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Whenever a new window is opened, firefox always opens an additional empty tab. How do I disable this?

  • 2 replies
  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by cor-el

xemadus
xemadus
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I've checked through the various options and there has been no obvious solution. Do I need to change settings outside of the browser to fix this?

I've checked through the various options and there has been no obvious solution. Do I need to change settings outside of the browser to fix this?

All Replies (2)

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 10 Contributor
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Could you check your home page setting to make sure it doesn't have a stray vertical bar -- | -- at the end? This article describes the updated Options/Preferences page: Startup, home page, tabs, and download settings.

If that's not, it could be a bad add-on. Here's my suggested procedure for tracking down and cleaning up bad add-ons. I know it seems long, but it's not that bad.

(1) Open the Windows Control Panel, Uninstall a Program. After the list loads, click the "Installed on" column heading to group the infections, I mean, additions, by date. This can help in smoking out undisclosed bundle items that snuck in with some software you agreed to install. Take out as much trash as possible here.

(2) Open Firefox's Add-ons page using either:

  • Ctrl+Shift+a
  • "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons
  • in the Windows "Run" dialog, type or paste
    firefox.exe "about:addons"

In the left column, click Plugins. Set nonessential and unrecognized plugins to "Never Activate".

In the left column, click Extensions. Then, if in doubt, disable (or Remove, if possible) unrecognized and unwanted extensions.

Often a link will appear above at least one disabled extension to restart Firefox. You can complete your work on the tab and click one of the links as the last step.

Any improvement?

(3) You can search for remaining issues with the scanning/cleaning tools listed in our support article: Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware. These on-demand scanners are free and take considerable time to run. If they finish quickly and especially if they require payment, you may have a serious infection. I suggest the specialized forums listed in the article in that case.

Success?

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
  • Top 10 Contributor
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Note that a new window opens with the home page(s).

  • Tools > Options > General > Startup: Home page

Start Firefox in Safe Mode to check if one of the extensions (Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Extensions) or if hardware acceleration is causing the problem.

  • Switch to the DEFAULT theme: Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Appearance
  • Do NOT click the Reset button on the Safe Mode start window