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Lates Upgrade (the last two days) not downloading zip or jpg files

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  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by cor-el

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I teach at James Madison University and must download zip and jpg files for instruction. Sometime within the last 48 hours, Firefox would not download any jpg or zip files. For years now, this has never been an issue. The tab indicates connecting, the grey shadow passes through the tab and then nothing. I have tried this at different academic sites and the same happens. There is no problem downloading zip or jpg files using Chrome. What happened and how to fix it?

I teach at James Madison University and must download zip and jpg files for instruction. Sometime within the last 48 hours, Firefox would not download any jpg or zip files. For years now, this has never been an issue. The tab indicates connecting, the grey shadow passes through the tab and then nothing. I have tried this at different academic sites and the same happens. There is no problem downloading zip or jpg files using Chrome. What happened and how to fix it?

All Replies (2)

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Hello,

Clear the download history

Clearing the download history can fix some problems with downloading files:

  • Click the Downloads button download icon 57 , and then click Show all downloads. The Downloads window will open.
  • In the Downloads window, click Clear Downloads.
  • Close the Downloads window.
  • Choose a different download folder
  • Firefox may not be able to download files if there is a problem with the folder in which downloaded files are saved:
  • Click the menu button Menu and select Options.
  • Select the General panel.
  • Find the Downloads section under Files and Applications.
  • Click the Browsebutton next to the Save files to entry.
  • Choose a different download folder for saving files.
  • Close the about:preferences page. Any changes you've made will automatically be saved.
  • Reset the download folder
  • If you have tried the above suggestions, you can restore the default Firefox download folder settings:

Type about:config in the address bar and press Enter. A warning page may appear. Click Accept the Risk and Continue to continue to the about:config page. In the Search field, enter browser.download. If any of the following settings are in bold text, reset their values. To reset a value, click the Delete Fx71aboutconfig-DeleteButton or Reset Fx71aboutconfig-

  • ResetButton button, depending on the preference:
  • browser.download.dir
  • browser.download.downloadDir
  • browser.download.folderList
  • browser.download.lastDir
  • browser.download.useDownloadDir

If desired, you can revert back to your preferred download folder settings in your Firefox Options General panel, in the Downloads section under Files and Applications. Change file type settings If downloading certain file types does not work, check to make sure Firefox is not set to handle those file types differently from others. See Change what Firefox does when you click on or download a file for instructions on how to view and change how different file types are handled.

Reset download actions for all file types To reset how all file types are handled by Firefox back to default:

Open your profile folder:

Click the menu button Fx57menu , click Help and select Troubleshooting Information. The Troubleshooting Information tab will open. Under the Application Basics section next to Profile Folder, click Open Folder . Your profile folder will open. Note: If you are unable to open or use Firefox, follow the instructions in Finding your profile without opening Firefox. Click the Firefox menu Fx57Menu and select Exit. Delete or rename the handlers.json file (for example, rename it handlers.json.old ). Restart Firefox. Configure Internet security software Internet security software, including firewalls, antivirus programs, anti-spyware programs, and others can block certain file downloads. Check the settings in your security software to see if there is an setting that may be blocking downloads.

To diagnose whether Internet security software is causing problems, you can try temporarily disabling it, seeing if downloads work, and then re-enabling the software.

Enable downloads blocked by Security Zone Policy Downloading an executable file (e.g., an .exe or .msi file) may fail, with the Downloads window showing Canceled under the file name.

This happens because Firefox honors your Windows security settings for downloading applications and other potentially unsafe files from the Internet. To resolve this problem, use the solution given below.

Reset system Internet Security settings You can reset your system Internet security settings in Internet Explorer. See How to reset Internet Explorer settings at Microsoft Support for instructions.

Other solutions You may be able to diagnose your download problem by following the steps given in the Troubleshoot and diagnose Firefox problems article.


Thank you!

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What security software do you have ?

It is possible that (anti-virus) security software is causing the problem. Try to disable security software temporarily to see if that makes a difference.