WindowEventHandlers.onbeforeunload
The WindowEventHandlers.onbeforeunload
event handler property contains the code executed when the beforeunload
is sent. This event fires when a window is about to unload
its resources. The document is still visible and the event is still cancelable.
Note: To combat unwanted pop-ups, browsers may not display prompts created in beforeunload event handlers unless the page has been interacted with. For a list of specific browsers, see the Browser compatibility section.
Syntax
window.onbeforeunload = <var>funcRef</var>
funcRef
is a reference to a function or a function expression.- The function should assign a string value to the
returnValue
property of the Event object and return the same string.
Example
window.onbeforeunload = function(e) { var dialogText = 'Dialog text here'; e.returnValue = dialogText; return dialogText; };
Notes
When this event returns an undefined value, the user is prompted to confirm the page unload. In most browsers, the return value of the event is displayed in this dialog. In Firefox 4 and later the returned string is not displayed to the user. Instead, Firefox displays the string "This page is asking you to confirm that you want to leave - data you have entered may not be saved." See bug 588292.
Since 25 May 2011, the HTML5 specification states that calls to window.alert()
, window.confirm()
, and window.prompt()
methods may be ignored during this event. See the HTML5 specification for more details.
Note also that various mobile browsers ignore the result of the event (that is, they do not ask the user for confirmation). Firefox has a hidden preference in about:config to do the same. In essence this means the user always confirms that the document may be unloaded.
You can and should handle this event through window.addEventListener()
and the beforeunload
event. More documentation is available there.
Specifications
The event was originally introduced by Microsoft in Internet Explorer 4 and standardized in the HTML5 specification.
Specification | Status | Comment |
---|---|---|
WHATWG HTML Living Standard The definition of 'GlobalEventHandlers' in that specification. |
Living Standard | |
HTML5.1 The definition of 'GlobalEventHandlers' in that specification. |
Working Draft | |
HTML5 The definition of 'GlobalEventHandlers' in that specification. |
Recommendation |
Browser compatibility
Feature | Chrome | Firefox (Gecko) | Internet Explorer | Opera | Safari (WebKit) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | 1.0 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 3 |
Custom text support removed | 51.0 | 44.0 (44.0) | 38 | 9.1 |
Feature | Android | Android Webview | Firefox Mobile (Gecko) | IE Phone | Opera Mobile | Safari Mobile | Chrome for Android |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | ? | (Yes) | ? | ? | ? | (no) defect | (Yes) |
Custom text support removed | ? | 51.0 | 44.0 (44.0) | 51.0 |
See also
License
© 2016 Mozilla Contributors
Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License v2.5 or later.
https://developer.mozilla.org/en-us/docs/web/api/windoweventhandlers/onbeforeunload