Workspaces working as tab groups and not as workspaces

[RichardShift]

Captchas

• I have read the instructions.
• I have searched existing issues and avoided creating duplicates.
• I am not filing an enhancement request.
• I have checked that this issue cannot be reproduced on Mozilla Firefox.
• I have checked that this issue can be reproduced once I removed all my Mods and Custom CSS.

What happened?

When opening multiple windows in Zen Browser, each window displays the available workspaces. However, the tabs within these workspaces are only present in the original window where they were opened. Consequently, closing a window can lead to the loss of all tabs contained within that window, as they are not "synchronized" across other open windows.​

Expected Behavior: Workspaces should function as unified entities across all open windows. Tabs opened within a workspace in one window should be accessible in the same workspace across all windows. Closing a window should not result in the loss of tabs; instead, all tabs should persist and be accessible from any window associated with the workspace.​

Steps to Reproduce:

1. Open Zen Browser.​
2. Open several tabs within a workspace.​
3. Open a new window.​
4. Observe that the new window does not display the tabs from the workspace in the original window.​
5. Close the original window.​
6. Notice that the tabs from the original window are lost and not accessible in the remaining window.

Additional Context - This issue has been previously discussed and reported:​

• Original Issue: #911 – Closed with a suggestion to move the discussion to the Discussions section.​
• Discussion Thread: #924 – Community members highlighted the problem and suggested that workspaces should synchronize tabs across windows.​
• Subsequent Issue: #6789 – Closed without a resolution that addressed the core concern.​

The recurring nature of this issue underscores the need for a solution that ensures workspaces function cohesively across multiple windows, preventing unintended tab loss and enhancing user experience.

Version

1.10.3b

What platform are you seeing the problem on?

Windows - x64

What component is this issue related to?

Tabs

Relevant log output if applicable

# Not applicable, as the issue can be consistently reproduced following the steps above.​

[Propheticus]

This sounds like an expectation of behaviour that stems from experience with workspaces in application like IDEs. The name workspaces might be misleading here; the concept as implemented (and intended?) seems to be a tabbed sidebar or tabbed tabs if you like within the context of a window.
You could argue workspaces is a misnomer, but I'm uncertain this is a bug. (The 'main' workspace in Firefox also does not sync across all windows you open)

[SlickDomique]

(The 'main' workspace in Firefox also does not sync across all windows you open)

There are no 'workspaces' in Firefox. There are windows with tabs that you can now group. Workspaces acting as tab groups is a downgrade from what Firefox offers because they are more hidden. You can preview what tabs you have there without switching to them. And it becomes difficult to track with just 2 screens. Having 4 Zen workspaces you have to switch between on multiple screens just makes you lose tabs and need to focus on them instead of trying to do the work you want to use the browser for.

[RichardShift]

Thank you for your input, @Propheticus . While I agree that the term “workspaces” might carry different connotations depending on the software ecosystem (e.g., IDEs, productivity tools), I believe the confusion here goes beyond semantics.

Other modern browsers like Microsoft Edge and Arc also use the term Workspaces, and in their implementations, these workspaces persist across multiple windows and even devices. Edge, for instance, supports synchronized Workspaces that are not limited to a single window, and Arc has also received praise (despite being a paid product) for delivering a reliable, multi-window workspace experience.

In Zen, each new window currently displays the same list of workspaces in the sidebar, but without the actual tabs being present, which sets a misleading expectation. If workspaces were truly window-bound, one would expect each new window to start fresh, with its own independent set of workspaces. But that’s not the case — the UI suggests global workspaces, while the actual tab content is local to a window, and closing that window discards the tabs with no restoration path.

So, regardless of what this feature is called — workspaces, tab folders, session containers — the core concern is functional:

❗The currently open tabs within a workspace are lost if their window is closed, even though the workspace still appears as available in the next window.

This leads to a user experience that feels broken or incomplete, especially considering that Zen is designed to support multiple windows and productivity workflows.

Lastly, I'd like to mention that the release notes for 1.10.2b (March 26, 2025) mentioned upcoming improvements related to “tab folders” and “a new workspace management UI,” which may touch on this. But the silence from the team on this particular use case here on GitHub is what concerns me the most — especially since these reports keep getting closed without addressing the key concerns.

Until there’s a clear direction or confirmation from the devs, it's hard to know whether this behavior is a design choice or a known limitation being worked on. And that’s where most of the frustration lies.

[Propheticus]

@RichardShift I agree the implementation could / should be better if you want to really call them workspaces.
The point I tried to make is that it's perhaps more an enhancement request than a bug. However like you say, the redirecting to discussions and unsolved/unanswered issues that are closed means we simply don't know.

I like the idea of the workspaces, the current implementation however leaves a lot to be desired. E.g. vanishing container tabs, tabs and history not syncing and your observations.

[Overlord231123321123]

I suppose you can use the simple tab groups extension (and ［STG plugin］ Load custom group)
enable the following if you only need one workspace: (simulates arc behavior)
Open group after changing to it
Create a new group when opening a new window
In "default group", go to the bottom "if none of the regular expressions match the tab" and choose the group/workspace you want to keep.
Your tabs should be kept after closing and reopening the window.
The extension is unstable and loses tabs, so use at own risk.

[mr-cheffy]

Tab and groups are unrelated... Im not really understanding this issue sorry

[Propheticus]

I do not understand that remark @mauro-balades. Tabgroups are very related to tabs.
Here is a group of tabs in Firefox:

The argument being made in this issue is that the Zen workspaces are not 'real' workspaces and behave more like a different way to group tabs (tabbed sidebar). A real workspace being understood as a means to keep state independent of the window(s) looking at that state. Meaning two separate windows looking at the same workspace should see the same set of tabs (in the same state). Currently two windows looking at the same workspace name (e.g. shopping) see a completely separate set of tabs.
In the current implementation the state is linked to the window. In a way a window IS the workspace in the current Firefox paradigm, so I really don't know how easy it is to add the concept of workspaces decoupled from windows.

Now the question is: are the expectations set too high, perhaps because of how advanced users know workspaces from other apps like IDEs or other browsers, or do we call this a bug/defect?

[gagarine]

@Propheticus I think you’re missing the point by focusing on the current situation. It’s not about advanced users either—people today expect apps to work in a certain way. Just like browsers introduced tabs in the past, the dominant mental model now is the workspace, not the document. The real question is: what does this shift mean for web browsers? Arc offers a strong answer to that; Zen does not. Most modern applications are moving toward workspace-based design and away from the traditional document-based approach.

First, let's be clear it's a design issue. I wrote what I have to say about it on #6789 (comment) . I think it's still relevant for what I read from different discussions, so I will copy it below.

Treating web browsing as structured, persistent work

Arc’s approach to workspaces is the right one. Instead of treating windows as containers for multiple tabs Arc treats each window as a view into your entire browsing state. This state is organized into persistent workspaces and a hierarchical tab structure. In my opinion, that’s the real innovation: it’s not just about reading the web, but about organizing how you interact with it.

I’d go as far as to say that if you open the same tab in two different windows, actions like scrolling, typing, and navigation should be mirrored in real time. After all, navigation is already synced—so why not scrolling too?

From a UX perspective, this makes a lot of sense.

Traditional browsers follow an old document-based mental model: each window is like a folder full of files (tabs). But the way people actually work today is more context-driven—we think in terms of projects, topics, or tasks. Arc aligns with that by treating workspaces as persistent contexts, and windows as views into them. That’s a shift toward a more modern mental model, where your browsing activity is a structured environment, not just a collection of pages.

It also embraces the UX principle of state persistence. Users shouldn’t have to fear losing their tabs (browsing state!) just because they closed the wrong window. Arc treats tabs as part of a durable, persistent structure. You can move between windows without losing your workspace, which lowers cognitive load and removes the need for “medieval” backup strategies like manual bookmarks or pinning everything just to stay safe.

Finally, the hierarchical tab structure supports spatial memory and visual organization. Instead of a flat, cluttered tab bar, users get a meaningful visual map of their activity. It helps them recall, navigate, and manage their web usage more efficiently—closer to how tools like Notion or Obsidian structure knowledge.

So yes, syncing workspaces across windows isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s essential if you’re serious about treating web browsing as structured, persistent work. Anything less starts to feel like tab groups with extra steps.

This approach becomes even more powerful when the browsing state is synced across devices—or when a workspace can be shared with others. You can start reading a long article on one machine and finish it on another, picking up exactly where you left off.