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Transferring profile to a new computer

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  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by cor-el

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I need to transfer my profile to a new computer (Win 10/11). Unfortunately, the guidance provided - find %APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles and copy it to a flashdrive - is inadequate.

This location has multiple files. Perhaps for a Firefox designer or programmer, that's not an issue. I'm neither. I need a precise list - with exact names - of the file or files that I need to copy.

Does a "profile" consist of one file or several files? Whichever the answer, what is/are the specific names of those files?

I need to transfer my profile to a new computer (Win 10/11). Unfortunately, the guidance provided - find %APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles and copy it to a flashdrive - is inadequate. This location has multiple files. Perhaps for a Firefox designer or programmer, that's not an issue. I'm neither. I need a precise list - with exact names - of the file or files that I need to copy. Does a "profile" consist of one file or several files? Whichever the answer, what is/are the specific names of those files?

All Replies (1)

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You can copy certain files with Firefox closed from a profile folder to the profile folder on a new device to transfer important personal data. Note that best is to avoid restoring a full profile folder and only restore important files that are safe to restore/transfer.


  • bookmarks and history: places.sqlite
  • favicons: favicons.sqlite
  • bookmark backups: compressed .jsonlz4 JSON backups in the bookmarkbackups folder
  • cookies.sqlite for the Cookies
  • formhistory.sqlite for saved autocomplete Form Data
  • logins.json (encrypted logins) and key4.db (encryption key and primary password) for logins saved in the Password Manager
  • cert9.db for certificates stored in the Certificate Manager
  • persdict.dat for words added to the spell checker dictionary
  • permissions.sqlite for Permissions and possibly content-prefs.sqlite for other website specific data (Site Preferences)
  • sessionstore.jsonlz4 for open tabs and pinned tabs (see also the sessionstore-backups folder)