When I launch FirefoxPortable.exe, FF launches, but then dies before the main window opens. When I open firefox.exe, it opens the FF installed on my computer. Help!
New: Kanri (Oct 9, '24), Platform 29.5.3 (Jun 27, '24)
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Try checking the drive for file system errors and reinstall Firefox Portable. often a file got corrupted...
Hope it helps!
"What about Love?" - "Overrated. Biochemically no different than eating large quantities of chocolate." - Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate
When I launch Firefox Portable 3.5.2 it stops before the main window opens.
I first reinstalled it on top and still nothing. Then I tried a clean installation and it worked, so I thought "let's see what happens if I restore my previous Data directory". And boom!, FF stopped to start again.
I've had this issue several times so far, so it's not a file corruption problem. It seems something in the Data directory or the way the configuration is stored that is causing the problem.
Does anybody have had this very same problem?
Actually, you can't rule out corruption. This could be happening because your USB drive is faulty or you're using on a PC with USB ports with a small short in them. Corruption nearly always first manifests as the data files having issues. Reinstalling won't fix your data files (but will fix any errors in Firefox files). Your best bet is to restore from a backup just before it broke.
And be sure you're safely removing the drive and not using one of the utilities out there that closes apps and ejects because most of the force close (aka crash) the apps.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
1) The problem appeared with two different brand new USB drives. They both might be faulty, that's a posibility, but quite odd, don't you think? Specially if no other application or data file seems to be affected and is only FF that fails.
2) I also use other USB devices in the test computer with no issues so far, so it's reassonable to think there's no USB port damage.
3) In addition, how many corrupted files can cause FF to stop launching? I guess only corruption in certain critical files can prevent FF to start, and most of them just would cause strange behaviour. What are the chances that always is a critical file of FF that gets corrupted?
That's why I assumed a problem in FF, and not a file corruption or USB port damage problem. But you can be right anyway, so I did some extra tests.
I found out that, in this case, it was "compreg.dat" that produced the lock of FF. I do not know whether this is a static file (in which case your hypothesis would gain weigth), or it is a file that stores user data. I just removed it. FF recreated it next time I launched it and now FF is working just fine again.
I'll wait to see if FF fails again and let's see if the problem is caused by a different file, in which case I guess I have two faulty flash drives
You may also explore if any extensions are causing the corruption issue. Extensions can cause Firefox's internal data files to become corrupt.
compreg.dat is the component registry and the launcher has Firefox recreate it.
You're not using a FirefoxPortable.ini file are you?
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
I just installed FF from scratch. No extension, no additional configuration.
FYI: I'm still working just fine. The problem hasn't showed up again.
I know it sounds like a dumb question... but isn't FF designed to work even when after crashed? I mean I always "forced close" my FFP and it always works fine when I use it again.
If it crashes while writing something critical, yer gonna lose something. It's a 'just in case' thing. Not something you're supposed to force Firefox to use every day.
Sometimes, the impossible can become possible, if you're awesome!
then why don't you try an install to your desktop, for example and see if that works fine. If it does, then i think it may be an addon(s) that cause the problems, so use that (suspected) addon on your desktop version and see if it works.
And if it is an addon, what is it?