Add-ons are an important aspect of Firefox. They help you customize your browsing experience and provide productive and time-saving solutions. But what if these plugins suddenly stop working? Fortunately, there are ways to fix them.
While the reason why add-ons are not working can range from an outdated browser to misconfigured settings, the troubleshooting solutions are fairly easy to implement. We will cover all of them in this article. So let’s get straight to the point.
1. Reactivate Plugins
Add-ons may not work if they don’t start properly when you start Firefox. You can try disabling and re-enabling the plugins. Here’s how.
Stage 1: Launch Firefox on your computer. Click on the menu icon (three vertical lines) in the upper right corner to go to plugins and themes.
Alternatively, you can also use Ctrl + Shift + A to achieve the same.
Step 2: Now use the switches next to Add-ons to disable and enable them.
Now restart Firefox to see if the issue is resolved.
2. Fix System Date and Time
Few Apps and programs use date and time on your PC. If your computer displays the wrong date or time, it may conflict with Firefox and other applications. To avoid this, you can correct your computer’s date and time.
Stage 1: Right-click on the time and date icon in the Taskbar and select Set date and time.
Step 2: In the window below, turn off the switch next to ‘Set time automatically’. Now click the Change button to manually set a date and time.
3. Disable Extension Preference
The extension preference in Firefox helps the browser to disable extensions that are currently out of action. Firefox may be assuming some extensions are out of action. In that case, you can try disabling the extension preference in Firefox to see if it helps. Here’s how.
Stage 1: Start Firefox, type about:config Enter it in the address bar at the top and press Enter.
Step 2: You will see a short warning about changing the advanced configuration. Click ‘Accept Risk and Continue’ to continue.
Stage 3: Medicine extensions.webextensions.remote control enter it in the top search box and use the toggle button to change its value to false.
Restart Firefox now to see if the add-ons are working properly.
4. Avoid Using DOM Storage
Similar to cookies, DOM storage (also known as web storage) allows web developers to store per-session or domain-specific information in your browser. Any problem with DOM storage can also interrupt the working of Add-ons in Firefox. You can try temporarily disabling it to see if that helps. Here’s how.
Stage 1: Start Firefox, type about:config Enter it in the address bar at the top and press Enter. Click ‘Accept Risk and Continue’ to continue.
Step 2: Medicine dom.quotaManager.useDOSDevicePathSyntax go to the top search box and click the toggle button to change its value to false.
5. Refresh Firefox
Finally, if the solutions above don’t help, you may need to consider refreshing Firefox and starting from scratch. Doing so will remove your add-ons and preferences while keeping your bookmarks, saved passwords, and open tabs intact. Here’s how to do it.
Stage 1: Open Firefox on your computer. Click the menu icon in the top right, go to Help and select More troubleshooting information.
Step 2: In the window below, click the Refresh Firefox button to reset it.
Stage 3: Select Refresh Firefox when prompted.
This should do. Firefox should work fine now as most of your browser settings have been reset to their defaults.
6. Update or Reinstall Firefox
Running outdated and outdated versions of Firefox can cause problems with Add-ons. That’s why it’s a good idea to keep Firefox up to date.
Stage 1: Open Firefox on your computer. Click the menu icon, go to Help and select About Firefox.
Step 2: Once there, Firefox should automatically start looking for new updates and install them.
Additional Comfort
Using add-ons in Firefox is a good way to increase productivity. But any problems running them can easily interrupt your workflow. If you managed to find a solution other than the ones mentioned above, share it in the comments below.