How to reset Mozilla Firefox

The modern Firefox logo, a stylized fox encircling a solid-blue globe.

(Paradigm credit: Mozilla Public License Version two.0)

If your Mozilla Firefox web browser suddenly has an unwanted toolbar, its home page has changed without your permission or your search results appear in a search engine you never chose, then it may be time to achieve for the browser-reset button.

Many legitimate pieces of software, especially freeware, slap on third-party, browser-hijacking extensions, also known as add-ons, when y'all install them. The easiest way to get rid of these pesky varmints is a full browser reset.

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At that place are two means to exercise this. You lot can "refresh" Firefox in a fashion that removes any add-ons and themes you might have installed. This also resets your preferences, including the home page and the search engine, to the defaults.

Refreshing Firefox is not supposed to delete bookmarks or saved passwords, only there are no guarantees. Information technology might exist all-time to back up your Firefox bookmarks first, and to likewise take a screenshot of the add-ons you have installed so that you tin reinstall those y'all want to keep.

The other style is to restart Firefox in "Prophylactic Mode," which will temporarily disable, but not delete, add-ons and themes. This will not affect your preferences, so if a potentially unwanted program has hijacked your home page and search engine, they'll stay that way, simply it's worth trying.

The steps below are identical for the Windows, Mac and Linux versions of Firefox.

one. Click the icon that looks like three stacked lines -- aka the "hamburger" -- at the top correct of the browser window.

The hamburger/stacks menu icon highlighted in the Firefox web browser. — (Image credit: Hereafter)

The Help button highlighted in the Firefox browser drop-down menu. — (Paradigm credit: Futurity)

The Troubleshooting option highlighted in a drop-down menu. — (Image credit: Hereafter)

You'll exist presented with two options. Yous can fully refresh, i.e. reset, Firefox, but your add-ons, themes, preferences and customizations will exist deleted. Your bookmarks. open tabs and saved passwords should remain. If that's what you lot want to do, so go to Step 4 below.

Or yous tin can restart Firefox in Rubber Mode with add-ons temporarily disabled to meet if that takes care of the problem. Skip to Footstep 5 beneath.

Choices to reset Firefox or restart Firefox in Safe Mode highlighted in a dialogue box. — (Image credit: Future)

four. Click Refresh Firefox to articulate out add together-ons, and so click Refresh Firefox once again in the resulting dialogue box.

A button to 'refresh Firefox' in a browser pop-up dialogue box. — (Image credit: Future)

5. Click Restart with Add together-Ons Disabled, and then click Restart in the resulting dialogue box.

A restart button highlighted in a browser pop-up window. — (Paradigm credit: Hereafter)

If restarting in Safe Mode restores Firefox to look equally it should, and so you'll need to remove a troublesome addition. Click the menu icon again and roll downward to Add together-Ons. Find what seems to be the troublesome addition and delete it.

Alternately, you can only type or cutting-and-paste "about:addons" into the address bar in Firefox and hit the Enter or Return cardinal on your keyboard.

If Condom Mode doesn't restore Firefox to the way y'all want it, then earlier going for a total reset, you might want to alter your preferences manually.

Click the menu icon and scroll down to Options, or blazon "about:preferences" in the address bar and hitting Enter/Return. Then click the Habitation icon in the left-hand navigation bar and edit "Homepage and news windows" and "New tabs".

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Paul Wagenseil is a senior editor at Tom's Guide focused on security and privacy. He has also been a dishwasher, fry cook, long-booty driver, lawmaking monkey and video editor. He's been rooting around in the information-security space for more than 15 years at FoxNews.com, SecurityNewsDaily, TechNewsDaily and Tom's Guide, has presented talks at the ShmooCon, DerbyCon and BSides Las Vegas hacker conferences, shown up in random TV news spots and fifty-fifty moderated a panel word at the CEDIA habitation-technology conference. You can follow his rants on Twitter at @snd_wagenseil.

Source: https://www.tomsguide.com/us/reset-firefox-howto,news-18817.html

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How to reset Mozilla Firefox