Troubleshoot and diagnose Firefox problems
Revision Information
- Revision id: 108736
- Created:
- Creator: AliceWyman
- Comment: "Reinstall Firefox" updated for windows 64-bit (see discussion), removed content for old versions, other small edits
- Reviewed: Yes
- Reviewed:
- Reviewed by: heyjoni
- Is approved? Yes
- Is current revision? No
- Ready for localization: Yes
- Readied for localization:
- Readied for localization by: heyjoni
Revision Source
Revision Content
Most problems with Firefox can be fixed by following the troubleshooting methods described below. Try these steps in order. If one doesn't work, move on to the next one. If you need extra help with any of this, we have a community of volunteers standing by.
Table of Contents
1. Restart your computer
Sometimes problems can be fixed by simply restarting your computer and then starting Firefox again.
2. Clear your cookies and cache
Many problems with loading web pages can be resolved by clearing Firefox's cookies and cache:
- Click the menu button to open the menu panel.
- Click and select
- In the Time Range to clear: drop-down, select Everything.
- Below the drop-down menu, select both Cookies and Cache. Make sure other items you want to keep are not selected.
- Click .
3. Restart Firefox in Safe Mode
Firefox Safe Mode is a troubleshooting mode that disables all extensions, uses the default theme, turns off hardware acceleration, and uses default toolbar settings and controls, among other things. To start Firefox in Safe Mode:
-
Click the menu button , click
, select and click in the Restart Firefox in Troubleshoot Mode? dialog.Note: You can also start Firefox in Troubleshoot Mode by holding down the Shift key while starting Firefox.holding down the option key while starting Firefox.quitting Firefox and then going to your Terminal and running:firefox -safe-mode
You may need to specify the Firefox installation path (e.g. /usr/lib/firefox). - In the Firefox Safe Mode dialog, click .
- Check whether your problem is still happening while in Safe Mode.
- If the problem still happens in Safe Mode, go on to step 4.
- If the problem does not happen in Safe Mode, see the Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems article and follow the instructions under The problem does not occur in Safe Mode to narrow down the cause.
4. Troubleshoot your plugins
Sometimes plugins used in Firefox (such as Adobe Reader, Flash, Java, Silverlight and QuickTime) can cause problems that may be fixed in the latest version. To check to see if you have the latest plugin versions, go to our Plugin Check page. If any of your plugins are outdated, click and follow the instructions for updating that plugin. After you've updated all of your plugins, restart Firefox: The template "closefirefox" does not exist or has no approved revision. then start Firefox again. If the problem still happens, you can disable all of your plugins to see if one of them is the cause:
- Click the menu button , click and select .
- Click each plugin in the list and then click .
- Check whether your problem happens when you have all plugins disabled.
- Click the menu button , click and select .
- Click each plugin in the list and then select in its drop-down menu.
- Check whether your problem happens when you have all plugins disabled.
If your problem goes away when your plugins are disabled, see the Troubleshoot issues with plugins like Flash or Java to fix common Firefox problems article to learn how to narrow down the cause.
5. Reinstall Firefox
Some Firefox issues can be caused by a problem with one of the Firefox program files. Follow these steps to completely remove and reinstall Firefox. This process will not remove your Firefox profile data (such as bookmarks and passwords), since that information is stored in a different location.
- Download the latest official version of Firefox from mozilla.org.
- Exit Firefox: The template "closefirefox" does not exist or has no approved revision.
- Uninstall Firefox from your computer.
- Delete the Firefox program folder, which is located in one of these locations by default:
- C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox
- C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox
- Reinstall Firefox - see How to install Firefox on Windows for instructions.
- Download the latest official version of Firefox from mozilla.org.
- Quit Firefox: The template "closefirefox" does not exist or has no approved revision.
- Uninstall Firefox from your computer by opening the Applications folder in the Finder and dragging the Firefox application to the Trash.
- Reinstall Firefox - see How to download and install Firefox on Mac for instructions.
- Download the latest official version of Firefox from mozilla.org.
- Quit Firefox: The template "closefirefox" does not exist or has no approved revision.
- Uninstall Firefox - If you installed Firefox with the distro-based package manager, you should use the same way to uninstall it - see Install Firefox on Linux for details. If you downloaded and installed the binary package from the Firefox download page, simply remove the folder firefox in your home directory to uninstall Firefox.
- Reinstall Firefox - see Install Firefox on Linux for instructions.
Now start Firefox and check to see if your problem has been fixed.If it hasn't, continue with the next troubleshooting method.
6. Reset Firefox
The Reset Firefox feature can fix many issues by restoring your Firefox profile to its default state while saving your essential information.
- Click the menu button , click and select .
- Click then in the confirmation window that opens. Firefox will close to refresh itself.
- When finished, a window will list your imported information. Click the button. Firefox will open.
- Select whether you want Firefox to restore all or some windows and tabs and click the button.
6. Refresh Firefox
The Refresh Firefox feature can fix many issues by restoring your Firefox profile to its default state while saving your essential information.
- Click the menu button , click and select .
- Click then in the confirmation window that opens. Firefox will close to refresh itself.
- When finished, a window will list your imported information. Click the button. Firefox will open.
- Select whether you want Firefox to restore all or some windows and tabs and click the button.
7. Create a new Firefox profile
Sometimes files in your Firefox profile folder that correspond to the essential information that a Firefox ResetRefresh doesn't remove (such as bookmarks and browsing history) may be causing the issue. You can create a new, additional profile which will not contain any of your old Firefox data. See Profile Manager - Create, remove or switch Firefox profiles for instructions.
Other solutions
If you've tried all of these troubleshooting methods and you're still having problems the issue may be with other software or hardware.
Check for conflicts with your Internet security software
Some Internet security software (including antivirus, antispyware, and firewall programs) can cause problems with Firefox including blocking it from opening websites, crashes, and more. Often you can open the program's settings, remove Firefox from its list of allowed or trusted programs and it will be re-detected and things should start working again. If your program is listed at the Configure firewalls so that Firefox can access the Internet article, you can get specific instructions for how to properly reconfigure it.
Scan your system for viruses and spyware
Periodically, you should scan your system for viruses, spyware, or other malware. These free malware removal tools are often useful:
If you need more help removing malware, see Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware.
Check your hard drive and RAM for errors
A problem with your computer's hard drive or RAM may prevent Firefox from running or make it crash repeatedly. Here are instructions or tools for checking:
- your hard drive: How to perform disk error checking in Windows XP on microsoft.com
- your hard drive: Check a drive for errors on microsoft.com
- your hard drive: Improve performance by optimizing your hard drive - To repair a drive on microsoft.com
- your hard drive: Using Disk Utility to verify or repair disks on apple.com
- your hard drive: Testing a drive with Smartmontools on ubuntu.com
- your RAM: Memtest86+Rember
Based on information from Standard diagnostic - Firefox (mozillaZine KB)