Firefox is one of the most significant web browsers and is popular among multiple users worldwide. However, it’s a perfect alternative for several browsers like Chrome, Safari, and Microsoft Edge. The Firefox browser keeps on upgrading to ensure a great experience for the users. However, you may experience Firefox not responding or hanging at multiple instances when using the browser. Besides, there are multitudinous reasons that can cause the Firefox browser to take place. Follow this full post to learn about the possible reasons and troubleshoot steps to fix Firefox not working issue.

What Takes Place When Your Firefox Does Not Respond?

The Mozilla Firefox is not responding; the browser freezes and stops reacting over multiple commands. In this situation, you can’t move your mouse on the screen. In simple words, your Firefox browser stops responding. Moreover, you will get a small window in the middle of the screen with a short message Firefox not responding or Firefox already running but not responding error. Such error texts become more irritating as carrying on happening once it seems. So, go through troubleshooting methods to rectify Firefox’s not responding error. If Mozilla Firefox is not working, responding, or hanging, this write-up will assist them in troubleshooting easily.

Multiple Reasons Behind Firefox Isn’t Responding.

Various causes behind Firefox’s not responding are listed below to rectify this problem easily.

• Because of some malicious add-on recently attached to Firefox
• Corrupted, lost, or missed database files
• Some procedures are hanging without any prior notification
• Web browser not responding because of operating system file error
• Disturbance from other existing browser settings
• Repetitive visit to a malicious website
• The web page script might have become non-responsive in the Firefox browser.

Troubleshooting Steps To Fix Firefox Hangs Or Is Not Responding Issue

A few simple troubleshooting steps are given below to fix Firefox hangs or is not responding.

Solution 1: Turn Off Forcefully the Browser Window

• Tap the Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys together that open the Task Manager Window.
• Get the Firefox browser and choose it under the processes tab
• Tap on the End Task button available a the end of the window screen to exit from the browser application.
• Restart and establish the browser to examine if the error has been rectified or not.

Solution 2: Turn The Hardware Acceleration Off

Hardware acceleration enables Firefox to utilize your system’s graphics processor to show heavy graphic content. It remains turned on by default. However, turning off the Hardware acceleration can help in resolving the freezing problem in Firefox. Follow the below-given steps:

• Go to the menu button and select the Options tab.
• Now go down to the Performance section located underneath the General tab. Uncheck the box Use recommended performance settings, and it will show the hardware acceleration option.
• Here, you need to uncheck the box for Use hardware acceleration when available.
• Now go to the menu and click on the Exit option to quit.
• In the end, start Firefox to check the error status.

Solution 3: Examine for Browser Updates

Sometimes, potential threats and issues to Firefox come from outdated browsers. To examine for browser updates, tap on the Firefox menu icon. Next, you observe a Help option under which you have to choose the About Firefox option. So, a window accesses that displays whether the browser is updated or not.

Solution 4: Uninstall or Delete the Add-on

Another method to troubleshoot Mozilla Firefox is to delete the recently established add-on to your browser. For uninstalling, tap on Menu and then press on Options. Choose extensions and themes on the left side. Now, observe the extension you want to delete.

Solution 5: Remove Caches, Cookies, and Site Data

Mozilla Firefox stores cache, cookies, and site data that allows the browser to load the page quickly and provides a personalized experience for users. The step that takes place once you visit the website that leads to a large amount of data. Slowly, it brings issues, and you must delete caches, cookies, and site data.

Solution 6: Scan Malware and Virus

Viruses and potential threats have become one of the primary reasons for Firefox not responding issue. This tool might affect and change important files restricting them from working appropriately. Therefore, examine viruses or malware. Enter Virus and Threat Protection at Taskbar in the search box. Establish Programs under Virus and Threat Protection, then tap on Scan options. Choose the Full Scan option and let the procedure complete.

Solution 7: Check If Updating Your Graphics Drivers Helps

If none of the above solutions has helped in the error resolution, update your graphic drivers. Updating drivers can fix the bugs and eliminate the compatibility issues to resolve the Firefox not working issue. Additionally, updating your drivers on a regular basis also ensures the optimal performance of your machine. You can get it done in two ways:

• Updating Drivers Manually

The first procedure to update the driver is more demanding as it requires you to be tech-savvy to find the right driver online, download it and install it correctly on your device. You may get several drivers for your device as they keep updating regularly. To install, you need to go to their official website and download them manually. Once downloaded, save the executable file to a suitable location and then open it for installation. Follow the instructions given on the screen to finish the task.

• Updating Your Graphics Drivers Automatically

The second procedure is automatic, which is also a recommended procedure for installing the drivers. In this method, you don’t need to put more effort. Besides, even the newbies can also get it done with simple steps. You can utilize Connect Helpline to update your drivers automatically. Besides, you don’t even need to worry about the right driver as Connect Helpline recognizes your system and finds the right driver for you online. It prevents users from downloading and installing the wrong drivers. Furthermore, the installation process completes in a fail-safe manner in this method.

Solution 8: Create A New Places Database For Error Resolution

If Firefox is freezing now and then, it is possible that the “Places” database is corrupted. To fix this, you need to create a new “Places” database by following the below-described steps:

• Click on the menu buttons you may recognize with the three lines and then select Help.

• Next, you need to click on the Troubleshoot Information, and the same tab will open on your screen.

• Thereafter, you need to go to the Application Basics section.
• Here, try to locate the Profile Folder, and once found, click Open Folder and it will open the profile folder.

• Alternatively, you may open the profile folder by typing %APPDATA%MozillaFirefoxProfiles in the Run dialogue box.
• Moving ahead, click on the menu button and select Exit and wait for Firefox to quit completely.

• Now that the profile folder is already opened go down and find the file places.sqlite.
• Right-click on this file and select Rename.
• Add .Old at the end of the file name so that it would look as places.sqlite.old.
• Also, perform the same procedure to rename the places.sqlite-journal file if it exists.
• places.sqlite-journal >> places.sqlite-journal.old.

This procedure will remove your browsing history and daily bookmarks. Restart the Firefox and check if the freezing problem is resolved. If not, move to the next solution.

Solution 9: Delete Duplicate Session Restore Files 

Session Restore is a time-saving feature in Firefox that saves open windows, tabs, and other information. However, the multiple copies of the Session restore piling up in your Firefox can cause problems when opening it. It can be a possible reason behind the Firefox freezing issue. Fix the error by deleting duplicate sessions by using the below-stated steps:

• In the beginning, you need to click on the Menu button depicted by three lines.
• After that, select Help to proceed to the next step.

• Here, you have to click on the Troubleshooting Information option.

• When the selected option opens, go to the Application Basics section.
• Locate the Profile Folder and next to it, click Open Folder. It will open the profile folder.

• Alternatively, you may type %APPDATA%MozillaFirefoxProfiles in the Run box to open the profile folder.
• Again, go to the Menu button located in the upper right corner of Firefox and select Exit. Patiently wait until the Firefox quits completely.

• Thereafter, go to the profile folder we have just opened. Here, you need to locate and delete the sessionstore.js file and also the duplicate copies, such as (sessionstore-1.js), (sessionstore-2.js).

After the error-free execution of the above-listed steps, you may try to restart Firefox and check if the error is resolved or not.

Fix 10: Troubleshoot The Corrupted System Files

If none of the above-given solutions brings luck to the error resolution, you need to check and fix the corrupted system files. A missing, damaged, or corrupted Windows software file can be one of the most apparent reasons behind the Firefox not working issue. Repairing the damaged Windows system files can help you in the error resolution.

To repair, you may run automated tools from the Internet. They will run a deep scan of your Windows system to identify the prevalent issues and troubleshoot them automatically. Once resolved, you can get rid of the Firefox not working or freezing issues. Restart your Firefox, and it should run with its utmost efficiency.

In Conclusion!

The above troubleshooting steps will assist you in fixing Firefox hangs or not responding to the issue instantly. You can implement them to resolve this problem in Mozilla Firefox. If you can’t rectify this problem, you must dial the Mozilla helpline number to troubleshoot the issue.

Mozilla Firefox is an open-source web browser that is so widely used for browsing and searching for information. This is a known application world over and has been developed by the Mozilla Foundation and the Mozilla Corporation. Mozilla Firefox is available for Windows 7 and its later versions like Windows 8, 10, and also for macOS, Linux, etc. In December 2021, Mozilla Firefox ranked fourth globally with an 8.35 percent share in usage.

Even though it is a wonderful web browser that has served us for years, it is not free of discrepancies and errors. Like it happens with any other software, it is also prone to issues once in a while. Mozilla Firefox users report certain issues with Firefox usage. The problem caused an alarm in the global community as this issue was being reported repeatedly. The issue arises when you start loading pages on Mozilla Firefox. Have you also encountered this issue? If yes, take a look at the solutions that we discuss in this blog further.

How to fix Mozilla Firefox pages not loading error?

Given below are some potential solutions that can quickly fix the Mozilla Firefox pages not loading error. You may try any of these solutions to get rid of this vexing problem of Firefox not loading pages.

1.) Ensure you have a proper internet connection

This particular error of Mozilla Firefox, not loading could occur because of a faulty or a poor internet connection. If the connection is not of the speed that loading pages require, then this might be causing the problem. Verify that your internet connection is working absolutely fine. You can also switch from a wired connection to a wireless one if the problem persists and refuses to be solved.

2.) Refresh Firefox

In place of searching for hours and locating the issue, restarting or refreshing Firefox can save you a lot of time and energy. It can be a game-changer as doing that can sometimes resolve the issue on its own.

You should follow the steps below to refresh Firefox:

a.) Go to the top-right corner, click on the three horizontal lines there and then navigate to Help.
b.) On the Help menu, pick “More troubleshooting information.”
c.) After that, click on the Refresh Firefox button
d.) In the pop-up window that appears, just hit Refresh Firefox

On refreshing Firefox, all your extensions will be removed, and all the customization settings will be reverted. Should you be not comfortable doing this, you can just close the browser once and reopen it again.

3.) Clear Firefox Cache & Cookies

Just like other browsers, Mozilla Firefox also stores a lot of data in the form of browser cookies and cache. These caches and cookies are later used to speed up the website loading by keeping some information about the site that is used later. However, there are times when this accumulation of data or cache obstructs the browsing experience of the user. Therefore, it is extremely imperative that you get rid of these cookies and cache. Follow the below-given steps to clear the browser cache and cookies.

a.) First of all, open up Firefox
b.) On the top-right corner of the browser, you will find three horizontal lines. Click on those lines.
c.) Go to History and then to Clear Recent History
d.) Check the boxes for Cookies, Caches, and Browsing & downloaded history.
e.) Under the heading “Time range to clear,” choose Everything from the drop-down menu list.
f.) Finally, click on OK

4.) Choose Standard Tracking Protection

Enhanced Tracking Protection of Firefox has three levels of security, namely Standard, Strict, and Custom. Strict is the most restrictive of all three. It tends to block nearly every on-page element. While it is beneficial from a security point of view, it can harm the loading of pages of the website. If your Firefox has enabled strict mode, then it is better to the standard mode. The steps below should be able to help you do that:

a.) Open the browser and go to about:preferences#privacy page.
b.) After that, choose Standard mode and pick the “Reload All” tabs button
c.) After the tabs reload, try loading your desired website and check if the Firefox not loading websites error has been resolved or not.

5.) Disable Extensions

Add-ons and extensions, especially those related to JavaScript’s can hinder the ability of Firefox to load webpages easily. If you start the browser in the safe mode, all the extensions will be disabled, and then you can perform the subsequent operations accordingly. Follow the succeeding steps to disable extensions:

a.) Open the Mozilla Firefox browser
b.) At the browser’s top-right corner, click on the three horizontal lines available
c.) Choose Help and then access the Troubleshoot Mode option
d.) Click on Restart in the dialog box

6.) Disable DNS Prefetching

A DNS Prefetch attempts to resolve domain names before the browser requests the resources. As a consequence, the browser loads the site a few seconds before. However, this process of prefetching can sometimes cause the loading of incorrect configuration leading to the browser not loading the webpages. Thus, it is best that this particular feature is disabled so that there is no issue with the loading of webpages in the browser. The steps mentioned below can help you do that:

a.) Launch the browser and access the about:config page in the address bar of the browser
b.) Give permission in the form of the “Accept the Risk and Continue” button
c.) Type in network.dns.disablePrefetch in the search bar and press the Enter button
d.) On the extreme right, click on the Toggle button and change its value from False to True
e.) After that, reload the sites and check if the issue has been resolved

7.) Try reinstalling Firefox

Reinstalling is a common recourse for almost all sorts of issues. Uninstalling and reinstalling the browser is a sort of quick fix for a range of problems. Here too, if the aforementioned methods do not work, then try uninstalling and then reinstalling the Mozilla Firefox browser. Since everything would start afresh, it could also resolve the issue you are facing. Here’s how you can do that:

a.) Access the Start menu and then look for “Apps & Features.”
b.) Now, go to Mozilla Firefox, choose it, and then hit the “Uninstall” command.
c.) After you have completed the uninstallation, open the File Explorer and go to C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox
d.) Finally, delete all the contents of that folder

Conclusion:

In this write-up, we have attempted to provide you with the troubleshooting methods that can resolve the “Firefox unable to load pages” error. However, these steps might not prove to be the perfect solution every single time. For such situations, you might have to seek professional support.

We are a bunch of professionals who deal with such issues. Our team is highly proficient and well-equipped to resolve all kinds of queries. If you are encountering any such troubling issues, you should contact us immediately. We guarantee seamless & reliable support for all your issues. You are welcome to contact us through our website–>[connecthelpline] or send us an email at [info@connecthelpline.com]. We look forward to serving you better.