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Why did the latest update of Firefox wipe out all my history entries and turn off my master password?

  • 3 replies
  • 1 has this problem
  • 4 views
  • Last reply by nhpeacenik

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when I started Firefox this evening, website url completion (i.e. history) had been disabled or wiped out. I had recently installed a master password and the system no longer asks for it. Is there any way to get my browsing history back, so I can discover the correct spelling of websites I have visited but have not memorized? I will try to reinstate the master password, but it seems like a very weak security measure indeed if it can just disappear without warning.

when I started Firefox this evening, website url completion (i.e. history) had been disabled or wiped out. I had recently installed a master password and the system no longer asks for it. Is there any way to get my browsing history back, so I can discover the correct spelling of websites I have visited but have not memorized? I will try to reinstate the master password, but it seems like a very weak security measure indeed if it can just disappear without warning.

All Replies (3)

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If signons.sqlite or key3.db got damaged during the update, that might explain it. Do you keep a backup copy of your profile? If so, you could restore those files from the backup.

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Are you still using your default profile?
Do you still have other data like the bookmarks?

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Thank you for your suggestions.

I don't keep a backup copy of my profile. I just gave up, re-instated the master password and started typing in urls completely so they will eventually recharge the history.

The update that seemed to precipitate this was unsolicited and just got installed when I started Firefox, Some settings, such as bookmarks and home page survived. The loss of the master password is the most disturbing. The rest is merely annoying. I didn't create a new profile or anything, and as far as I know, I'm using the original default profile.