This has been an issue for years, apparently, and has been addressed here on multiple occasions. A comprehensive article is here https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/fix-bookmarks-and-history-will-not-be-functional. This gives directions on how to fix, hopefully. The "why", best I can tell, is corruption of sql databases, the cause of which above my paygrade but is often attributed to unexpected shutdowns, like crashes and such. Good luck.

No. Could not resolve the issue. I guess I'll just become a Chrome user. I've used Firefox for years, but cannot resolve this.

Hi Jackie, do you still get the error message at startup, or is there a different problem now?

First, if you haven't already, please do a normal shutdown and/or restart of your system. Restarting Windows can help by freeing up locked files, completing any deferred updates, and resolving temporary file permission issues. Presumably between June 19th and now you have done this, but please repeat just in case.

Next, assuming Firefox still has bookmark problems, could you let us know what you get when you run the "Verify Integrity" diagnosis and repair function. That's here:

Open Firefox's Troubleshooting Information page using any of these methods:

• "3-bar" menu button > Help > More Troubleshooting Information
• (menu bar) Help > More Troubleshooting Information
• type or paste about:support in the address bar and press Enter

Near the bottom, there is a section titled Places Database -- that's the file which stores history and bookmarks. Click the button labeled Verify Integrity. There may be a 10-15 second delay before results appear.

If all is well, the report that appears below the button should start with:

> Task: checkIntegrity
+ The places.sqlite database is sane
+ The favicons.sqlite database is sane
> Task: invalidateCaches
+ The caches have been invalidated
> Task: checkCoherence
+ The database is coherent

Does yours say that, or something else? You can select and copy the report, and then paste it into a reply for review and comment.

Thank you for the trouble shooting. I finally got around to trying this. When I click on Verify Integrity, nothing happens. I tried 3 times and waited several minutes, but nothing happened.

The bookmarks are available in Firefox on my portable devices, just not on my desktop.

I have not heard of that happening before. Perhaps it would be simpler to start a new profile, sign in to your Mozilla account there, and use Sync to restore your bookmarks, some settings, add-ons, and some history. Here's how:

Inside Firefox, type or paste about:profiles in the address bar and press Enter/Return to load it.

Take a quick glance at the page and make a mental note of which Profile has this notation: This is the profile in use and it cannot be deleted. That is your current default profile.

Click the "Create a New Profile" button, then click Next. Assign a name like August2025, ignore the option to relocate the profile folder, and click the Finish button.

Firefox will switch your default profile to the new one, so click the Set as Default Profile button for your regular one for now until you decide to switch.

Scroll down to August2025 and click its Launch profile in new browser button.

Firefox should open a new window that looks like a brand new, uncustomized installation. (Your existing Firefox window(s) should not be affected.) Go ahead and sign in to Sync. (Note: do not reset your password as that will erase your data.

Leave that window idle in the background for a while, then check back on whether your bookmarks were retrieved successfully.

How does it look?

I have the same issue. It just started when I logged in today. I've restarted Firefox a few times, and also restarted my computer a few times, and the bookmarks still aren't there.

I did the Verify Integrity function suggested above and got this report:

> Task: checkIntegrity - Unable to fix corruption, places.sqlite will be replaced on next startup > Task: checkCoherence - The task queue was cleared by an error in another task. > Task: expire - The task queue was cleared by an error in another task. > Task: vacuum - The task queue was cleared by an error in another task. > Task: stats - The task queue was cleared by an error in another task. > Task: _refreshUI - The task queue was cleared by an error in another task.

I'm not sure what to do next. I am leery about setting up a new profile as suggested above because I don't want to lose all my bookmarks by making a mistake. Or (as I'm afraid from what my Verify Integrity report said) are they already gone forever?

Any suggestions? Thanks!

Mike

Hi Mike, this line in your report is the most relevant:

I have the same issue. It just started when I logged in today. I've restarted Firefox a few times, and also restarted my computer a few times, and the bookmarks still aren't there. I did the Verify Integrity function suggested above and got this report: > Task: checkIntegrity - Unable to fix corruption, places.sqlite will be replaced on next startup

What should happen is, the next time you exit and restart Firefox, Firefox will create a fresh places.sqlite file and use your last automatic bookmark backup to populate bookmarks. However, there are no history backups, so you won't have your browsing/download history.

Finally resolved. Thank you.