Backing up your important information
Mozilla Firefox browser stores all the user's personal settings that include extensions, passwords and bookmarks in profile folder that is stored on the user's computer. So if you want to keep a back up of your profile or you wish to move it to new computer or location, all that is required is to copy or move the profile folder.
Find your profile folder: In order to restore or back up your data, you must have knowledge about the location of the profile folder. Each profile is kept on your machine hard drive in a profile folder. Default location of Firefox profile is Firefox/xxxxxxx.default/. Xxxxxxxx is a random string of eight characters. To see your profile folder do the following:
1] Click places menu that is at top right of your screen and then choose Home folder. File browser window appears
2] Click on view menu and then choose 'Show hidden files' if its not already checked
3] Double click on folder marked Mozilla.
4] Double click on folder marked Firefox. The profile folders that you are looking for are in this folder.
Back up your profile folder: In Firefox, it is very easy to back up your profile folder. Follow these simple steps given below:
1] From the menu that is located at the top of Firefox window, choose File option and then you have to select Quit menu item.
2] Locate profile folder as it is explained above
3] You have to right click on profile folder and then choose copy.
4] Right click back up location such as blank CD/RW disc or a USB stick and then choose paste
Restoring profile back up:
1] From the menu located at the top of Firefox window, choose File and then choose Quit menu item
2] If your profile backup folder or profile folder have same name, replace your existing profile folder with profile backup and then start Firefox.
Profile folder names should exactly match for this to operate including random string eight characters. If you want to restore backup to different location then follow the procedure given below:
Restoring to a completely different location: If profile folder names don't match or if you wish to restore or move the profile to different location then do the following
1] Completely close down the Firefox as it is explained above
2] Make use of Firefox profile manager for creating new profile in the desired location and then you have to exit profile manager
If you have just installed the browser on new computer, you can make use of default profile which is created automatically when you run Firefox for the first time. So there is no need to create new profile
3] Locate your stored profile folder (backed up) on your backup medium such as hard drive.
4] Copy entire contents of old profile folder that include “cookies.txt” file or bookmarks.html” file and place these contents into new profile folder, overwriting the already existing files of same name.
5] Start the Firefox
Restoring to different location for advanced users: Advanced users prefer to use the following:
1] Locate your stored profile folder on your back up medium such as hard drive and then copy it to hard drive. You can put your backed up folder anywhere on your hard drive
2] Open profiles.ini in text editor by simply double clicking it
3] In profiles.ini, find the entry of the profile that you have just moved. Change path=line to new location
4] Modify the line that has text IsRelative=1 to IsRelative=0
5] Review the changes that you have made and then save profiles.ini. Start your Firefox.
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Tags: Installation Help
