Fix websites that won’t load, stop random crashes and restore a lost home page
Websites won’t load or update
If you encounter problems with sites that won’t load fully (or at all), or they load but won’t update to show the latest information, then try clearing Firefox’s cache. Click the menu button (three horizontal lines at the top right), then go to History and click Clear Recent History. Open the ‘Time range to clear’ dropdown menu and choose Everything. Make sure at least Cache is ticked and then click Clear Now. Try opening the affected websites again. If they still don’t work, repeat this tip but tick Cookies in addition to Cache.
Random crashes or unpredictable behaviour
Unexpected problems in Firefox are almost always caused by misbehaving extensions. The only sure-fire way to work out which one is responsible is by disabling them individually, through a process of trial and error. Click the menu button, followed by Add-ons, and then Extensions on the left. Either disable those that you suspect might be causing problems by clicking the adjacent Disable buttons, or disable them all one by one. When you find the extension that is causing the problem, leave it disabled, update it or uninstall it. To check for extension updates, click the cog icon and choose ‘Check for Updates’ from the menu.
Firefox won’t launch
When Firefox refuses to load at all, try doing it in Safe Mode. Press Windows key+R to open the Run box, type firefox.exe -safe-mode into the Open box and then press Enter. Now click the ‘Start in Safe Mode’ button. Assuming it launches, disable all extensions and then reenable them one at a time, in case one is causing the problem. If Firefox won’t even launch into Safe Mode, repeat the first part of this tip but click the Refresh Firefox button to restore Firefox to its original settings.
Home page has changed unexpectedly
A changed home page is usually the result of installing some browser extension or toolbar, so first identify what you’ve added recently and think about whether you really want to keep it. To remove unwanted extensions, click the menu button followed by Add-ons. Select the Extensions tab, find the unwanted item in the list and click its Remove button.
To reset your home page, click the menu button followed by Options, then General. Next, click one of the buttons under Home Page (such as ‘Use Current Pages’) to have Firefox launch and reopen all current open tabs, or type the relevant website address into the box alongside Home Page.
Firefox is no longeryour default browser
This is a common problem and usually caused by installing a new browser or updating an existing one, because all browsers — Firefox included — will try to hit you in an unguarded moment with the option to set themselves as your default browser. To fix this, click Firefox’s menu button followed by Options. Now select the General tab on the left and then click Make Default. If you’re using Windows 10, Firefox will launch Control Panel’s System pane, with the ‘Default apps’ tab selected. Under ‘Web browser’ click ‘Choose a default’ and then choose Firefox.
Scrolling is jerky
A few things can cause choppy scrolling in Firefox, including programs running in the background — so first close all other programs to eliminate them as culprits. If the problem persists, click the menu button, then Options, followed by Advanced and then General. Under Browsing, check that ‘Use smooth scrolling’ is ticked. Also try clearing the tick from ‘Use hardware acceleration when available’, because this feature can sometimes clash with your graphics card’s drivers. If scrolling is smoother with this option unticked, check the graphic card manufacturer’s website for updated drivers.