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Need help reverting to Firefox 108. I can install it no problem, but don't understand how to get all my settings back that 109 removed.

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  • 2 have this problem
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  • Last reply by tlist809

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Firefox 109 is horrible and I am trying to revert to 108. I have the "Old Firefox Data" file, but have no idea how to get ALL that info back into 108. I am so very upset and frustrated right now! So much wasted time. I cannot believe Mozilla did this to us with no warning!!!!!!!! I have seen some articles on how to get the info back, but I don't really understand them. I am relatively computer-savvy, but I definitely do not understand how all this works. Some "Firefox for Dummies" at this point would be greatly appreciated. I am on a PC using Windows 10 professional 64-bit with automatic updates so it's current.

Firefox 109 is horrible and I am trying to revert to 108. I have the "Old Firefox Data" file, but have no idea how to get ALL that info back into 108. I am so very upset and frustrated right now! So much wasted time. I cannot believe Mozilla did this to us with no warning!!!!!!!! I have seen some articles on how to get the info back, but I don't really understand them. I am relatively computer-savvy, but I definitely do not understand how all this works. Some "Firefox for Dummies" at this point would be greatly appreciated. I am on a PC using Windows 10 professional 64-bit with automatic updates so it's current.

Modified by ElegalEyes

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No, they don't help. I already reviewed them. I actually was able to find my old profile folder and moved EVERYTHING into the new folder. Now when I open Firefox, it says I am opening an older version and I need to make a new profile!!! And then it LOSES everything AGAIN! I am so freaking exhausted from this crap!!!!! Such unnecessary work. Can you please tell me how to open my older version of Firefox and have it NOT require me to begin a new profile? I will do some searching after posting this in case it's out there, but a quick answer to that question or a link would be awesome. Thank you for trying - it's not your fault that Firefox 109 SUCKS, but it's been such a horrible time suck today! I am so stressed out over this it's not even funny.

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Terry, Firefox 109 lost EVERYTHING!! I have been using Netscape then Firefox since I first got on the internet. It has all my bookmarks (hundreds) organized by category. I had all the settings and features set up to give me an efficient workspace. Now you cannot add toolbars, extensions do not show on the toolbar (I have to reinstall all of them and then hunt for them!), I don't even see a back or forward arrow! I tried clicking in that area just in case and my screen did NOTHING. All my extensions are GONE, all my add-ons are GONE. The drop down toolbar does not appear to even be an option any longer. It had none of my shortcuts. All my bookmarks and my open browser pages were LOST. I have wasted an entire day trying to fix all this crap and now it's heading into day 2. I cannot make a living if I am spending all my time fixing this crap. Mozilla gave ZERO WARNING that this would happen. If they had, I would not have downloaded the update.

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You need to remove compatibility.ini as that is the file that Firefox checks to see what Firefox version last used the profile.


You can copy certain files with Firefox closed to the current profile folder to transfer or recover personal data.

Note that best is to avoid copying a full profile folder.


  • bookmarks and history: places.sqlite
  • favicons: favicons.sqlite
  • bookmark backups: compressed .jsonlz4 JSON backups in the bookmarkbackups folder
  • cookies.sqlite for the Cookies
  • formhistory.sqlite for saved autocomplete Form Data
  • logins.json (encrypted logins;32+) and key4.db (decryption key;58+) for Passwords saved in the Password Manager
    key3.db support ended in 73+; to use key3.db in 58-72, make sure to remove key4.db
  • cert9.db (58+) for (intermediate) certificates stored in the Certificate Manager
  • persdict.dat for words added to the spell checker dictionary
  • permissions.sqlite for Permissions and possibly content-prefs.sqlite for other website specific data (Site Preferences)
  • sessionstore.jsonlz4 for open tabs and pinned tabs (see also the sessionstore-backups folder)
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Cor-el - thank you! Deleting "compatability.ini" got me past that stage and I was able to get into Firefox without having to create a new profile AGAIN. However, when I (finally) was able to re-open Firefox, it does not seem to have any of my settings at all. How do I get all my settings to show back up? This is so confusing.

Modified by ElegalEyes

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Cor-el - I figured out another part of the problem. The "Old Firefox Files" folder that Firefox saved to my desktop did not save my old settings. It basically saved blank settings AFTER I did the update and discovered everything was missing. I found the actual old folder and copied only the items you mentioned above. I have managed to restore my bookmarks. It did not restore anything else it looks like. I am having to manually reset everything, but I think I can handle that. However, it's really odd that none of my extensions are showing up and things like using Adobe to open PDFs etc. - all those application settings are also still missing. But at least I have my bookmarks, which are not replaceable.

Am I ever going to be able to update Firefox again? I really do not like the V109 AT ALL. Why did they take away so many options to make the browser more efficient and user-friendly? Why on earth would they think it's BETTER to take customization away? And this isn't the first time. They might as well just update it and tell folks there's no more customization available at all because that seems to be where Firefox is heading, and it's really sad. But thank you for the fix to my initial question/problem. I do greatly appreciate it. Now to find myself a new browser and import my bookmarks into it.

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I agree ver 109 is horrible, my tabs are a medium gray and skinny black letters. Very unreadable. I make changes to themes and they look better but they do not stay when the browser is restarted. Thinking seriously of changing from firefox (long time user) to a different browser like Opera. The frustration and the inability of Mozilla to respond to users is really pushing my decision.