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Won't open homepage on open, won't open web pages from the menu 'open new window', Can't open menu button

  • 70 replies
  • 44 have this problem
  • 8 views
  • Last reply by supmozilla

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Ok, since update to version 31.0, I have been having some problems. I have tried doing everything stated in the support page about resetting, reinstalling, safe mode, restarting pc etc. First problem, when I open Firefox no web page loads. It just says New Tab and a blank white page. If I press the home button I am taken to my homepage which is google.

Second problem, when I right click on a link and the menu pops up, if I click open in new window, a new window opens but it just says New Tab with a blank page and no URL information, just blank.

Third problem, the Open Menu button just doesn't work at all. You can click all you like, that thing is not opening.

I am really stuck as to what to do. I have only been using Firefox for about a month and t was good until these problems. If I can't resolve it, I will have to use another browser as it is really annoying.

I am using Windows 8.1 by the way and have scanned my computer thouroughly for both virus's and malware.

Ok, since update to version 31.0, I have been having some problems. I have tried doing everything stated in the support page about resetting, reinstalling, safe mode, restarting pc etc. First problem, when I open Firefox no web page loads. It just says New Tab and a blank white page. If I press the home button I am taken to my homepage which is google. Second problem, when I right click on a link and the menu pops up, if I click open in new window, a new window opens but it just says New Tab with a blank page and no URL information, just blank. Third problem, the Open Menu button just doesn't work at all. You can click all you like, that thing is not opening. I am really stuck as to what to do. I have only been using Firefox for about a month and t was good until these problems. If I can't resolve it, I will have to use another browser as it is really annoying. I am using Windows 8.1 by the way and have scanned my computer thouroughly for both virus's and malware.

All Replies (20)

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Set your Homepage on Menu>Option>General tab>Home Page. Make a clean reinstalling means by cleaning all registry, files, folder and everything else related to this browser.

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Do you have the classic menu bar (File, Edit, View...) displayed? If not, you can try displaying it temporarily by tapping the Alt key or the F10 key. This may help with some functions.

Some add-ons can interfere with the operation of the interface. One quick way to test whether extensions could be a factor is to test in Firefox's Safe Mode. That's a standard diagnostic tool to deactivate extensions, some advanced features, and some custom settings. More info: Diagnose Firefox issues using Troubleshoot Mode.

If Firefox is running: you can restart Firefox in Safe Mode using either

  • "3-bar" menu button > "?" button > Restart with Add-ons Disabled
  • (menu bar) Help menu > Restart with Add-ons Disabled

After Firefox closes, a small dialog should appear: click "Start in Safe Mode" (not Reset)

If Firefox is not running: hold down the Shift key when starting Firefox, and click "Start in Safe Mode" when the small dialog comes up.

Any difference?

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I have the same issues. I upgraded from 30 to 31.0. It starts up a little slow but once it loads something wasn't right at all. The home page wont load, and the option menu window wont open. if you click the home button it does go to the home page but any other website good luck! I did notice that the local administrator has no problems. Cant speak for Espie79, but my profile is a roaming profile with redirection. I have tried both Sourjobraato and jscher2000 suggestion didn't not work for me.

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Thanks for the assistance. I have tried all those things with no luck. So I deleted both the Mozilla Folders from c:/Program Files (x86) and also all the profile info under Users. I then deleted the instances of it from the registry. After that, I reinstalled and everything is now working.

Not sure what happened with the update but something went wrong.

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Hi zenithtwc, if you cannot load any websites, could you check this article:

Before trying what Espie79 did, you could try the Reset feature, to preserve at least some of your personal data. This article describes what that does:

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Hi zenithtwc

It is possible that your security software (firewall, anti-virus) blocks or restricts Firefox or the plugin-container process without informing you, possibly after detecting changes (update) to the Firefox program.

Remove all rules for Firefox and the plugin-container from the permissions list in the firewall and let your firewall ask again for permission to get full, unrestricted, access to internet for Firefox and the plugin-container process and the updater process.

See also:

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After the browser loads, the set homepage does not load. You have to hit the home page button and that page loads just fine. the browser can go to any other page just fine. The Firefox new menu button does not work at all. To get to menu options you have to use the ALT+F ... etc.

I have also tried doing to the browser reset too, this had no affect on the issue. the browser open to a blank page and menu window doesn't work.

If I go back to Firefox 30 everything works just fine. i.e. the hope page loads, and option menu works again.

Modified by zenithtwc

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I do not have any firewall restrictions on, nor do I have antivirus currently installed.

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Hi zenithtwc, to test whether this is a settings issue, could you do a three-minute experiment?

Create a new Firefox profile

A new profile will have your system-installed plugins (e.g., Flash) and extensions (e.g., security suite toolbars), but no themes, other extensions, or other customizations. It also should have completely fresh settings databases and a fresh cache folder.

Exit Firefox and start up in the Profile Manager using Start > search box (or Run):

firefox.exe -P

Don't delete anything here. Any time you want to switch profiles, exit Firefox and return to this dialog.

Click the Create Profile button, assign a name like Test731, and skip the option to change the folder location. Then start Firefox in the new profile you created.

Can it reach the internet?

When returning to the Profile Manager, you might be tempted to use the Delete Profile button. But... it's a bit too easy to accidentally delete your "real" profile, so I recommend resisting the temptation. If you do want to clean up later, I suggest making a backup of all your profiles first in case something were to go wrong.

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How does one revert to the Firefox 30?

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Firefox 30 Installer can be found here: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-older-version-of-firefox

NORMALLY doesn't fix it. BUT IN THIS CASE IT DOES

Modified by zenithtwc

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I did try what you asked and I have had no luck. I also have installed fresh OS and installed 31.0 with the same result. The user profile is being redirected to a remote file share that uses Samba. Also I am running Windows 8.1 Enterprise Edition x64. It doesn't appear to be a issues with Windows 7 Enterprise Edition x64. Same setup just different OS. I do not have this issues when I run Firefox as a local admin. I am going to give a the beta a try, and see if the issues are still there.

Symptoms: After the browser loads, the set homepage does not load nor does the default. You have to hit the home page buttonm, which causes the page to load just fine. The browser can go to any other page just fine too. The Firefox new menu button does not work at all. To get to menu options you have to use the ALT+F ... etc.

Modified by zenithtwc

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I reverted to Firefox 30. I still can't get my homepage to load on startup but at least I have the menu button back working. Can't believe Mozilla released a "upgrade" with these kinds of issues!!

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Hi healy1948, would you mind starting a new question about the home page problem, and include your configuration information (during the process of completing the form, the site pushes an add-on to you to gather that information). We want to make sure this symptom isn't the tip of a malware iceberg.

You can start a new question at the following link -- scroll down past the suggested articles to continue with the form:

https://support.mozilla.org/questions/new/desktop/fix-problems

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yeah that last update was a shocker. Having to delete parts of the registry shouldn't be something you need to do to have things working properly again. Will not update again for quite some time

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@Espie79: What part of the registry did you delete. I still cant get this to work right. I have uninstalling a couple of times now, and the administrator account wont even work properly either.

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We really need a solution to this. I am building a image for our campus, and I am already past due.

This is not due to malware, like I said earlier. I built a refresh install of windows, no add on etc and install Firefox 31 and still no home page at start-up and the menu button doesn't work. Ive also install all the beta versions, they all have the same issues. Their is a bug in the software.

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Hi zenithtwc, I certainly can't rule out a change between Firefox 30 and Firefox 31.

Could you explain this in more detail:

"The user profile is being redirected to a remote file share that uses Samba."

Do you mean instead of Windows pointing %APPDIR% to C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming it is pointing it to a UNC path or mapped drive? Some details here could help in searching the bugs "fixed" in Firefox 31.

Or, if the redirection is purely within Firefox's settings files, how are you doing it?


Once Firefox is running, if you launch a new window using your desktop shortcut, will the home page load in that window or same problem?

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%userprofile%\appdata\Roaming\ with group policy folder redirection Z:\NTProfile\Appdata\Roaming, and Samba is the file system. This is minuet at this point. Its happening to the administrator account without any redirection. It looks like we will be sticking with the version 30, and I will keep checking back.

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I'm with zenithtwc regarding sticking with 30 till this is fixed. I use to allow automatic updates because I trusted Firefox...not anymore. Even with 30 after back/downgrading I have lost the ability to open my homepage (just a blank) but at least everything else works like it is suppose to. I would suggest that Firefox stop the so-called upgrade 31 until it can be trusted.

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