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Refreshed Firefox to fix problems like "Back" button not working & "Show all bookmarks" not opening. Refresh failed to fix problem & now all bookmarks are lost

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  • Last reply by Shadolin

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So I've been having a series of Firefox issues crop up over the last few weeks. Including everything from the "back" arrow not working, to the "Show All Bookmarks" not working, to new bookmarks being uneditable. And the system was significantly slowing.

After some research I decided to Refresh Firefox, which has just caused more problems. Now, not only were none of the previous issues fixed, but all of my bookmarks and passwords have been removed too! (Breathing... Trying not to panic) I'd really REALLY like these back.

There is a new folder labeled "Old Firefox Data" on my desktop, but I have no idea how to use it to restore my bookmarks. Especially since the "Show all Bookmarks" option is still not working.

Please Help! and Thank You in Advance!

So I've been having a series of Firefox issues crop up over the last few weeks. Including everything from the "back" arrow not working, to the "Show All Bookmarks" not working, to new bookmarks being uneditable. And the system was significantly slowing. After some research I decided to Refresh Firefox, which has just caused more problems. Now, not only were none of the previous issues fixed, but all of my bookmarks and passwords have been removed too! (Breathing... Trying not to panic) I'd really REALLY like these back. There is a new folder labeled "Old Firefox Data" on my desktop, but I have no idea how to use it to restore my bookmarks. Especially since the "Show all Bookmarks" option is still not working. Please Help! and Thank You in Advance!

All Replies (7)

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Is the bookmarkbackups in the currently used profile empty or were the compressed .jsonlz4 backups preserved?

If there are backups in this folder then try to delete all places.sqlite files in the main profile folder.


If there aren't any backups in the bookmarkbackups folder then try to restore the bookmarks from a recent backup in the bookmarkbackups folder in the "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop.

  • bookmarks-YYYY-MM-DD_<item count>_<hash>.json

In case of problems with restoring a backup then try to restore and older backup and possibly check for problems with the places.sqlite file like suggested above.

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Alright... already lost.

If by "used profile" you mean the "Old Firefox Data" folder then the bookmarkbackups folder is there and I've already delete all places.sqlite files (there was only one). However there is a "prefs" something that pops up too when I search "places.sqlite"; should I delete this too?

As for the rest of it... I don't know how to restore any of the backups. Or return us of the "Show All Bookmarks" feature. Or get the back button/arrow working again.  :(

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Hey cor-el, thank you for the quick response. I'm afraid I'm alright... already lost.

If by "used profile" you mean the "Old Firefox Data" folder then the bookmarkbackups folder is there and I've already delete all places.sqlite files (there was only one). However there is a "prefs" something that pops up too when I search "places.sqlite"; should I delete this too?

As for the rest of it... I don't know how to restore any of the backups. Or return us of the "Show All Bookmarks" feature. Or get the back button/arrow working again.  :(

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Currently used if the newly created profile that Firefox is using to store your personal data. When you reset/refresh Firefox then a new profile gets created and the profile you previously used is moved to the "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop.

You can use this button to go to the currently used Firefox profile folder:

  • Help > Troubleshooting Information > Profile Directory: Show Folder (Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder)
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Ok.. deleted all "places.sqlite" files... and restarted (computer and FireFox). Still missing all bookmarks. Please help!

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Nevermind...

I just replaced the bookmarkbackups file with one two days older and tried again. IT WORKED!


Thank you!

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Ok... So the bookmarks are back, but how do I fix everything else?

Right now (1) FireFox opens to a blank page, (2) the Back Button does not work, (3) the "Show All Bookmarks" does not work, and (4) although I can add bookmarks, I can not name or rename them.