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Clear history

  • 20 replies
  • 1 has this problem
  • 10 views
  • Last reply by FredMcD

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I am a senior user and need assistance. I am unable to clear history. I followed directions sent by Fred McD, and inadvertently removed my profile. I have saved the profile, but cannot open Firefox replace the profile information. Can someone help?

Also, if someone should ask a question, how do I reply?

Thank you, Blair Ryan [removed email from public]

I am a senior user and need assistance. I am unable to clear history. I followed directions sent by Fred McD, and inadvertently removed my profile. I have saved the profile, but cannot open Firefox replace the profile information. Can someone help? Also, if someone should ask a question, how do I reply? Thank you, Blair Ryan [removed email from public]

Modified by James

All Replies (20)

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You should get a email notification there was a reply and a link to the thread.

While on this site you can look at top right where it shows your name and hover over it to then either click on My Questions or View Profile then Questions.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/user/ryan97205/questions

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I forgot to mention that I am using a Mac.

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I forgot to mention that I am using a Mac.

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ryan97205 said

. . . . and inadvertently removed my profile. I have saved the profile, but cannot open Firefox

Hello again. What happens when you try to open the browser? Please explain the problem in detail. What is/are the exact error message(s) ?

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Hi Fred, The browser does not open, and only presents this message: Profile missing. Your Firefox profile cannot be loaded. It may be missing or inaccessible.

If I started with a new profile, maybe I could delete the old profile AND the old history? Win-win!

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https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-run-firefox-when-profile-missing-inaccessible

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox#Navigating_to_the_profile_folder

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-and-remove-firefox-profiles

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles


Type about:profiles<enter> in the address box. How many profiles are listed? How many should be there? Also, open the profile folder in your file explorer.


https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recover-user-data-missing-after-firefox-update

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Fred, I click on the Firefox icon on the dock with no result ..it won't open. So I tried this:

Finding your profile without opening Firefox

Click the Finder icon in the dock. On the menu bar, click the Go menu, hold down the option or alt key and select Library. A window will open containing your Library folder. Open the Application Support folder, then open the Firefox folder, and then the Profiles folder. Your profile folder is within this folder. If you only have one profile, its folder would have "default" in the name.

I found this: 3g4xels1.default-159166654946

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That was very good work. Well Done. So is your problem solved? If so,

I am glad to hear that your problem has been resolved. If you haven't already, please select the answer that solves the problem. This will help other users with similar problems find the solution.

Thank you for contacting Mozilla Support.

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Fred, If I click on the Firefox icon on dock, nothing happens. I still get the same message: Profile missing. Your Firefox profile cannot be loaded. It may be missing or inaccessible.

Can we just dump the whole program and start over with new profile? I am such a novice, and each time I click, I make it worse. Can you help to start over?

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Here are two options; 1) Use These instructions to create a new profile. Use the new profile As Is. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1367250#answer-1481950

2) 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.


Download and save the program you want. 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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Fred, You are kind to send me all this information, but as I said, I'm such a novice, and most of this is overwhelming. Does Firefox offer any tech support via telephone? It seems each time I click, I make the problem worse. I would hope to have someone walk me through this on the phone, but I can't seem to locate a number.

Thanks again, Fred. I do appreciate your help.

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Hello If you have not fixed your problem, try this ...

While in your web browser, click on what looks like three little lines, above right hand corner of the page. Down the list you will see " Settings". click on that. Another page will come up on top left hand corner of the page, scroll down until you see  " Privacy and Security".  Scroll down again until you see  " History", then click on clear history. That should do it.
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To sbassett80 I did try this when the problem first started, but when I opened Firefox again, the history was still there.

It's more complicated now, since I have inadvertently removed my profile. and can't seem to open Firefox to add back.

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You are using Firefox to post here, yes? Is your data still there? bookmarks, settings . . .

Please tell us what you are not sure about.

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Fred, I am no longer using Firefox to post; I cannot open. When I click on the Firefox icon on my dock, I simply get the message: Profile missing. Your Firefox profile cannot be loaded. It may be missing or inaccessible.

If I could only put the profile info back (I have it saved on my desktop), but can't open Firefox to do so. It seems like completely disabling Firefox and starting new might be the only answer?

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Check your computer's recycle/trash bin. Is anything there?


Look on your desktop. Do you see a folder called; Old Firefox? Look inside. Look for the folder with the latest creation date.


https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-run-firefox-when-profile-missing-inaccessible

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox#Navigating_to_the_profile_folder

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-and-remove-firefox-profiles

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles


Type about:profiles<enter> in the address box. How many profiles are listed? How many should be there? Also, open the profile folder in your file explorer.


https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recover-user-data-missing-after-firefox-update

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Fred, There is nothing in my trash/recycle bin. I do not have an Old Firefox folder on my desktop.

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If you don't find it here, I guess it is lost.


https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-run-firefox-when-profile-missing-inaccessible

http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox#Navigating_to_the_profile_folder

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profile-manager-create-and-remove-firefox-profiles

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles


Type about:profiles<enter> in the address box. How many profiles are listed? How many should be there? Also, open the profile folder in your file explorer.


https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recover-user-data-missing-after-firefox-update

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Fred, You're off the hook! I've been possessed by this Firefox mess, and worked until late last night to try and correct ..again. In the end, I ditched the whole program and reinstalled ..all's well now. I lost all the things I had bookmarked, but can add those again as I need ..no big deal.

Thanks so much for all the info your sent for me to try. I've learned a lot along the way, and do appreciate your help.

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That was very good work. Well Done. Please flag your last post as Solved Problem as this can help others with similar problems. Go to that post and click the 'Solved' button to its right.