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Firefox is hanging (Mac OS X 10.9.5)

  • 3 replies
  • 1 has this problem
  • 11 views
  • Last reply by cor-el

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I noticed recently that when I Quit Firefox, it freezes and hangs -- I get the "Application Not Responding" message on my Mac so I Force Quit out of it and submit a Crash Report.

Now, when I start Firefox, it hangs/freezes -- same problem "Application Not Responding."

I have tried a clean uninstall. I have restarted, I have reinstalled and restarted. I have deleted profiles in the Library folder...all to no avail.

The only add-ons I have are Ad-Blocker Plus and Feedly. I tried to remove them, but can't -- when I try the "Reset Firefox" option, it hangs so I can't even get rid of them. I tried to delete the plug-ins and extensions folder, still nothing works.

Firefox still hangs when I start it up. I have tried safe mode, Resetting firefox. And it still is "Application Not Responding" on my Mac. Please help!

I noticed recently that when I Quit Firefox, it freezes and hangs -- I get the "Application Not Responding" message on my Mac so I Force Quit out of it and submit a Crash Report. Now, when I start Firefox, it hangs/freezes -- same problem "Application Not Responding." I have tried a clean uninstall. I have restarted, I have reinstalled and restarted. I have deleted profiles in the Library folder...all to no avail. The only add-ons I have are Ad-Blocker Plus and Feedly. I tried to remove them, but can't -- when I try the "Reset Firefox" option, it hangs so I can't even get rid of them. I tried to delete the plug-ins and extensions folder, still nothing works. Firefox still hangs when I start it up. I have tried safe mode, Resetting firefox. And it still is "Application Not Responding" on my Mac. Please help!

Modified by dietzsche87

All Replies (3)

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Are you using "Clear history when Firefox closes" to clear personal data like the cookies?

Note that clearing "Site Preferences" clears all exceptions for cookies, images, pop-up windows, software installation, passwords, and other website specific data.

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No, I'm not. This problem occurs regardless of clearing history completely or not.

Oddly enough, when I left Firefox to let it "think" for 5 minutes, it opened and is browsing normally. But when I Quit out of it (Command-Q), it now also takes another 5 minutes to completely Quit the program. Do you know what might be causing this?

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You can try to create a new profile as a test to check if your current profile is causing the problem in case you previously used a reset.

See "Creating a profile":

If the new profile works then you can transfer files from a previously used profile to the new profile, but be cautious not to copy corrupted files to avoid carrying over problems.


You can check for issues caused by plugins and set all plugins to "Ask to Activate" on the "Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Plugins" page (plugins are not affected by Firefox Safe Mode)