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Firefox has suddenly started not opening; when I click on the icon, nothing happens. It also says it's open when nothing's in task manager.

  • 5 replies
  • 2 have this problem
  • 8 views
  • Last reply by FredMcD

mobius2122
mobius2122
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I recently re-installed Firefox last week and until today it's been running smoothly, when it suddenly stopped opening. When I click on the icon to open it, the loading cursor will appear for a few seconds but then nothing else (I've also tried running it as administrator, but the result is the same). I then went to try and uninstall and then reinstall it, but when the uninstaller runs it says that Firefox is running and I need to close it first. However, opening task manager reveals that Firefox is not running, so there is nothing for me to close despite the message telling me to do so.

I recently re-installed Firefox last week and until today it's been running smoothly, when it suddenly stopped opening. When I click on the icon to open it, the loading cursor will appear for a few seconds but then nothing else (I've also tried running it as administrator, but the result is the same). I then went to try and uninstall and then reinstall it, but when the uninstaller runs it says that Firefox is running and I need to close it first. However, opening task manager reveals that Firefox is not running, so there is nothing for me to close despite the message telling me to do so.

All Replies (5)

FredMcD
FredMcD
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What's your computer system and Firefox version?

Some problems occur when your Internet security program was set to trust the previous version of Firefox, but no longer recognizes your updated version as trusted. Now how to fix the problem: To allow Firefox to connect to the Internet again;

  • Make sure your Internet security software is up-to-date (i.e. you are running the latest version).
  • Remove Firefox from your program's list of trusted or recognized programs. For detailed instructions, see

Configure firewalls so that Firefox can access the Internet. {web link}

mobius2122
mobius2122 Question owner
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Hi Fred,

I'm on Windows 10 and the Firefox version I'm running is the current version. I'm not sure that is the problem as Firefox was running fine for a few days after downloading, but as I mentioned it abruptly stopped opening a few days ago with no change in internet security or version on my end.

I actually just tried uninstalling and reinstalling Firefox, and the problems still remain; even after doing that it does not open at all.

FredMcD
FredMcD
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Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link} by holding down the <Shift> (Mac=Options) key, and then starting Firefox.

A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Is the problem still there?

Start your Computer in safe mode with network support. Then start Firefox. Try Safe websites. Is the problem still there?

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode Starting Any Computer In Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia

mobius2122
mobius2122 Question owner
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FredMcD said

Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link} by holding down the <Shift> (Mac=Options) key, and then starting Firefox. A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Is the problem still there?

Start your Computer in safe mode with network support. Then start Firefox. Try Safe websites. Is the problem still there?

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode Starting Any Computer In Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia

Hi again Fred,

So unfortunately neither of those works. Attempting to start Firefox in safe mode just results in the same thing happening as before; no dialog box appears and I just have the loading cursor appear for a few seconds before disappearing. And the same thing with Windows in safe mode, I still cannot get Firefox to open in Windows 10 safe mode.

FredMcD
FredMcD
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Many have reported issues using the 64bit Firefox. Install the 32bit version from; Download Firefox For All languages And Systems {web link}