Firefox Community Forum

After easy semi-automatic updates for many years, the last two updates (143.0.3 and 143.0.4 on Windows 10 64bit) have stuck showing "Downloading update -- 0 bytes" for hours. The first time I eventually gave up and used the installer from the Firefox site to re-install. This seemed to get me to 143.0.3 without losing any important data in my profile but was certainly the hard way!

Now the same thing is happening during the update to 143.0.4. What's going on? Are other users having this problem? -- jclarkw

P.S. -- How can you manually stop and update during the download process? -- jclarkw

I had renewed my subscription for MS365 on Tuesday the 30th when I got a popup inviting me to update Firefox to the latest release. I agreed and the download appeared to have worked. However, I soon found I could not access any of the MS365 apps. I restarted and found Firefox had also disappeared. The icons are present in the list of apps but clicking on them gets no response.

I have deleted and reinstalled Firefox and downloaded a new MS365 with no change.

I have Norton online antivirus and the MS365 comes with continuous Defender using Malwarebytes. (I am running down the remaining Norton subscription). I have also used both to do a sweep on each but no problems were found.

I have Outlook which has not been affected.

I am coming to the conclusion that I may need to do a full deletion of both. Can anyone suggest any other way to deal with this?

I’m facing a strange issue after the recent Firefox update. Whenever I try to install or update Firefox to the latest version, the process stops midway and a small popup appears related to a “challan notification” from a website I recently visited.

After this popup appears:

The installation freezes

Automatic updates fail

Firefox sometimes restarts but remains on the old version

No error code is shown, just the interrupted update process

I have already tried:

Clearing cache & cookies

Restarting Firefox

Safe Mode

Reinstalling Firefox manually

Checking firewall/antivirus settings

But the problem still occurs.

I want to confirm:

Is any website notification (like a challan reminder or traffic-alert site) capable of interrupting Firefox updates?

Does Firefox block updates if a previous session was not closed properly due to such popups?

What is the correct method to force a clean update without affecting my browsing data?

Please guide me on how to fix this issue. Thank you!

Firefox Win7 I had disabled updates, now i want background updates to work. I have disabled all the hacks I did, but no joy. Reinstalled maintenanceservice, still none.

(Win11Pro) If I allow Firefox to update itself from 123.14.0 ESR to 140.3.0 ESR (now apparently 140.3.1 ESR), the update apparently corrupts something in the browser so that it does not respond to the entry of ANY URL. I have to restore a backup of my C: drive, losing some recent data every time. As it stands, I cannot update Firefox beyond ESR 128.14.0, which is what I'm using now. What should I do? Do I have to switch to another browser? Thank you for your help with this. --AnneF

As the subject says Firefox wont auto update, I have to download the Firefox Installer to update.

Setting says :- Firefox is being updated by another instance

But what interface? How can I fix this? I did have Firefox portable but got rid of that and installed the full package.

Any help welcome

thank you,

Bob

Every SINGLE time Firefox update now, we have to create a new profile, EVERY SINGLE TIME. We loose all our open tabs, passwords, history, bookmarks, everything.

Why is yours the only browser that does this, and how do we stop this from happening.

This is having an effect that is starting to drive me away from using all your products.

Each time I open the Firefox Icon on my desktop in AVD, it opens an older version and it prompts me to recreate a profile. I updated Firefox yesterday and brought over my passwords and bookmarks. This keeps reoccurring after we fix it each time. Can you help?

I have just started a new job and installed the Firefox browser on my PC (W11) as part of setting up my new workstation. The application works fine until I get a message that Firefox needs to install an update, 'please close it or it will close automatically in one hour'. After the update I get a message that the update is complete and you can restart the application, but the application no longer works; the icon on the application list no longer works 'The item firefox.exe that this shortcut refers to has been changed or moved'. After re-installing Firefox it works OK again, but the process repeats. Although I have managed to succesfully update a new installation on two occasions, after a few days the process repeats and I need to re-install again.

Several weeks ago, Mozilla completely reset my Firefox. Removed my addons, reset my settings in about

config. I had previously changed a lot of things, specifically stopped all videos and things moving on my page. I searched the net, and changed a few things, but I still have things moving on my pages. Thanks, Mozilla, Brave is looking better everyday. Win7 115.30 oesr I am not happy. How do I send a message right to Mozilla, Hidden and impossible.

Less a question, more a statement. On most updates (every? I don't know) I loose my dictionaries and the spellchecking does no longer work.

Also, after an update the browser just ... dies. I mean it still works but it is if I would have no internet. Usually some tabs die before the others.

So yeah, this little rant hopefully opens a ticket and you guys can check if others have the same problem.

Also if you are wondering why nobody is upgrading. Yeah, that is the reason. I try to delay it as much as possible.

I updated to version 146 today on Windows 10 and had to use administrator credentials. I have Mozilla Maintenance Service previously installed. I tried uninstalling MMS and then re-installed FF using full installer and selecting the custom option to install MMS. I cannot see the option in Settings..General 'Use a background service to install updates' (Screenshot attached) How can I fix this issue which has been present for some time?

Yesterday I tried to update Firefox to 146.0, but the update failed, consistently. Here's what I did: Seeing the usual "There is a new update available"-pop up, I accepted. "About" screen came up. I clicked the button "update to 146.0", but no download started. I waited about 15 minutes, but still no download. I closed the window. Next, I tried the menu option: "Help->About Firefox". "About" screen came up. I clicked the button "update to 146.0". Same as above, no download.

Before anyone asks the obvious questions: Yes, I was connected to the internet the whole time. I checked that by calling up random pages. No, my firewall was not blocking Firefox. No, it was not just one quirky device. I tried it on laptop and desktop both. Yes, I did close and restart Firefox, I even rebooted the devices, and tried again. Same problem.

Now while my workaround (see below) helped, there is still the question of the update process failing in the first place. For me, that brings up two pressing issues at least: 1. Has anyone external tampered with the update process, maybe with malicious intent? It has happened to several software distributors, most recently the guy behind Notepad ++. 2. What happened to people relying on automatic (i.e. not prompting) updates? Did they even notice they were not being updated?

Not a solution, but a workaround: I synced all my setting to my Firefox-account (worked just fine, no problems), downloaded the newest installer, installed the new version on top of the old (worked like a charm), started new version, all just fine. I did not even need to sync my settings back, all was kept intact. Excellent!

apply patch failed message. version 143.0.1 September 19 2025 update. Yet states "updated" Details saying message apply patch failed is found via firefox browser settings-firefox update history-details. I noticed that on that exact day of the update Audible books will not play as they did previously on the same day prior to update. They play on every other browser but firefox.