Task manager shows multiple instances of Firefox

[Wolf K]

Win10 Home 64-bit, 20H2 build 19042.867
Firefox 68.12.0.esr 64-bit

On starting Firefox, Taskmanager shows 6 instances (processes) of
Firefox running, as well as a Node js:server-side script (which
eventually ends)

When I open a tab, another instance of Firefox appears. However, the
number of instances does not depend on the number of tabs I've kept from
the previous session.

This is new behaviour, as far as I can recall, previously only one
instance of Firefox was shown. There doesn't seem to be an impact on
performance, and a scan doesn't show any malware.

What's going on?

TIA

--
Wolf K
"You know, doing what is right is easy. The problem is knowing what is
right." Lyndon B. Johnson

[Andrei Z.]

Wolf K wrote:
> Win10 Home 64-bit, 20H2 build 19042.867
> Firefox 68.12.0.esr 64-bit
>
> On starting Firefox, Taskmanager shows 6 instances (processes) of
> Firefox running, as well as a  Node js:server-side script (which
> eventually ends)
>
> When I open a tab, another instance of Firefox appears. However, the
> number of instances does not depend on the number of tabs I've kept from
> the previous session.
>
> This is new behaviour, as far as I can recall, previously only one
> instance of Firefox was shown. There doesn't seem to be an impact on
> performance, and a scan doesn't show any malware.
>
> What's going on?
>
> TIA
>

"firefox opens 6 processes in windows task manager"

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1326266

[WaltS48]

On 3/16/21 7:47 PM, Wolf K wrote:
> Win10 Home 64-bit, 20H2 build 19042.867
> Firefox 68.12.0.esr 64-bit
>
> On starting Firefox, Taskmanager shows 6 instances (processes) of
> Firefox running, as well as a  Node js:server-side script (which
> eventually ends)
>
> When I open a tab, another instance of Firefox appears. However, the
> number of instances does not depend on the number of tabs I've kept
> from the previous session.
>
> This is new behaviour, as far as I can recall, previously only one
> instance of Firefox was shown. There doesn't seem to be an impact on
> performance, and a scan doesn't show any malware.
>
> What's going on?
>
> TIA
>

Open about:support aka Help > Troubleshooting Information.

Scroll down to Remote Processes in the Application Basics section.

Click on the number (it is a link in my 88.0a1 Nightly).

I see Web Content, Extension, Privileged About, Preallocated and Socket
processes. Web Content is using two and the rest only one.

--
OS: Fedora 33 Workstation - Gnome Desktop
https://www.thunderbird.net/en-US/get-involved/

[Wolf K]

Thanks, and to Andre z. too

Your posts confirmed my guess, so no worries.