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Exporting Bookmarks Now a Nightmare on Firefox

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I am using the most recent version of Firefox on a MacBook Pro Late 2013 using Mac OS Sierra, and am getting ready to export my bookmarks so that I can do a clean install. I have wasted hours on this to no avail. I export...and when I look for the file it is nowhere to be found. I tried exporting it to several disks and it simply does not disappear. This has never been a problem before, and it is discouraging me from returning to Firefox. How absolutely devilishly frustrating. Can anyone help? Thank you!

I am using the most recent version of Firefox on a MacBook Pro Late 2013 using Mac OS Sierra, and am getting ready to export my bookmarks so that I can do a clean install. I have wasted hours on this to no avail. I export...and when I look for the file it is nowhere to be found. I tried exporting it to several disks and it simply does not disappear. This has never been a problem before, and it is discouraging me from returning to Firefox. How absolutely devilishly frustrating. Can anyone help? Thank you!

Modified by walterkrochmal

Chosen solution

HOW I SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF FIREFOX NOT EXPORTING MY BOOKMARKS

Thanks very much for running to assist me with your knowledge and experience. After many attempts, I settled on a most primitive solution. I finally just opened Chrome, imported the bookmarks from Firefox, and then exported from Chrome. First shot, no muss, no fuss the way it has always been for me for the last 20 years, and the file is now safe on my desktop. I'm not sure what happened but it was exhausting. Once again, thanks very much!

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All Replies (7)

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Is this what you did? Note the full path and file name.

Open the Bookmarks Manager; Press the Alt or F10 key to bring up the toolbar, and select Bookmarks. Hot key is <Control> (Mac=<Command>) <Shift> B. Firefox 84+ <Control> (Mac=<Command>) <Shift> O.

Once the window is open, at the top of the page, press the button labeled Import and Backup. Select Export Bookmarks To HTML, and follow the prompts and save it to a HTML file. Copy the file to another computer/profile. Repeat the instructions above, BUT select Import Bookmarks From HTML.

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/restore-bookmarks-from-backup-or-move-them

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recover-lost-or-missing-bookmarks

Mozilla search: Import {web link}

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Thanks so much, Fred. I tried this, but it may be that part of the syntax is wrong, or confusing to me as a novice from outer space. What does this string mean:

Firefox 84+ <Control> (Mac=<Command>) <Shift> O.

I did unlock and delete the places.sqlite file, quit Firefox and re-opened it (several times), and I cannot get it to export my bookmarks.html file at all still.

Thanks for your patience. This is quite a terrible glitch!

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walterkrochmal said

I did unlock and delete the places.sqlite file

Why did you delete this file?

Did you recover from the backup file?

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I was following instructions from another contributor here, and fortunately I did recover my bookmarks after deleting this file, closing down Firefox and opening it again. So my bookmarks are intact. Firefox is just stuck and refuses to export this file. The thought of losing my bookmarks is devastating, but I will have to do just that if this takes any longer because I'm not at all an engineer and a process that used to take all of 30 seconds has now consumed 3 evenings. Ugh...

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Chosen Solution

HOW I SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF FIREFOX NOT EXPORTING MY BOOKMARKS

Thanks very much for running to assist me with your knowledge and experience. After many attempts, I settled on a most primitive solution. I finally just opened Chrome, imported the bookmarks from Firefox, and then exported from Chrome. First shot, no muss, no fuss the way it has always been for me for the last 20 years, and the file is now safe on my desktop. I'm not sure what happened but it was exhausting. Once again, thanks very much!

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That was very good work. Well Done.

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Thank you, sir. It was a primitive, artisanal solution because I'm not a specialist but it saved the day. All the best and may the hive mind prevail!