This site will have limited functionality while we undergo maintenance to improve your experience. If an article doesn't solve your issue and you want to ask a question, we have our support community waiting to help you at @FirefoxSupport on Twitter and/r/firefox on Reddit.

Search Support

Avoid support scams. We will never ask you to call or text a phone number or share personal information. Please report suspicious activity using the “Report Abuse” option.

Learn More

firefox keeps spiining

  • 9 replies
  • 1 has this problem
  • 8 views
  • Last reply by FredMcD

more options

can someone help me solve this problem? I have tried all I could but cant come up to the solution, when Firefox keeps spinning after a few minutes of working well-see the pic attached

can someone help me solve this problem? I have tried all I could but cant come up to the solution, when Firefox keeps spinning after a few minutes of working well-see the pic attached
Attached screenshots

All Replies (9)

more options

Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link}

A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Is the problem still there?

more options

I tried all this before I posted here. Nothing seems to work, I will try to run FF without Addons, but this will not solve my problem, since iwll again have to use addons, isn't it?

more options

You normally see this spinner when JavaScript tries to load content via XHR in the background.

Does this only happen on some websites ?


You can try these steps in case of issues with web pages:

You can reload web page(s) and bypass the cache to refresh possibly outdated or corrupted files.

  • hold down the Shift key and left-click the Reload button
  • press "Ctrl + F5" or press "Ctrl + Shift + R" (Windows,Linux)
  • press "Command + Shift + R" (Mac)

Clear the Cache and remove the Cookies for websites that cause problems via the "3-bar" Firefox menu button (Options/Preferences).

"Remove the Cookies" for websites that cause problems:

  • Options/Preferences -> Privacy & Security
    Cookies and Site Data: "Manage Data"

"Clear the Cache":

  • Options/Preferences -> Privacy & Security
    Cookies and Site Data -> Clear Data -> Cached Web Content: Clear

You can remove all data stored in Firefox for a specific domain via "Forget About This Site" in the right-click context menu of an history entry ("History -> Show All History" or "View -> Sidebar -> History").

Using "Forget About This Site" will remove all data stored in Firefox for this domain like history and cookies and passwords and exceptions and cache, so be cautious. If you have a password or other data for that domain that you do not want to lose then make sure to backup this data or make a note.

You can't recover from this 'forget' unless you have a backup of involved files.

If you revisit a 'forgotten' website then data for that website will be saved once again.

Modified by cor-el

more options

okay, i tried all your proposals, disabled all the addons which I had, run FF for about 4 hours and the same spinning wheel came back I'm now confused, I cant recall having this with earlier versions before the 70er

more options

Start your Computer in safe mode with network support. Then start Firefox. Try Secure websites. Is the problem still there?

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode Starting Any Computer In Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia

more options

I don't think you understood my problem. FF works well but after some 2-3 hours or less, it starts spinning wheel. I have tried all I could but cant find a solution to this behaviour. I have used FF for almost decades and got used to it, that i feel I can´t switch to another browser This suggestion is not applicable to the problem, nevertheless, thank you for your input

more options

Is this with all websites/pages, some, a few?

What were you doing at the time? surfing, watching a clip, reading something . . . .

more options

I normally surfing the web using 5 tabs open. most of the time just reading and on a forum writing and answering to some questions or discussion. If this answers your qustion

more options

Let’s do a full clean re-install;

Note: Firefox comes in three or more folders on all computers. They are;

Maintenance: (Programs Folder) <Windows Only> Firefox itself: (Programs Folder) And two folders in the profile of each user on the computer for each Firefox profile for that user.

If you remove the Firefox folder, the user profiles would not be affected.


Download Firefox For All languages And Systems {web link}

Save the file. Then Close Firefox.

Using your file browser, open the Programs Folder on your computer.

Windows: C:\Program Files C:\Program Files (x86) Note: Check Both Folders

Mac: Open the "Applications" folder. https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-download-and-install-firefox-mac

Linux: Check your user manual. If you installed Firefox with the distro-based package manager, you should use the same way to uninstall it. See Install Firefox on Linux; https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/install-firefox-linux

If you downloaded and installed the binary package from the Firefox download page, simply remove the folder Firefox in your home directory. http://www.mozilla.org/firefox#desktop ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Look for, and remove any Mozilla or Firefox program folders. Do not remove the Mozilla Thunderbird folder if there is one.

Do Not remove any profile folders.

After rebooting the computer, run a registry scanner if you have one. Then run the installer. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ If there is a problem, start your Computer in safe mode and try again.

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode This shows how to Start all Computers in Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia