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i am no longer able to drag and drop my downloaded files

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in yahoo. i, on a daily basis receive about 10 pdf documents and several .dxf files. also autocad .dwg files and jpg files. pretty much any file i have to work with comes to me in my email.

i used to be able to select the file, then download it. after i was done downloading it i could open my download library, and drag and drop the file onto my desktop or other open folder on my pc. suddenly. i cannot. i have changed browsers for the time being and will not be able to continue with firefox until this is solved.

i am running firefox 20.0.1 and windows vista sp1

in yahoo. i, on a daily basis receive about 10 pdf documents and several .dxf files. also autocad .dwg files and jpg files. pretty much any file i have to work with comes to me in my email. i used to be able to select the file, then download it. after i was done downloading it i could open my download library, and drag and drop the file onto my desktop or other open folder on my pc. suddenly. i cannot. i have changed browsers for the time being and will not be able to continue with firefox until this is solved. i am running firefox 20.0.1 and windows vista sp1

All Replies (11)

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Check you Plugins are updated!


Try Firefox Safe Mode to see if the problem goes away. Safe Mode is a troubleshooting mode, which disables most add-ons.

(If you're not using it, switch to the Default theme.)

  • You can open Firefox 4.0+ in Safe Mode by holding the Shift key when you open the Firefox desktop or Start menu shortcut.
  • Or open the Help menu and click on the Restart with Add-ons Disabled... menu item while Firefox is running.

Once you get the pop-up, just select "'Start in Safe Mode"

If the issue is not present in Firefox Safe Mode, your problem is probably caused by an extension, and you need to figure out which one. Please follow the Troubleshoot extensions, themes and hardware acceleration issues to solve common Firefox problems article for that.

To exit the Firefox Safe Mode, just close Firefox and wait a few seconds before opening Firefox for normal use again.

When you figure out what's causing your issues, please let us know. It might help other users who have the same problem.

Thank you.

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firefox safe mode.. same problem


all plugins and extensions disabled and in normal mode. same problem.


firefox reset. same problem.


btw, i am having the same issue in chrome. whereas chrome will not download .dxf or .pdf files says that windows extension manager has detected a virus.


btw. opera works fine as fine can be.

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just noticed. if i just download the pdf file. it will not download. if i open the pdf file with reader, then i can go to the download arrow, and when i click on the file i viewed, it highlights and i can drag it. the file below that (which was the one that i had just downloaded but not opened (same file actually just the download attempt)) will not drag. this will not work with .dxf files though

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well, atleast you are trying..... thanks. but the esc key isnt my issue. i use autocad, and the esc key so often that its worn off my keyboard. plus, i can drag and drop anyplace i want within the windows environment.


and again this happens in chrome too but not opera.

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Start your windows in safemode and check it out..

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This should be working.

  • bug 844545 - Download Shortcut isn't placed on desktop when performing drag and drop

Modified by cor-el

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im glad that somebody is atleast trying. perhaps i need to be more clear.

i will step by step describe the issue in detail.

1) i open an email that contains an attachment .dxf or .pdf 2) i click on the attachment shown in the email and aprompt comes up asking if i want to open or save the attachment. 3) i select save. (by default it saves to a downloads folder. but i have also chosen to use other folders (when i did that it wouldnt save them) 4) i highlight the downloads arrow on the right top side of my browser and click it 5) it pulls down a list of the files that i USED to be able to click and drag onto my destop, or anyplace i chose 6) used to be when i clicked and held the left mouse button down on top of a file of my choosing it would highlight and as i began to drag, a ghost image would appear of the file i was dragging. showing a (/) symbol next to it showing i couldnt drop the file within the browser and a + simbol showing that i could drop the file when the file was hovering over a place where i could drop the file such as my desktop or other folder. now, when i click and hold on the file.... I DONT get anything. when i drag. nothing follows. while i am "dragging" in the area that is my browser, i get the pointy finger icon. as soon as i enter an area where i could have dropped the file as before, i get my standard cursor arrow.

its really as if the drag and drop feature just dosent work IN FIREFOX. i can drag and drop files all day long everyplace else.

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Do a clean reinstall and delete the Firefox program folder before reinstalling a fresh copy of Firefox.

Download a fresh Firefox copy and save the file to the desktop.

Uninstall your current Firefox version, if possible, to cleanup the Windows registry and settings in security software.

  • Do NOT remove personal data when you uninstall your current Firefox version, because all profile folders will be removed and you will also lose your personal data like bookmarks and passwords from profiles of other Firefox versions.

Remove the Firefox program folder before installing that newly downloaded copy of the Firefox installer.

Your bookmarks and other profile data are stored in the Firefox profile folder and won't be affected by an uninstall and (re)install, but make sure that "remove personal data" is NOT selected when you uninstall Firefox.

If you keep having problems then also create a new profile.


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i deleted as suggested. re installed. still does it.

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also did that a second time and installed firefox 14. same problem.