Closing Browser Split Screen windows closes and loses the tabs that were open

Browser Support Mobile Support
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Description of the issue:

Currently on iPad OS v16.7.11

Had multiple tabs open on the browser. Then I opened another tab using split screen.

Once I completed what I needed to, I closed the apps. iPad OS seemed to treat the two split screen windows as separate apps when I closed them. I closed (swiped away) the window with all my main tabs first.

When going to open up Brave again, it only opened the window/tab I had closed last. My main window that had most of my tabs was now gone/lost. No recently closed tabs or inactive or anything.

How can this issue be reproduced?

  1. Open two tabs on Brave [Tab A and Tab B]

  2. Use split screen to show the tabs side by side. iPad OS will probably treat this as 2 separate windows/apps. [Window A and Window B]

  3. Go to background/recent apps currently open on iPad. (swipe and hold or double click home button).

  4. Close Window A first then Window B.

  5. Open Brave.

  6. Only Tab/Window B is shown.

Expected result:

Brave should have all tabs (Tab A and Tab B) open/available upon reopening Brave after it being closed. Closing Window A first does not mean I want to close the tabs of Window A and lose those tabs.

Brave Version( check About Brave):

Version 1.79 (124)

Mobile Device details

iPad Pro (12.9-inch) (2015, 1st Gen)

iPadOS 16.7.11 (20H360)

Additional Information:

2

Tabs on on iPad are associated with specific windows, if you close the window then you will close all the tabs associated with that window. You are correct that once you open a split view you are essentially creating a new window. When you close the last window from the recent apps picker, you are really closing the app not the window so when you relaunch it restores that last closed window.

There is a chance when you close the window yourself that it may still be restorable via the “Show All Windows” screen (long press Brave icon, tap “Show All Windows”, and there may be a button in the top next to the plus (new window) button that says something along the lines of “Restore Recently Closed” or something

3

When replicating the above and clicking ‘Show All Windows’, I see no option to restore a previous/recent window.

Understandably, when you close windows within brave, one would expect those tabs to be closed as well. It is unfortunate that closing the window in recent apps is equivalent to closing the window within brave as well.

Perhaps a workaround could be to have previously closed windows (not just tabs) stored in history or have some sort of window history equivalent.

Alternatively, if brave is able to detect when tabs are open in split screen, then closing windows while split screen is open could just ‘merge’ the tabs of the two windows.

Thanks for the response. Please share the above ideas with the rest of the brave team as well.