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Do you see this error message when you start Firefox?
This error happens when a database file that stores bookmarks and browsing history (places.sqlite) and related site icons (favicons.sqlite) can’t be accessed by Firefox. This article covers troubleshooting steps for a possible solution.
If you don't see the error above and are still having issues with your bookmarks, try one of these articles instead:
Table of Contents
Restart Firefox
The most common causes of this error are another program using the file or a problem with the file that was caused when the computer was shut off unexpectedly (like a power failure). The good news is that sometimes, simply restarting Firefox is the fix for both problems.
Restart your computer
Most of the time, restarting your computer and then restarting Firefox is the fix for both problems.
Update Security Software definitions
Occasionally, Security Software like Microsoft's Windows Security application (the built-in antivirus for Windows operating systems) may cause a problem with the file. Open the Windows Security app (formerly Windows Defender).
- Click Virus & threat protection.
- Look for a subsection named “Virus & threat protection updates” or “Protection updates”.
- Click the Check for updates button.
- Once the update is complete, restart Firefox.
Create a new database
If the previous steps don’t take care of things, you can fix this by having Firefox create a new places and favicon database for you. Don’t worry, it’s not as hard as it sounds!
Part 1 – Open your profile folder
- From the Help menu, select More Troubleshooting Information. The Troubleshooting Information tab will open.
- Under the Application Basics section next to Profile Folder, click Show in Finder. A window will open that contains your profile folder.
Leave the Profile folder open and go on to Part 2.
Part 2 – Create a new database
- (Optional) Create a bookmark backup file.
- Click the Firefox menu
and select .Click the Firefox menu at the top of the screen and select .Click the Firefox menu and select .
Wait until Firefox has completely quit.
- In the Firefox profile folder, find and delete (or rename) the favicons.sqlite and places.sqlite files.
- You can rename instead of deleting a file to keep it as a backup. Right-click it and select Rename from the context menuClick it once to select and click a second time the file name to make it editable, then add .old to the end of its name.
- Delete the favicons.sqlite-shm, favicons.sqlite-wal, places.sqlite-shm and places.sqlite-wal files, if they exist.
- Finally, reopen Firefox.
- When Firefox reopens, it will create new favicons.sqlite and places.sqlite database files. Your browsing history will be lost, but Firefox will automatically restore your bookmarks from the most recent bookmarkbackups file.
- If your bookmarks weren’t restored, try the steps in Recover lost or missing Bookmarks.
Error message still displays after troubleshooting
If the above solutions didn't work, you may be able to resolve the problem with a new Firefox profile. You can use these instructions to create a new Firefox profile and set it as the default profile. When you restart Firefox, it will open with the new profile and, hopefully, you will no longer see the error message. You can then copy important data to the new profile and, if necessary, restore bookmarks from a backup file, if you have one.
