Compare Revisions

files information

Firefox stores your personal information and settings in a profile folder. Find out what is in your profile and how to locate it.

All of the changes you make in Firefox, like your home page, what toolbars you use, saved passwords and your bookmarks, are all stored in a special folder, called a ''profile''. Your profile folder is stored in a separate place from the Firefox program so that, if something ever goes wrong with Firefox, your information will still be there. It also means you can uninstall Firefox without losing your settings and you don't have to reinstall Firefox to clear your information or troubleshoot a problem. {note}'''This information is here for reference. You don't have to follow these steps unless you were directed to do so from another article.'''{/note} __TOC__ = How do I find my profile? = #[[T:OpenProfileFolder]] ==Finding your profile without opening Firefox== {for win} {for not winxp} {for win10} #Press {key [[Image:Windows Key]]}+{key R} on the keyboard. A Run dialog will open. # Type in:<br>'''%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\''' # Click {button OK}. A window will open containing profile folders. # Double-click the profile folder you wish to open. If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name. {/for} {for win8} # From the Start Screen, click the '''Desktop''' tile. The Desktop view will open. # From the Desktop, hover in the lower right-hand corner to access the Charms. # Select the {menu Search} charm. The Search sidebar will open. # In the search box, type in:<br>'''%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\''' <br>without pressing Enter. A list of profile folders will appear. # Click on the profile folder you wish to open (it will open in a window). If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name. {/for} {for win7} [[Video:5d8c651dca361ab3235be412ff6db401-1267819920-718-0]] # Click the Windows {button Start} button. The Start menu will open. #In the Search box at the bottom of the Start menu, type:<br>'''%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\''' <br>without pressing Enter. A list of profiles will appear at the top of the Start menu. #Click on the profile folder you wish to open (it will open in a window). If you only have a single profile, its folder would have "default" in the name.<br/> <br/>[[Image:ab167bec686b081a25849c98d6bf9ea7-1258940859-69-1.png]] {/for} {note}Alternatively, you can find your profile by pressing the {key [[Image:Windows Key]]} key and then start typing: '''%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\''' {/note} {/for} {for winxp} # Click the Windows {button Start} button, and select {menu Run…}.<br/> <br/>[[Image:win-run.png]]<br/> # Type in:<br>'''%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\''' <br>then click {button OK}. <br/>A window will open containing profile folders.<br/>[[Image:win-rundialog.png]] # Double-click the profile folder you wish to open. If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name. {/for} {/for} {for mac} #Open the Library folder for your Mac user account: #*'''(OS X 10.6{for not fx17} or previous{/for})''' Click the '''Finder''' icon in the dock. Your home folder will be selected, (usually the name of your Mac user account). In the right side of the window, click the Library folder to open it. #*'''(OS X 10.7 or above)''' Click the '''Finder''' icon in the dock. On the menu bar, click the {menu Go} menu, hold down the {key option} or {key alt} key and select {menu Library}. A window will open containing your Library folder. #Open the "Application Support" folder, then open the "Firefox" folder, and then the "Profiles" folder. #Your profile folder is within this folder. If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name. {/for} {for linux} # '''(Ubuntu)''' Click the {menu Places} menu on the top right of the screen and select {menu Home Folder}. A File Browser window will appear. # Click the {menu View} menu and select {menu Show Hidden Files} if it isn't already checked. # Double click the folder marked {filepath .mozilla}. # Double click the folder marked {filepath firefox}. Your profile folder is within this folder. If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name. {/for} = What information is stored in my profile? = {note}'''Note:''' Only important information useful for recovering is described.{/note} {for not fx26} *'''Bookmarks and Browsing History:''' The {filepath places.sqlite} file contains all your Firefox bookmarks and the list of all the websites you’ve visited. The {filepath bookmarkbackups} folder stores bookmark backup files, which can be used to restore your bookmarks. For more information, see [[Create bookmarks to save your favorite webpages]] and [[Restore bookmarks from backup or move them to another computer]]. {/for} {for fx26} *'''Bookmarks, Downloads and Browsing History:''' The {filepath places.sqlite} file contains all your Firefox bookmarks and lists of all the files you've downloaded and websites you’ve visited. The {filepath bookmarkbackups} folder stores bookmark backup files, which can be used to restore your bookmarks. For more information, see [[Create bookmarks to save your favorite webpages]] and [[Restore bookmarks from backup or move them to another computer]]. {/for} *'''Passwords:''' Your passwords are stored in the {filepath key3.db} and {for not fx32}{filepath signons.sqlite}{/for}{for fx32}{filepath logins.json}{/for} files. For more information, see [[Password manager - Remember, delete and change saved passwords in Firefox]]. *'''Site-specific preferences:''' The {filepath permissions.sqlite} and {filepath content-prefs.sqlite} files store many of your Firefox permissions (for instance, which sites are allowed to display popups) or zoom levels that are set on a site-by-site basis (see [[Font size and zoom - increase the size of web pages]]). *'''Search engines:''' The {filepath search.sqlite} file and {filepath searchplugins} folder store the search engines that are available in the Firefox [[Search bar - Easily choose your favorite search engine|Search bar]]. *'''Personal dictionary:''' The {filepath persdict.dat} file stores any custom words you have added to Firefox's dictionary. For more information, see [[How do I use the Firefox spell checker?]]. *'''Autocomplete history:''' The {filepath formhistory.sqlite} file remembers what you have searched for in the Firefox search bar and what information you’ve entered into forms on websites. For more information, see [[Control whether Firefox automatically fills in forms with your information]]. {for not fx26} *'''Download history:''' The {filepath downloads.sqlite} file remembers what you have downloaded. For more information, see [[Find and manage downloaded files]]. {/for} *'''Cookies:''' A [[Cookies - Information that websites store on your computer|cookie]] is a bit of information stored on your computer by a website you’ve visited. Usually this is something like your site preferences or login status. Cookies are all stored in the {filepath cookies.sqlite} file. *'''DOM storage:''' DOM Storage is designed to provide a larger, more secure, and easier-to-use alternative to storing information in cookies. Information is stored in the {filepath webappsstore.sqlite} file for websites and in the {filepath chromeappsstore.sqlite} for [http://kb.mozillazine.org/About_protocol_links about:*] pages. *'''Security certificate settings:''' The {filepath cert8.db} file stores all your security certificate settings and any SSL certificates you have imported into Firefox. *'''Security device settings:''' The {filepath secmod.db} file is the security module database. *'''Download actions:''' The {filepath mimeTypes.rdf} file stores your preferences that tell Firefox what to do when it comes across a particular type of file. For example, these are the settings that tell Firefox to open a PDF file with Acrobat Reader when you click on it. For more information, see [[Change what Firefox does when you click on or download a file]]. *'''Plugin MIME type:''' The {filepath pluginreg.dat} file stores [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_media_type Internet media types] related to your installed plugins. For more information, see [[Use plugins to play audio, video, games and more]]. *'''Stored session:''' The {filepath sessionstore.js} file stores the currently open tabs and windows. For more information, see [[Restore previous session - Configure when Firefox shows your most recent tabs and windows]]. {for not fx34} *'''Toolbar customization:''' The {filepath localstore.rdf} file stores toolbar and window size/position settings. For more information, see [[Customize Firefox controls, buttons and toolbars]]. {/for} {for fx34} *'''Toolbar customization:''' The {filepath xulstore.json} file stores toolbar and window size/position settings. For more information, see [[Customize Firefox controls, buttons and toolbars]]. {/for} *'''User preferences:''' The {filepath prefs.js} file stores customized user preference settings, such as changes you make in Firefox [[Template:optionsorpreferences]] dialogs. The optional {filepath user.js} file, if one exists, will override any modified preferences. *'''User styles:''' If they exist, the {filepath \chrome\userChrome.css} and {filepath \chrome\userContent.css} files store user-defined changes to either how Firefox looks, or how certain websites or HTML elements look or act. = Working with profiles = *[[Template:reset-fx]] *[[Use the Profile Manager to create and remove Firefox profiles]] explains how to do things like create a new profile and delete an old one. *[[Back up and restore information in Firefox profiles]] explains how to back up and restore a profile. It also explains how to move your profile information to a different location on your hard drive or to another computer. *[[Recovering important data from an old profile]] describes what information is stored in each of the files in your profile and explains how to copy them to a new profile.