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Firefox losing internet connection when performing certain tasks

shellyb1202
shellyb1202
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This started a couple weeks ago. At first I noticed that it was only happening when I used Facebook - any time I would share a Facebook post on my wall from the newsfeed, Firefox would lose the internet connection. Nothing would load at all in Firefox until I closed the browser and then opened it again, then it was fine...until I tried to share another post. Only when sharing posts and only in Firefox. While the internet connection was lost in the Firefox browser, I DID have an internet connection with the Chrome browser. That lasted about a day and it seems to have corrected itself, I don't have this problem when sharing Facebook posts anymore. However I have been having the same problem when performing certain other tasks - I noticed that it happens when I am trying to list an item for sale on eBay. Everything goes great until I get to the part where I need to upload photos. The internet connection is lost when trying to upload photos to eBay on Firefox. It (my internet connection) works just fine in Chrome while it won't work in Firefox and once I close Firefox and reopen it the internet connection returns. I noticed also that the same thing happens when I am playing instant win games in the Firefox browser - once I hit the "submit" button for whatever instant win game I am playing, once it tries to send my information...the internet connection is lost. Nothing will load in Firefox, but everything is fine at the same time on Chrome. So it seems to be a problem with me sending information somehow? I have no idea. I don't know why it would have "fixed itself" with the Facebook posting issue but not with the eBay or instant win game issue. I should clarify that it's not an issue with freezing, the browser does not freeze, it's only the internet connection that is lost. I have tried to wait it out to see if leaving the browser window open long enough would allow it to reconnect on its own, but it does not reconnect. I have to close the browser and open it back up to get the internet connection to work again.

This started a couple weeks ago. At first I noticed that it was only happening when I used Facebook - any time I would share a Facebook post on my wall from the newsfeed, Firefox would lose the internet connection. Nothing would load at all in Firefox until I closed the browser and then opened it again, then it was fine...until I tried to share another post. Only when sharing posts and only in Firefox. While the internet connection was lost in the Firefox browser, I DID have an internet connection with the Chrome browser. That lasted about a day and it seems to have corrected itself, I don't have this problem when sharing Facebook posts anymore. However I have been having the same problem when performing certain other tasks - I noticed that it happens when I am trying to list an item for sale on eBay. Everything goes great until I get to the part where I need to upload photos. The internet connection is lost when trying to upload photos to eBay on Firefox. It (my internet connection) works just fine in Chrome while it won't work in Firefox and once I close Firefox and reopen it the internet connection returns. I noticed also that the same thing happens when I am playing instant win games in the Firefox browser - once I hit the "submit" button for whatever instant win game I am playing, once it tries to send my information...the internet connection is lost. Nothing will load in Firefox, but everything is fine at the same time on Chrome. So it seems to be a problem with me sending information somehow? I have no idea. I don't know why it would have "fixed itself" with the Facebook posting issue but not with the eBay or instant win game issue. I should clarify that it's not an issue with freezing, the browser does not freeze, it's only the internet connection that is lost. I have tried to wait it out to see if leaving the browser window open long enough would allow it to reconnect on its own, but it does not reconnect. I have to close the browser and open it back up to get the internet connection to work again.

All Replies (4)

FredMcD
FredMcD
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Have your ISP test your service. Also, check your modem/WiFi boxes.

Many site issues can be caused by corrupt cookies or cache.

  • Clear the Cache and
  • Remove Cookies

Warning ! ! This will log you out of sites you're logged in to. You may also lose any settings for that website.

If there is still a problem, Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link} by holding down the <Shift> (Mac=Options) key, and then starting Firefox.

A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Did this help?

While you are in safe mode;

Try disabling graphics hardware acceleration in Firefox. Since this feature was added to Firefox it has gradually improved but there are still a few glitches.

How to disable Hardware Acceleration {web link}

shellyb1202
shellyb1202 Question owner
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Thank you for your reply. Unfortunately, none of these steps solved the problem. There is definitely no problem with my ISP or my internet connection. The internet works fine, just as it should, in other browsers at the same time that Firefox "loses" the connection when specific tasks are performed. Also, it's a problem that I can recreate - it is not something that happens sporadically, it happens only when specific tasks are performed. I can make it happen by doing specific things. It's a problem with Firefox. We have tried turning the modem and router off and back on again as well, but that did not fix the problem.

I have cleared my cache and cookies several times, and I just tried it again as you suggested. This did not fix the problem.

I started Firefox in safe mode and disabled hardware acceleration, this did not fix the problem.

I also just tried updating Firefox to the most recent version, 62.0.3. This did not fix my problem.

After I tried these steps, I went to my eBay account and tried uploading a photo to a listing draft. As soon as I selected the photo that I wanted to upload and double clicked to upload it, Firefox lost the internet connection. Nothing would load, the photo would not upload. Before I closed the Firefox browser, I opened Chrome and tested the internet in that browser - it worked fine. Nothing would load at all in Firefox. I closed Firefox and opened it again, the internet worked fine after that.

I can upload photos to eBay in the Chrome browser with no issues. This is very frustrating...I don't like Chrome, lol.

FredMcD
FredMcD
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Was there an error message?

Let’s do a full clean re-install;

Download Firefox For All languages And Systems {web link}

Save the file. Then Close Firefox.

Using your file browser, open the Programs Folder on your computer.

Windows: C:\Program Files C:\Program Files (x86)

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.

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode This shows how to Start all Computers in Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia

shellyb1202
shellyb1202 Question owner
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I was able to fix this myself - well, I hope it's fixed, lol. I had a few add-ons enabled that I disabled (AdBlock, Distill Web Monitor, Avast, Dashlane, Ebates) and disabling those fixed the problem. I wanted to figure out which one was causing the problem so I tried enabling them one at a time and seeing if I could recreate the issue, but all 5 are enabled now and the problem still seems to be fixed. For the time being, the problem is solved. Thanks for your time! :-)