When I reinstalled Firefox again on a laptop my entire profile with passwords was the default. Big security threat
Long ago I installed Firefox and copied my profile into it. On a friends laptop. I use it from time to time. When I was giving it back I deleted the profile and thought Firefox would create a profile again. I was wrong. I searched and posted questions in the support forum but did not get an response in time. So I just uninstalled FF and installed chrome instead. Again I had to use the laptop. I did a full install and uninstall with Rinstaller software but no avail. I just copied my profile from my PC and it started working again.
Then I uninstalled it through R-unintaller and thought everything would be gone.
Today again I installed firefox again and guess what My old profile was still there!!! Why does it not go. This is a serious threat. I am lucky my friend did not install FF again. She gives the laptop to her staff to do data entry and they would have had access to all my passwords.
So first concerns. is when I uninstall why the hell is the profile saved?
2. Why is it so difficult to just get a new profile that is reset the old profile. Here is my other question which has gotten no replied https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1090811
FF is now even worse than IE and for me its IE all over again. I was so used to IE that it took me months to shift to FF. Now its the same I am so hooked to FF that I just find it so hard to shift to Chrome even though my experience with FF is painful.
There are so many bugs. like this https://support.mozilla.org/questions/1085732
It works perfectly in Chrome and other browser. The fix for this break Youtube. Now I can't tag anyone in Youtube,
But in other browser both youtube comments and Bootsnipp works perfectly.
All Replies (8)
creeem said
Then I uninstalled it through R-unintaller and thought everything would be gone.
What is R-uninstaller? What does it do?
So first concerns. is when I uninstall why the hell is the profile saved?
Many users think that uninstalling and reinstalling Firefox will help with program problems, so it was decided that the built-in uninstaller would not to remove browser data in that scenario.
2. Why is it so difficult to just get a new profile that is reset the old profile.
You can create a new profile using the profile manager. The method has always been obscure. Maybe it will get easier in the future if it is considered an important feature for general end users. Profile Manager - Create, remove or switch Firefox profiles
Here is my other question which has gotten no replied https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1090811
Manually removing files and folders can indeed break things. You deleted your profile folder and broke Firefox.
Next time, know that Firefox looks for your profiles.ini file at startup to understand where it should find your profile, and if you remove the physical profile folder, then profiles.ini is out of sync with reality. And that is why Firefox tells you it cannot find the profile folder.
If you want to completely remove Firefox data, remove the whole Firefox folder under both of these paths:
C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Mozilla
If you want to delete one profile but leave everything else, use the Profile Manager (carefully, it's easy to delete the wrong one).
Also, your Firefox identified itself to the forum as version 39. Is that correct?
Version 39 is not secure; Mozilla discloses security flaws after each new release. Is something holding you back from upgrading to Firefox 46? Please let us know so we can suggest solutions or workarounds. Or you can update now using the steps in this article: Update Firefox to the latest release.
If Help > About Firefox shows Firefox 46.0, you may need to clear the preference that is misreporting your version number. See: How to reset the default user agent on Firefox.
Firefox uses two locations for the Firefox profile folder. Location used for the main profile in "AppData\Roaming".
- C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\
Location used for the disk cache and other temporary files in "AppData\Local".
- C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\
"AppData" (XP: Application Data; Mac: ~/Library; Linux: ~/.mozilla) is a hidden folder.
jscher2000 said
Also, your Firefox identified itself to the forum as version 39. Is that correct? Version 39 is not secure; Mozilla discloses security flaws after each new release. Is something holding you back from upgrading to Firefox 46? Please let us know so we can suggest solutions or workarounds. Or you can update now using the steps in this article: Update Firefox to the latest release. If Help > About Firefox shows Firefox 46.0, you may need to clear the preference that is misreporting your version number. See: How to reset the default user agent on Firefox.
Oh that is because Like I said I installed it from an old installer on the laptop and did not have a Wifi so did not update it. I had to finish some work urgently so did that and then posted this from there. Now its all Updated :)
jscher2000 said
creeem saidThen I uninstalled it through R-unintaller and thought everything would be gone.What is R-uninstaller? What does it do?
So first concerns. is when I uninstall why the hell is the profile saved?Many users think that uninstalling and reinstalling Firefox will help with program problems, so it was decided that the built-in uninstaller would not to remove browser data in that scenario.
2. Why is it so difficult to just get a new profile that is reset the old profile.You can create a new profile using the profile manager. The method has always been obscure. Maybe it will get easier in the future if it is considered an important feature for general end users. Profile Manager - Create, remove or switch Firefox profiles
Here is my other question which has gotten no replied https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1090811Manually removing files and folders can indeed break things. You deleted your profile folder and broke Firefox.
Next time, know that Firefox looks for your profiles.ini file at startup to understand where it should find your profile, and if you remove the physical profile folder, then profiles.ini is out of sync with reality. And that is why Firefox tells you it cannot find the profile folder.
If you want to completely remove Firefox data, remove the whole Firefox folder under both of these paths:
C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Mozilla
If you want to delete one profile but leave everything else, use the Profile Manager (carefully, it's easy to delete the wrong one).
cor-el said
Firefox uses two locations for the Firefox profile folder. Location used for the main profile in "AppData\Roaming".Location used for the disk cache and other temporary files in "AppData\Local".
- C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\
"AppData" (XP: Application Data; Mac: ~/Library; Linux: ~/.mozilla) is a hidden folder.
- C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\
I did that the first time. I don't know why you guys can't see the problem here. Ok I deleted my profile I admit that is not the right way to do it. Ok then I uninstall it. These are just like bugs 1. So why is FF leaving all those entries and folders. Atleast it should have an option to clean all setting. 2. Ok FF wants us to manually delete the folders. I DID THAT co-rel BOTH I DID THAT> I deleted everything name Firefox and Mozilla in that computer. And then went searching for entries in the registry manually.(as R-uninstaller did not work).
When I reinstall it again gives me the error that profile is missing. I am no n00b. I then copied the profile on my PC and edited the profile.ini file and changed the name of the profile to the one from my PC and it worked.
Point is deleting all those folder both you mentioned did nothing.
After i fixed it by editing the profile.ini. I uninstalled it.
And I again cleaned out all the folders!!!
But now when i installed it again my profile is being loaded. HOW is this possible?
Has nobody come across this before. FF is leaving some keys or is having some cache somewhere. I did not even sign into FF sync(& my mobile data was too slow for it to download so fast its 111 MB profile).
So there is this issues
You claim you deleted your Profile?
Just where was the Profile located that you deleted? as perhaps you deleted the Profile folder used as a template in the Firefox program folder.
While Firefox is open go to Help > Troubleshooting Information or type about:support and there you can click on the Show Folder. It should then open filemanager to the Profile you are currently using with Firefox.
I think most users would prefer to Not have their essential settings like Passwords, Bookmarks and such be deleted upon Firefox uninstall on Windows. No uninstaller for Firefox on Mac OSX and Linux versions.
Okulungisiwe ngu James
James said
You claim you deleted your Profile? Just where was the Profile located that you deleted? as perhaps you deleted the Profile folder used as a template in the Firefox program folder. While Firefox is open go to Help > Troubleshooting Information or type about:support and there you can click on the Show Folder. It should then open filemanager to the Profile you are currently using with Firefox. I think most users would prefer to Not have their essential settings like Passwords, Bookmarks and such be deleted upon Firefox uninstall on Windows. No uninstaller for Firefox on Mac OSX and Linux versions.
Most users won't But then you can always back up your profile and do a clean install. This is not a sane option to just leave it there. What now should I Format my computer to delete all my passwords?
many softwares have an option to retain settings on delete them.
Here in support we work with the Firefox we have now. To suggest changes to future versions of Firefox, you can submit suggestions on the following page (usually you would be clicking the sad face):
https://input.mozilla.org/feedback/firefox
The Firefox uninstaller USED TO have an option to remove your personal data, so you might suggest bringing that back.
With respect to passwords, if you are using Firefox's password manager on a shared computer, you should consider setting a master password to encrypt your stored passwords: Use a Primary Password to protect stored logins and passwords. While any password file can be subjected to a brute force attack, this would prevent casual users from easily logging into your sites.
Considering that many users report accidentally deleting their passwords and other Firefox data, it's hard to understand how your data is so persistent when you have intentionally deleted it. If you try deleting it again using the methods mentioned earlier, do they work? Specifically:
(0) If desired, make a backup (1) Use the Profile Manager to delete your profile, selecting the option to delete your data from the confirmation dialog (2) Go to the two Firefox folders under your AppData folder and delete their contents (3) Uninstall/reinstall Firefox
Note: Windows often stores Firefox profile data in restore points, so the "System Restore" feature could resurrect a deleted profile -- I've never tested.