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Firefox does not update automatically

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Everything I've read states that Firefox automatically updates, however, it doesn't appear to be doing so on my HP Notebook using Windows 11. If I manually check then updates are downloaded but not installed, and I have never in all my years of using Firefox received any kind of notification that there are updates ready to be installed. Is this a firewall issue? Thanks

Everything I've read states that Firefox automatically updates, however, it doesn't appear to be doing so on my HP Notebook using Windows 11. If I manually check then updates are downloaded but not installed, and I have never in all my years of using Firefox received any kind of notification that there are updates ready to be installed. Is this a firewall issue? Thanks

All Replies (9)

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Can you confirm that you have Firefox's settings set to automatically update? Update Firefox to the latest release

If they are, keep in mind that Firefox will update automatically in the background, and there aren't really any messages when you update. It updates when you restart it, and just loads the latest version.

Just FYI, the latest version of 61.0.2, which just came out this morning

Modified by user633449

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Thanks for the quick reply Tyler. I'm confused now because I thought it was set to automatically update by default, per the link. If there are any settings changes I need to make I don't know what they are or where to find them. I usually have a pretty good idea of when there's an update because Firefox starts acting up - freezing, not responding, etc. So when I go to manually check there is almost always an update available but it doesn't begin installing until I actually click on it. Is there a reason why no message is displayed letting me know it's time to restart? Every other browser does all these things but I like to support Mozilla because I believe in their mission statement.

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Firefox should not be acting up when it needs to update. That leads me to believe you have some other issues with Firefox.

If you go into settings, and search for "Update" what setting do you have set?

You should also consider refreshing Firefox. Refresh Firefox - reset add-ons and settings

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Tyler, it's set to automatically update (the first radial button) then two boxes are checked below it, one that says: Use a background service to install updates and one that says: Automatically update search engines.

I thought about refreshing but had just reinstalled Firefox about a month ago. How often should I refresh?

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Re-installing Firefox doesn't actually reset any of Firefox's settings. If there is something wrong, a refresh should correct it.

I'd suggest doing so

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Okay thanks, I'll give it a try!

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Before Refreshing :


I have had the problem myself and took about 3-4 install over top of new versions before the issue was fixed. Is a strange one.


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Thanks Pkshadow, it is a strange one and frustrating - it happened again today and it's only been two days since I tried the steps suggested above. I hope somebody from Mozilla reads these or they are somehow tracked. I support Mozilla's mission statement but get frustrated at having to babysit so much. Three or four reinstalls is a bit much!

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Tyler Downer said

Can you confirm that you have Firefox's settings set to automatically update? Update Firefox to the latest release If they are, keep in mind that Firefox will update automatically in the background, and there aren't really any messages when you update. It updates when you restart it, and just loads the latest version. Just FYI, the latest version of 61.0.2, which just came out this morning

Tyler, just wanted to say thanks for trying and wanted to let you know I clicked the No button because your suggestion worked for two days and I'm hoping that by clicking No it gets Mozilla's attention. This afternoon it happened again - in the middle of working and the cursor froze up. I used Task Manager to exit Firefox and when I hit restart is when I got the message that it was installing updates. Only AFTER it caused me a hassle in the middle of working. I do appreciate your time and ideas.