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Why won't Firefox open?

  • 14 replies
  • 3 have this problem
  • 3 views
  • Last reply by AliceWyman

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When I click to open Firefox nothing happens right away. After a period of time I get a box that pops up saying Firefox has crashed. I have filled out the info and sent the report to Firefox numerous times. I have tried several things on the troubleshooting and still cannot get it to open on my laptop. This issue all of a sudden happened, there were no issues with Firefox prior to this occurring. I need Firefox as the preferred browser for my online class and need to figure out how to resolve the issue.

When I click to open Firefox nothing happens right away. After a period of time I get a box that pops up saying Firefox has crashed. I have filled out the info and sent the report to Firefox numerous times. I have tried several things on the troubleshooting and still cannot get it to open on my laptop. This issue all of a sudden happened, there were no issues with Firefox prior to this occurring. I need Firefox as the preferred browser for my online class and need to figure out how to resolve the issue.

Chosen solution

Can you create a new profile as a test to check if your current profile is causing the problem?

See "Creating a profile":

If the new profile works then you can transfer some files from an existing profile to the new profile, but be cautious not to copy corrupted files to avoid carrying over the problem


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:

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All Replies (14)

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If you have submitted crash reports then please post the IDs of one or more recent crash reports that have a "bp-" prefix:

  • bp-xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx

You can find the IDs of the submitted crash reports on the about:crashes page.

  • You can open the about:crashes page via the location bar, like you open a website, or open the crash reports page via "Help > Troubleshooting Information".

See:


Can you start Firefox in Safe Mode by holding down the Shift/Options key?

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Here are a few of the several that have been submitted recently: Crash ID: bp-f78c208e-96eb-47fa-8d5f-cd1982140308 Crash ID: bp-a873a4e0-26ba-4905-bb0f-1fe012140308 Crash ID: bp-e286eec6-499b-484b-a942-b55532140304 Crash ID: bp-fdb5c237-2304-4c1c-a1f9-f96cd2140302

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These are all out-of-memory (OOM) crashes where the Firefox uses up all available memory causing it to crash.

Are you able to start Firefox in Safe Mode like I posted above?

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I tried to open in safe mode and nothing has happened since trying to do so.

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So, you do not have the problem in Safe Mode?

If it works in Safe Mode and in normal mode with all extensions (Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Extensions) disabled then try to find which extension is causing it by enabling one extension at a time until the problem reappears.

Close and restart Firefox after each change via "Firefox > Exit" (Windows: Firefox/File > Exit; Mac: Firefox > Quit Firefox; Linux: Firefox/File > Quit)

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I'm sorry, I worded that badly. I cannot open in safe mode either. After trying to open in safe mode, the nothing I mentioned was Firefox not opening. It popped up a crash box after a period of time just as it does when trying to open it regularly.

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Chosen Solution

Can you create a new profile as a test to check if your current profile is causing the problem?

See "Creating a profile":

If the new profile works then you can transfer some files from an existing profile to the new profile, but be cautious not to copy corrupted files to avoid carrying over the problem


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:

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I tried to do the new profile, and it would not work using any of the suggested ways. I did download and run Malwarebytes last night. It found issues and removed them, but that still did not help :( I have also ran my other antivirus, disk clean-up, defrag, etc. to see if any of it would help. Nothing has helped.

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


Do a clean reinstall and delete the Firefox program folder before (re)installing a fresh copy of the current Firefox release.

Download a fresh Firefox copy and save the file to the desktop.

If possible uninstall your current Firefox version to cleanup the Windows registry and settings in security software.

  • Do NOT remove personal data when you uninstall your current Firefox version, because all profile folders will be removed and you lose personal data like bookmarks and passwords from profiles of other Firefox versions.

Remove the Firefox program folder before installing that newly downloaded copy of the Firefox installer.

  • (32 bit Windows) "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\"
  • (64 bit Windows) "C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox\"

Your bookmarks and other personal data are stored in the Firefox profile folder and won't be affected by an uninstall and (re)install, but make sure that "remove personal data" is NOT selected when you uninstall Firefox.


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EDIT: I didn't see cor-el's answer. Follow his instructions first.


You wrote,

 I did download and run Malwarebytes last night. It found issues and removed them, but that still did not help :( I have also ran my other antivirus, disk clean-up, defrag, etc. to see if any of it would help. Nothing has helped. 

What is the other antivirus you mentioned running?

In any case, some scanners remove malware that the others miss so I would suggest installing and running all of the malware removal tools listed in this article, under the How do I get rid of malware? section:

Modified by AliceWyman

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Cor-el Starting computer in safe mode with network did not help either. Last night after running the Malwarebytes I did a complete uninstall and re-installed the program and that did not resolve the issue.

I am now doing a RAM clean through Advance System Care.

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You said

I am now doing a RAM clean through Advance System Care. 

Is that Advanced SystemCare from http://www.iobit.com/  ?

I'm getting the impression that you're having other computer problems besides Firefox not starting or Firefox crashing when you start it. If so, your best bet would probably be a Windows forum such as answers.microsoft.com or windowsbbs.com

In any case, let us know what happens with Firefox after the "RAM clean".

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Alice- I was trying EVERYTHING that I could to see if anything would help. When I saw my crash reports were memory related I was trying to clean up the computer to make sure I had space to accommodate the opening of the program. I called my tech support for my college and they sent me some ideas to try. The one on changing profiles was a little different than the one I found on Firefox site and that was the problem. Added a new profile and the program started right up, actually on it right now! And to top it off, my computer is cleaner and running a little smoother than before ;) Thanks for your suggestions!

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When cor-el asked before, "Can you create a new profile" and linked to related kb articles, you replied,

I tried to do the new profile, and it would not work using any of the suggested ways.

I thought you said that creating a new profile didn't work ... but I guess you meant that the steps in the Managing Profiles article didn't work? Could you explain what didn't work? Did you have problems starting the Profile Manager or was it something else? If you could explain how you managed to create the new profile I could try and improve the KB article.

Anyway, thanks for letting us know that creating a new Firefox profile solved the problem and for marking cor-el's answer as the solution.