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Firefox crashes

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Firefox crashes every time I try to open it. I've tried updating, re-installing, opening in safe mode, etc. and nothing seems to help. Don't want to be stuck being a "google chrome" user...

Went through the steps on the mozilla website and came up with the crash report ID # listed below.

Crash ID: bp-a3ea9a1d-d45c-49a0-aba9-766612140814

Any help would be greatly provided.

Firefox crashes every time I try to open it. I've tried updating, re-installing, opening in safe mode, etc. and nothing seems to help. Don't want to be stuck being a "google chrome" user... Went through the steps on the mozilla website and came up with the crash report ID # listed below. Crash ID: bp-a3ea9a1d-d45c-49a0-aba9-766612140814 Any help would be greatly provided.

All Replies (4)

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Thank you for the crash report. Since Firefox is only running for 1 second, it's hard to see where it is going wrong.

Did this just start today, or have you had this problem since you installed Firefox 31?

Did you install Windows Updates this week or do you recall making any other software changes recently?

You've probably already tried this, but just in case: could you try starting Firefox in its Safe Mode? That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions and some advanced features of Firefox. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

When Firefox is not running, you can hold down the Shift key while starting Firefox to start in Safe Mode. A small dialog should appear. Click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset).

Will it run?

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The problem started last week shortly after installing the latest Firefox application. It will not let me open in "safe mode" either.

Windows installed some Updates on my computer last night, but that didn't seem to help or hurt the problem. Other internet browsers (IE and Google Chrome) are both working fine on my computer.

Thanks for the response; any other suggestions?

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Do a malware check with several malware scanning programs on the Windows computer. Please scan with all programs because each program detects different malware. All these programs have free versions.

Make sure that you update each program to get the latest version of their databases before doing a scan.

You can also do a check for a rootkit infection with TDSSKiller.

See also:


Boot the computer in Windows Safe Mode with network support (press F8 on the boot screen) as a test.

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Here are the next two things I would try:

Clean Reinstall

This bypasses "bad" files in Firefox's program folder:

(1) If needed, download a fresh installer for Firefox 31 from https://www.mozilla.org/firefox/all/ to a convenient location. (Scroll down to your preferred language.)

(2) Exit out of Firefox. (Not necessary in your case!)

(3) Rename the folder (64-bit Windows folder names)

C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox

to

C:\Program Files (x86)\OldFirefox

(4) Run the installer you downloaded in #1. It should automatically connect to your existing settings.

Does Firefox start and stay up?

Note: Some plugins may exist only in that OldFirefox folder. If something essential is missing, look in these folders:

  • C:\Program Files (x86)\OldFirefox\Plugins
  • C:\Program Files (x86)\OldFirefox\browser\plugins

New Profile Test

To test how Firefox runs "uncustomized" on your system, you could try this three-minute experiment. Your current settings remain undisturbed so you can switch back to them if this doesn't help.

A new profile will have your system-installed plugins (e.g., Flash) and extensions (e.g., security suite toolbars), but no themes, other extensions, or other customizations. It also should have completely fresh settings databases and a fresh cache folder.

Exit Firefox and start up in the Profile Manager using Start > search box (or Run):

firefox.exe -P

Do not delete anything here. Any time you want to switch profiles, exit Firefox and return to this dialog.

Click the Create Profile button, choose a name like Aug12, and skip the option to change the folder location. Then start Firefox in the new profile you created.

Does Firefox run and stay up? If so, does the good news continue if you exit Firefox and start it up again? If you want to continue with this profile, you can transfer over some key data. This article has details: Recovering important data from an old profile.

When returning to the Profile Manager, you might be tempted to use the Delete Profile button. But... it's a bit too easy to accidentally delete your "real" profile, so I recommend resisting the temptation. If you do want to clean up later, I suggest making a backup of all your profiles first in case something were to go wrong.

Modified by jscher2000 - Support Volunteer