intent, precisely because it is not a Linux term.  The reason I did so is that the various discussions I've read on the topic are conflicting/unclear about the reasons why Edge and some other user-installed browsers have difficulty importing user data/settings from browsers other than the distro's default browser.  I've seen suggestions that the issue arises because of data location, permissions and other things.  I should have made that clear when I replied.

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