After downloading an update, firefox says "your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. do you want to reboot now" and will not start.

Firefox will not start, or allow windows xp to uninstall the program. When I attempt to start the program, firefox says "your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. do you want to reboot now? It gives the same message after rebooting, and will not start, or uninstall. I also downloaded it again, same thing.
== This happened ==
Every time Firefox opened
== I downloaded an update.

Follow '''''cor-el's''''' advice in this post:
https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/forum/1/606173

Similar Messages

  • I can't uninstall/install FireFox due to a pop-up that says: Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox..."

    This problem arose when I attempted to upgrade my existing FireFox browser to the new FireFox 7. I clicked through the auto-update, but didn't think that anything changed, as the browser didn't look like the image in the feature explanation image I was viewing. I then tried to download Firefox 7, and when I tried to instal it, this process began.
    I can't uninstall/install FireFox due to a pop-up that says: Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox..." When restarted and attempted again, the same pop up appears and I am stuck in an infinite loop.
    I cannot locate the Mozilla file within my program files to try and delete cantankerous upgrade components, which seems to resolve this issue for many people. See: https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/questions/796566
    I also tried completely deleting Firefox, which didn't work either-- I ended up doing a system restore, only to be met with the same infinite loop.
    Now, when I click on the Mozilla icon, nothing happens. No window opens, no error message, nothing.
    Why can't I find the Mozilla folder in my Programs File but can see it in Control Panel "Add or Remove Programs" (though I can't uninstal due to infinite loop)?

    It is probably because you are not properly closing Firefox. Restarting your system would make sure that Firefox had terminated, but you do not have to do that.
    To properly close Firefox on Windows systems, use
    :File > Exit or "Firefox:" button > Exit
    When you get the message "Firefox is already running" it is too late, and you must force termination of Firefox through the Windows Task Manager before restarting Firefox. Windows 7 has a keyboard shortcut to save you a step "Ctrl+Shift+Esc" then on "Processes" tab, select "firefox.exe" and use the "End Process" button. More thorough would be to right-click on the "firefox.exec" and choose "End Process Tree".
    You would find firefox.exe in a Mozilla folder in your program files, but y0u would not want to delete it there, you would need to use the Control Panel which you have already identified and do it from there -- but generally you would not need to do that, and there is nothing in what you have posted to indicate that you should. But if you did do that, then don't let the install start Firefox for you as you would want to use you existing desktop icon or method of starting Firefox, and should decline having Firefox install start Firefox for you. When the install starts then invoke Firefox in your normal manner. This should eliminate problems of creating a new profile rather than using your old profile.

  • The installation for FF 3.6.9 update keeps saying "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of FF" EVEN after I restarted it, it still said the samething.

    When I click on the FF setup icon on my desktop, I only get as far as being able to select "Standard" or "Cutsom" Setup then a box pops up saying "Your computer must be restarted" and everything.
    I've Have tried restarting my computer SERVERAL times, Reinstalling the setup, and looking in Task Manager for "firefox.exe"... nothing was there.
    I also tried to uninstall the setup but I got that same message, so I can't uninstall it either.
    Any suggestions at all??
    I'm running Windows Vista if that helps any.
    Thank You

    It should not be necessary to reboot the computer to complete an update.<br />
    If a reboot is needed then that usually means that some (security) software is blocking files or you need elevated (UAC) permissions to make changes to files or registry keys.<br />
    Run the Firefox program once as Administrator (right-click: Run as Administrator).<br />
    If that doesn't solve the problem then remove the Firefox program folder to do a clean reinstall.<br />

  • I lost firefox after updating. It will not open and a pop up window comes up saying "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. Do you want to reboot."

    Nothing happens after reboot, continue to get the same message. If try to uninstall or reinstall firefox get same message and cannot uninstall or reinstall. Any solutions for this problem?
    This is on a Sony Vaio with windows 7. I3 processor

    Try a clean reinstall.
    * Download a fresh Firefox copy and save the file to the desktop.
    * Firefox 7.0.x: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all.html
    * Uninstall your current Firefox version.
    * Do not remove personal data when you uninstall the current version or you lose your bookmarks and other data in the profile folder.
    * Remove the Firefox program folder before installing that newly downloaded copy of the Firefox installer.
    * It is important to delete the Firefox program folder to remove all the files and make sure that there are no problems with files that were leftover after uninstalling.
    Your bookmarks and other profile data are stored elsewhere in the Firefox Profile Folder and won't be affected by a reinstall, but make sure that you do not select to remove personal data if you uninstall Firefox.
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_backup

  • I just upgraded to 4.0, but every time I try to log on, I get an error message that says "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox." I restarted three times and I still get that same message.

    When I got the error message, I logged off and then signed back in to this same desktop computer. When that didn't change anything I shut it down and restarted it. No change, so I rebooted again without actually shutting the computer down, and again, no change. I can only access Firefox via Explorer when I log in as "Tech Support" on my computer instead of my own user name.

    Hi,
    Please try deleting the '''updates.xml''' file and the '''updates''' folder in the Firefox [http://kb.mozillazine.org/Installation_directory installation directory], if present.

  • I cant install an update to Firefox and cant remove the old version because a "Setup" pop up window "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now?" appears, reboots change nothing. What should I do?

    A friend said she downloaded an update to Firefox (a version of 6, I believe) but didn't install the update, but the desktop icon was gone. The only way to launch Firefox was from the Programs folder. When clicking on the Firefox file, a "Setup" pop up window appeared stating "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now?" Clicking "No" does not launch Firefox and clicking "Yes" reboots the computer, but nothing changes after restart and the same series of events keeps re-occurring. When clicking on the safe mode file, Firefox was launched. I went to "Add/Remove Programs" and found Mozilla Firefox 3.6.3. When attempting to remove the program, the same reboot "Setup" pop up appears, and the same non-results as previously described, persisted. I deleted all Firefox files and deleted the update set up .exe files. I again tried to remove the Firefox 3.6.3 program, with the same outcome as the previous attempt(s). I went to the Firefox website and downloaded the updated Firefox 7.0.1 set up .exe file, saved and ran it. When I reached the Setup Wizard page that prompts a "Standard" or "Custom" installation, I clicked on Standard and the same reboot pop up window appeared, again with no change after the reboot. So I have a Program installed (Firefox 3.6.3) with no files, and which can not be removed, an executed update/download .exe for Firefox 7.0.1 that can not be completely installed due to the failure to update by reboot problem. I'm out of ideas on how to try to resolve these problems. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you

    Try a clean reinstall.
    * Download a fresh Firefox copy and save the file to the desktop.
    * Firefox 7.0.x: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all.html
    * Uninstall your current Firefox version.
    * Do not remove personal data when you uninstall the current version or you lose your bookmarks and other data in the profile folder.
    * Remove the Firefox program folder before installing that newly downloaded copy of the Firefox installer.
    * It is important to delete the Firefox program folder to remove all the files and make sure that there are no problems with files that were leftover after uninstalling.
    Your bookmarks and other profile data are stored elsewhere in the Firefox Profile Folder and won't be affected by a reinstall, but make sure that you do not select to remove personal data if you uninstall Firefox.
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_backup

  • Tried to install ff4 got message "your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. do you want to reboot now" I rebooted computer now firefox will not start at all and i have tried to uninstall and get the same message

    have also tried to reinstall older version of firefox and get same message

    i have been trying to figure out how to fix this same issue as well for the past 2 hours or so. it is very upsetting that you can't even uninstall it try to redo it all or just use the old version. everything seemed to be ok untill i got to the set up part of the process that is when i kept getting the same message: ''your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. do you want to reboot now" and to no avail. please help. i really enjoyed my firefox/mozilla. now i can't even use it i have to go back to internet explorer for now...........

  • I tried to upgrade to Firefox 4.0. I keep getting error message"Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now." I check yes and it reboots, but keeps giving the same error message.

    I tried to sync Firefox mobile to my PC. Then I tried to upgrade to Firefox 4.0, which was a mistake, because I already had 4.0. I checked yes to install it again. Then I tried to uninstall and reinstall 4.0. That is when I started getting the error message.

    i have been trying to figure out how to fix this same issue as well for the past 2 hours or so. it is very upsetting that you can't even uninstall it try to redo it all or just use the old version. everything seemed to be ok untill i got to the set up part of the process that is when i kept getting the same message: ''your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of firefox. do you want to reboot now" and to no avail. please help. i really enjoyed my firefox/mozilla. now i can't even use it i have to go back to internet explorer for now...........

  • When I try to start Firefox, I get the error message "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now?" I have rebooted several times to no avail. Get the same message when I try to uninstall Firefox

    When I try to start Firefox, I get the error message "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now?" I have rebooted several times to no avail. Get the same message when I try to uninstall Firefox

    Just had this same problem. Based on other suggestions I found on the web, went to C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox and deleted all files that ended with upgrade and/or delete. Then I was able to uninstall Firefox and then reinstalled. Hope this helps!

  • I get a message when trying to install firefox 3.6.10 that says "your computer must be restarted to complete a previous uninstall of Firefox." I have rebooted repeatedly, but still get this message. How can I get past this?

    I attempted to do the update on Firefox 3.6.9 and it said that it could not update because Firefox was still running even though it did not appear in the list of processes in the task manager. I decided to reinstall Firefox and the above message now is displayed each time I restart my computer and attempt to install Firefox 3.6.10.

    C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\xuab2q88.default is the location of the cache folder for your default profile. If the updates folder isn't there then it looks that Firefox hasn't downloaded an update.
    You can download the full version from http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/all.html
    Delete the Firefox program folder: C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox
    That will remove all Firefox program files in case some are locked or protected by security software.<br />
    That should allow you to install a full version of Firefox 3.6.10
    Your Firefox profile data is stored elsewhere and won't be affected.

  • Trying to upgrade from 3.6.18 to 5.0,b5. I am stopped from loading by message "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of FireFox". Reboot does not help. Can't uninstall 3.6.18. Get same message. Please help!

    A previous upgrade was not completed!
    Rebooting does not work.
    Can't even uninstall 3.6.18. Get the same '"must reboot'" message.

    If files already have been downloaded then you need to remove the files in the updates and updates\0 folder.
    You can delete active-update.xml and updates.xml as well if present.
    C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\updates
    Vista:
    C:\Users\&lt;user&gt;\AppData\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox\updates
    (%LOCALAPPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox)
    The "Application Data" folder in XP/Win2K and the "AppData" folder in Vista/Windows 7 are hidden folders.
    *http://kb.mozillazine.org/Show_hidden_files_and_folders
    If there are problems with updating then best is to download the full version and uninstall the currently installed version.
    Download a fresh Firefox copy and save the file to the desktop.
    * Firefox 5.0.x: http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all.html
    * Uninstall your current Firefox version.
    * Do not remove personal data when you uninstall the current version.
    Remove the Firefox program folder before installing that newly downloaded copy of the Firefox installer.
    * It is important to delete the Firefox program folder to remove all the files and make sure that there are no problems with files that were leftover after uninstalling.
    Your bookmarks and other profile data are stored elsewhere in the Firefox Profile Folder and won't be affected by a reinstall, but make sure that you do not select to remove personal data if you uninstall Firefox.
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox
    * http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_backup

  • I am getting this message, "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of Firefox."

    I have rebooted my computer several times and I am still receiving this message. Please advise as to how I can correct this problem. I even get this message when trying to uninstall Firefox.

    I had the same problem and went round and round in circles trying to uninstall FF5. Nothing worked. I eventually downloaded a free "Uninstaller" programme, i.e. Revo which did the job and I have since downloaded a fresh Firefox 5 which is working perfectly.

  • In setup wizard it says "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous uninstall. Do you want to reboot now?" after uninstalling old version and trying to install new. I CAN NOT run ANY version now......HELP

    I had an old version of Firefox and uninstalled it. Then I installed the 5.0 version. BUT, in the setup wizard it says "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous uninstall of Firefox. Do you want to reboot now?" I choose "YES" and the computer reboots, but when I run the setup wizard again, it says the same thing. I have reinstalled it 8 times, and it says the same thing......I have searched my computer for it, and can't find what it's talking about!! HELP!!!!!!

    Cor-el:
    Thanks so much for your help, it is very much appreciated.

  • I keep getting the following message when I try to install firefox.."your computer must be restarted to complete a previous install of firefox" I've restarted numerous times..keep getting the same message

    I keep getting the following message when I try to install firefox.."your computer must be restarted to complete a previous install of firefox" I've restarted numerous times..keep getting the same message

    Have a look at the solution to a similar problem: https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/921375?s=%22Your+computer+must+be+restarted+to+complete+a+previous+upgrade+of+Firefox.+Do+you+want+to+reboot+now%3F%22&r=0&e=sph&as=s
    If that doesn't work, you can uninstall FF and do a clean install. You'll prob lose your bookmarks, history, etc, though, so if you do this set up Sync first! https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/what-firefox-sync-and-how-do-i-use-it

  • Can not make FF my default browser...When asked I get "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of FF". When this is done, it's the same thing all over again...

    Can not make FF my default browser...When asked to make, I get "Your computer must be restarted to complete a previous upgrade of FF". After restart, it's the same thing all over again. I have explorer & chrome installed on my PC.
    == This happened ==
    Every time Firefox opened
    == A few monts ago.

    It is probably because you are not properly closing Firefox. Restarting your system would make sure that Firefox had terminated, but you do not have to do that.
    To properly close Firefox on Windows systems, use
    :File > Exit or "Firefox:" button > Exit
    When you get the message "Firefox is already running" it is too late, and you must force termination of Firefox through the Windows Task Manager before restarting Firefox. Windows 7 has a keyboard shortcut to save you a step "Ctrl+Shift+Esc" then on "Processes" tab, select "firefox.exe" and use the "End Process" button. More thorough would be to right-click on the "firefox.exec" and choose "End Process Tree".
    You would find firefox.exe in a Mozilla folder in your program files, but y0u would not want to delete it there, you would need to use the Control Panel which you have already identified and do it from there -- but generally you would not need to do that, and there is nothing in what you have posted to indicate that you should. But if you did do that, then don't let the install start Firefox for you as you would want to use you existing desktop icon or method of starting Firefox, and should decline having Firefox install start Firefox for you. When the install starts then invoke Firefox in your normal manner. This should eliminate problems of creating a new profile rather than using your old profile.

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