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Previous session not correctly closed

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  • Last reply by FredMcD

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Some major probs just developed & now I have a totally different theme & a new version of Firefox 56.0 installed today... See image of installed programs

while I still have Firefox 95.0.2 from 12/20/2021 Firefox 54.0.01 from 8/19/2017 Firefox 61.0.01 from 7/30/2018 Over time newer versions accumulate & I've been told not to try to uninstall any of the older versions as it may crash ALL versions


it happened I think sometime after closing a normal session ... I was trying to clear out everything (junk & temp files etc.) as I normally do when using CCleaner then a message said Previous session not correctly closed a message said Firefox is still running do you want to force it to close" I said yes...then it said "its taking a long time to close... do you want to force it to close? I said yes... this happens occasionally & with EDGE as well...but usually there's no problems afterwards

btw: I'm using [Windows 8.1] & after several attempts at restarting Firefox...with different 'fixes' including using safemode... I did a computer restart ... & I did a regular profile backup last time 12/16/21 so as a last resort it may help...but I'm afraid to try to mess with it

anyway...then I was trying to look up solutions & for those of us who are not tech savvy..there's too much info & too may options & links & they lead to new articles like using about:config & browser.sessionstore.resume_from_crash & restoring sessions etc which just gets confusing I copied raw data to clipboard (which is a million pages) & then copied text to clipboard (not as bad...but it may help someone to help me....

hopefully someone can straighten this out for me... I'm worn out trying to figure it out myself thanks

Some major probs just developed & now I have a totally different theme & a new version of Firefox 56.0 installed today... See image of installed programs while I still have Firefox 95.0.2 from 12/20/2021 Firefox 54.0.01 from 8/19/2017 Firefox 61.0.01 from 7/30/2018 Over time newer versions accumulate & I've been told not to try to uninstall any of the older versions as it may crash ALL versions it happened I think sometime after closing a normal session ... I was trying to clear out everything (junk & temp files etc.) as I normally do when using CCleaner then a message said Previous session not correctly closed a message said Firefox is still running do you want to force it to close" I said yes...then it said "its taking a long time to close... do you want to force it to close? I said yes... this happens occasionally & with EDGE as well...but usually there's no problems afterwards btw: I'm using [Windows 8.1] & after several attempts at restarting Firefox...with different 'fixes' including using safemode... I did a computer restart ... & I did a regular profile backup last time 12/16/21 so as a last resort it may help...but I'm afraid to try to mess with it anyway...then I was trying to look up solutions & for those of us who are not tech savvy..there's too much info & too may options & links & they lead to new articles like using about:config & browser.sessionstore.resume_from_crash & restoring sessions etc which just gets confusing I copied raw data to clipboard (which is a million pages) & then copied text to clipboard (not as bad...but it may help someone to help me.... hopefully someone can straighten this out for me... I'm worn out trying to figure it out myself thanks
Attached screenshots

Modified by firefoxylady

Chosen solution

You have many versions of Firefox running. Did you want all those?

When updating/upgrading, the new version should have replaced the current/older version.


Let’s do a full clean re-install;

Note: Firefox comes in three or more folders on all computers. They are;

Maintenance: (Programs Folder) <Windows Only> Firefox itself: (Programs Folder) And two folders in the profile of each user on the computer for each Firefox profile for that user.

If you remove the Firefox folder, the user profiles would not be affected.


Download Firefox For All languages And Systems {web link}

Firefox ESR; Extended Support Release {web link}

Beta, Developer, Nightly versions https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/channel/desktop/

Install Older Version Of Firefox {web link} Be sure to read everything here.


Save the file. Then Close Firefox.

Using your file browser, open the Programs Folder on your computer.

Windows: C:\Program Files C:\Program Files (x86) Note: Check Both Folders

Mac: Open the "Applications" folder. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-download-and-install-firefox-mac

Linux: Check your user manual. If you installed Firefox with the distro-based package manager, you should use the same way to uninstall it. See Install Firefox on Linux; https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux

If you downloaded and installed the binary package from the Firefox download page, simply remove the folder Firefox in your home directory. http://www.mozilla.org/firefox#desktop ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Look for, and remove any Mozilla or Firefox program folders. Do not remove the Mozilla Thunderbird folder if there is one.

Do Not remove any profile folders.

After rebooting the computer, run a registry scanner if you have one. Then run the installer. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ If there is a problem, start your Computer in safe mode and try again.

How to Start all Computers in Safe Mode; {web link} Free Online Encyclopedia

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Chosen Solution

You have many versions of Firefox running. Did you want all those?

When updating/upgrading, the new version should have replaced the current/older version.


Let’s do a full clean re-install;

Note: Firefox comes in three or more folders on all computers. They are;

Maintenance: (Programs Folder) <Windows Only> Firefox itself: (Programs Folder) And two folders in the profile of each user on the computer for each Firefox profile for that user.

If you remove the Firefox folder, the user profiles would not be affected.


Download Firefox For All languages And Systems {web link}

Firefox ESR; Extended Support Release {web link}

Beta, Developer, Nightly versions https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/channel/desktop/

Install Older Version Of Firefox {web link} Be sure to read everything here.


Save the file. Then Close Firefox.

Using your file browser, open the Programs Folder on your computer.

Windows: C:\Program Files C:\Program Files (x86) Note: Check Both Folders

Mac: Open the "Applications" folder. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-download-and-install-firefox-mac

Linux: Check your user manual. If you installed Firefox with the distro-based package manager, you should use the same way to uninstall it. See Install Firefox on Linux; https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux

If you downloaded and installed the binary package from the Firefox download page, simply remove the folder Firefox in your home directory. http://www.mozilla.org/firefox#desktop ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Look for, and remove any Mozilla or Firefox program folders. Do not remove the Mozilla Thunderbird folder if there is one.

Do Not remove any profile folders.

After rebooting the computer, run a registry scanner if you have one. Then run the installer. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ If there is a problem, start your Computer in safe mode and try again.

How to Start all Computers in Safe Mode; {web link} Free Online Encyclopedia

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Hi FredMcD Thanks so much for your reply! ATM I’m just getting home & starting on tasks on my Dell Inspiron 3541 laptop I’ve had for about 7 years & works fine for its age…(I’m too poor to afford anything newer)….as well as choosing to stay on Windows 8.1. Anyway I see there are multiple steps I need to follow….which concerns me as I’m old & by myself & I’m not tech savvy …meaning if I screw up some step …well it would be catastrophic at best! So I’m going to read everything you wrote & look at what I need to do….& prepare to spend a few hours downloading & installing the corrections needed to get back to being able to use Firefox again….it’s been my browser of choice for almost as long as I’ve had this laptop. If something goes wrong & I’m stuck somehow…. I hope to be able to get back to this website. Again…thanks FredMcD for your support & trying to help! ~firefoxylady

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Hi FredMcD I tried to reply earlier but I got a message An Error Occurred Oh, no! It looks like an unexpected error occurred. We've already notified the site administrators.

Anyway ....Your instructions were clear & correct…so now I only have 1 version installed & running…96.0.1 Thanks Again FredMcD for your support & trying to help! ~firefoxylady

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Glad to help. Safe Surfing.