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Unable to restore a password from Firefox browser

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Hi everyone,

I do need help on the following issue: I'm logged in my mailbox with Firefox browser. The password is saved and available in the browser settings. BUT. If I try to enter it and log in from another device, the mail service says the password is wrong. I can't understand how it is possible. The browser should use one of the saved passwords for the authorization, right? Why doesn't it work outside this very browser?

MAYBE one day I changed the password in the mail service, logged in, BUT didn't refresh it in the browser settings? May the browser use some cookies, service files or something like that for authorization despite unactual password saved? If yes, then how is it possible to extract the true password out of those files?

I turned to the mail service support, but they can't help me, because I didn't enter my real name, phone number or something during registration that could help to check my identity. So the only opportunity to save my mail is to use the browser files somehow. I'm going to reinstall Windows and I will loose access to my mail forever in this case that would be very very bad.. ((( Please, help!

Hi everyone, I do need help on the following issue: I'm logged in my mailbox with Firefox browser. The password is saved and available in the browser settings. BUT. If I try to enter it and log in from another device, the mail service says the password is wrong. I can't understand how it is possible. The browser should use one of the saved passwords for the authorization, right? Why doesn't it work outside this very browser? MAYBE one day I changed the password in the mail service, logged in, BUT didn't refresh it in the browser settings? May the browser use some cookies, service files or something like that for authorization despite unactual password saved? If yes, then how is it possible to extract the true password out of those files? I turned to the mail service support, but they can't help me, because I didn't enter my real name, phone number or something during registration that could help to check my identity. So the only opportunity to save my mail is to use the browser files somehow. I'm going to reinstall Windows and I will loose access to my mail forever in this case that would be very very bad.. ((( Please, help!

All Replies (10)

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did you say that the other browsers are doing the same thing, like MS Edge?

so have you tried the "forgot my password" reset option of the mail service?

sometimes, when a pw or log in is modified, the service will send an email or text with a code.

then the code has be entered into some form on the mail service; in order to confirm its you.

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I tried all restore options from the

·´¯`·...¸>-)))º> ~dbben said

did you say that the other browsers are doing the same thing, like MS Edge? so have you tried the "forgot my password" reset option of the mail service? sometimes, when a pw or log in is modified, the service will send an email or text with a code. then the code has be entered into some form on the mail service; in order to confirm its you.

No, I don't have Edge, the problem is with Firefox.

I tried all password retore options in the mail service and it didn't help, including communication with support specialist.

I'm always sure that the problem is because I haven't refreshed the password in the browser when it was changed. I checked this version with another mail: I logged in, then manually changed the saved password in the browser to the wrong one. And I got the same situation: an incorrect password saved in the browser, but open access to the mailbox until I log out. I believe there's the same thing with the first mail, which I'm asking about.

So, the question is: how to eject the password from Firefox session files or cache, or where it is stored? I understand that it may create a safety issue for Firefox browser if such information disclosed, but maybe it is possible to send profile files to Firefox support specialists for them to do it without disclosing the method?

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the reason i mentioned other browsers is the Edge aggregates the logins and pw's from FF. So essentially you have 2 copies of a pw library.

as for the caches, enter&go to this url:

about:cache

If you do a FF refresh, the process will empty out the cache's and also delete the cookies. So you may want to execute "manage cookies" and look for the specific cookies of that website. Then delete them. To the above and the below, click on the 3line button.

Further, you can review your password index and see if there is a double entry for the site and can delete one of them.

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·´¯`·...¸>-)))º> ~dbben said

the reason i mentioned other browsers is the Edge aggregates the logins and pw's from FF. So essentially you have 2 copies of a pw library. as for the caches, enter&go to this url: about:cache If you do a FF refresh, the process will empty out the cache's and also delete the cookies. So you may want to execute "manage cookies" and look for the specific cookies of that website. Then delete them. To the above and the below, click on the 3line button. Further, you can review your password index and see if there is a double entry for the site and can delete one of them.

Well, I found some cookies for that website, but the content seems to be encrypted - there's a long sensless entry under the title "security-info:". It's impossible to find the password in this :-/

As for the password index (you mean that under "Settings > Logins and passwords", right?) then there's just one password for the mail and it is an old one which is invalid. The thing is the password that I'm looking for is absent in the password list and is contained somewhere in the profile files (cache or cookies maybe). Namely in the session files. I believe that if I delete "Active sessions" then I will be logged out forever. So, the solution is somewhere in session files I believe.

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yes, there is a lot of encryption everywhere.

and unfortunately, it is very tricky to ascertain password information because nobody knows if you are a russian agent or international cat burglar or a nigerian princess that is trying to gain access.

so opening a cookie up to see what it contains is impossible for the lay person.

btw: there could be a possibility that the other "profile" on your system may have some info.

click on Windows Start > run (or search) > FireFox.exe -p

the above is a tiny profile manager.

temporarily switch to another profile and see if perhaps it had store information for you.

to this end, "maybe" there is a copy of your old profile saved on your disk that was pushed aside when FF was upgraded.

so like switching profiles with the above manager, there may be a chance to restore an older profile. i dont readily know how to do this. but there is a knowledge base on how to do this via googling. also, if you take the plunge to restore an old profile, be sure to copy this current one to a safe place, so you can restore it.

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·´¯`·...¸>-)))º> ~dbben said

yes, there is a lot of encryption everywhere. and unfortunately, it is very tricky to ascertain password information because nobody knows if you are a russian agent or international cat burglar or a nigerian princess that is trying to gain access. so opening a cookie up to see what it contains is impossible for the lay person. btw: there could be a possibility that the other "profile" on your system may have some info. click on Windows Start > run (or search) > FireFox.exe -p the above is a tiny profile manager. temporarily switch to another profile and see if perhaps it had store information for you. to this end, "maybe" there is a copy of your old profile saved on your disk that was pushed aside when FF was upgraded. so like switching profiles with the above manager, there may be a chance to restore an older profile. i dont readily know how to do this. but there is a knowledge base on how to do this via googling. also, if you take the plunge to restore an old profile, be sure to copy this current one to a safe place, so you can restore it.

It doesn't work unfortunately. So it seems the only way is to copy profile, cache, cookies and everything to another browser version after Windows reinstallation.

Thank you for your time anyway!

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sure. anytime!

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urgh. reinstall windows? urghx100!

i'm wondering if the old info you are looking for had been utilized while on your current computer or a previous one?

if you have an old computer that use to log into the mail service, you could hook up that old hard drive to the new computer and pull info from it.

another possibility is that if you had used this current computer to access that old account, then maybe there is an old system restore point that you can restore.

restoring the o.s. to a time back in history may also restore the old FF and its old profile info. in which case, you could pluck that data out before reinstalling the o.s.

once you do a re-install, you will be losing a great deal. so at this time, please preserve all your personal data before you wipe the disk for the new install.

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Actually I have one computer, on which I'm going to reinstall Windows, but it seems that I have to save the FF profil and cache info first.

Unfortunately there's no sense in trying to restore old profiles, because this password wasn't saved anywhere at all. The old one was saved in FF and it is available. But the new one was once entered about 3 years ago, logged in and then forgotten :-/ . So the browser has it only in session files or somewhere like this...

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i see.

as a final suggestion, use a windows password manager. i have been using an old fashion one called KeePass for a bunch of years. And i do save pw's, login's, account info, bank info, etc.., in it "religiously". And then save the exports, as back ups, every now and then, and in different locations

many years ago, i learned the hard way "THE HARD WAY" never to put all the eggs in one basket, per se.

ok. i wish we could have helped you. but we are all at a disadvantage as well, with this kind of predicament.  :-)