All open windows lock up, cannot minimize/close, must use task manager to close everything

I've been using Mozilla Firefox for a few years and love it. My home page is Google News, and Google is my chosen search engine. For the last three weeks, whenever I have Firefox/Google news open, then open another program, like Word, Quicken, maybe a downloaded game site, everything locks up - every single page including my Mozilla Firefox, my gmail account and whatever other page I have tried to open. I cannot minimize any screen, cannot X close any screen, this includes the original open Firefox Mozilla screens. The only way to be able to do anything on any screen is to use Task Manager to close the windows. My AVG protection runs scans every night. I have gone in and run my Malware protection program, another AVG scan, updated everything, flash players, run checks everywhere. Even ran a computer degrag, yet still the problem persists.
What now? I am frustrated having to completely shut down all programs running with task manager before I can proceed with any program.

I found that logging into Google Docs would lock it up EVERY TIME. So I disabled every one of the Add-Ons one at a time, and found the offending Add-On: Shockwave Flash 11.3.300.268. Disable that one and see if it solves your problem, it did mine.
EDIT: Disabling this means you can't watch YouTube videos. The best fix is to do a search for Adobe's earlier versions of Flash. Uninstall Flash Player from your computer and reinstall an earlier version. I am successfully using 11.3.300.265.

Similar Messages

Firefox won't close without using Task Manager - end process; can't start in safe mode or disable add-ons

I've been having a memory leak/hanging problem for weeks -- FF slowly increases memory usage until it's at almost 100% and then freezes and I have to shut it down via Task Manager/end process.
Last week I updated to FF 12, and I also added the Web Developer 1.1.9 add-on. Now every time I open Firefox it tries to go to the "Web Developer installed" page, but the page never loads. Nothing else will load either.
I can't start in Safe Mode because of the problem with having to close it in Task Manager. I select "restart with add-ons disabled" and it just never opens. The Add-On manager page won't load, so I can't disable Web Developer to see if that's the problem.
I've uninstalled Firefox and reinstalled, and it still goes right back to the Web Developer page when I open the freshly installed copy.
Help, please!

Have you already tried clearing the browser cache, opening a blank tab, and trying to open some other website ?
* [[how to clear the cache]]
Instead of trying to open safe mode from within the User Interface menu have you tried alternative methods such as holding the shift key when you start Firefox. (After checking for running Firefox processes or plugincontainer and killing them if found )
* see [[safe mode]]
* [[firefox hangs]]
If using safemode does not help first of all try creating and using a new profile.
* [[Basic Troubleshooting#w_8-make-a-new-profile]]_8-make-a-new-profile
If all the above fail then try a clean re-install of Firefox
* [[Basic Troubleshooting#w_7-reinstall-firefox]]_7-reinstall-firefox

Why won't Firefox close, even using Task Manager, unless I right click on the process and select 'end process' ?

Firefox works fine, but won't respond when I try to shut it down. Using Task Manager to 'End Task' doesn't work. In Task Manager I have to right click on firefox in the Processes menu and click 'End Task'. Apart from logging off/shutting down, this is the only method that works. Also refused to respond when I tried to reset and doesn't respond to commands to change profile settings.

SOLUTION (possible).
Hi all. I had this problem as well. I currently run FF26. A week or so ago, out of nowhere FF wouldn't exit - the window would close but firefox.exe process would keep running in the background using about 50% of CPU. Not sure if it's connected, but just prior to that I clicked on a link on Facebook that looked like spam website, nothing happened, site loaded (sort of, all I saw was a msg - Please Wait...) but nothing happened, I have Eset antivirus and it monitors network traffic and files for viruses, so maybe it prevented my PC getting infected...
So, I had this problem for a few days, was searching the net for solutions, but nothing seem to help. Then, just out of luck I did something that WORKED!
Here's what I did. I noticed that svchost.exe was using a lot of CPU alongside with FF. I ran ProcessExplorer to see what might be connected to this process, the list was long and I didn't have any idea where to start, so what I did was - Right click on svchost process, choose Debug and dismiss the warning. In a few seconds svchost process quit and after that FF started closing properly.
I had to re-enable all my plugins and themes I disabled prior, I also lost my history and preferences which I trashed in the process of searching for solution. But heck, it worked, hopefully for good. Now if someone could point out the real cause of this and fix it for everyone - that would be great. Cheers!

Firefox crashes on shutdown, shows not responding, must use task manager to end task, windows says problem is with container.exe file

whenever i decide to shut down firefox, i click on the x in the first tab and it will not shutdown the program. i must go to task manager to close the program. i get an error report that says there was a problem with add-on container.exe. i have looked in my add-on list and i see no container.exe there. where is it coming from and how do i get rid of this problem. i have even tried to shutdown the program with the x in the upper right corner and it does the same thing. i have recently updated firefox and it still does the same thing.

Some added toolbar and anti-virus add-ons are known to cause
Firefox issues. '''Disable All of them.'''
Start '''[https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/troubleshoot-firefox-issues-using-safe-mode Firefox in Safe Mode]''' {web Link} by holding down the '''<Shift> ''(Mac Options)'' ''' key, and then starting Firefox. Is the problem still there?

Will not shut down (must use Task Manager) & will not open new window

When I shutdown FF the FF window disappears, but a new FF cannot be started unless I manually end FF from Task Manager. When running I cannot "open Link in a new window" - nothing happens, but opening a link in a new tab works.
I am running FF3.6.13 on Windows XT. I ran antivirus software, so I don't think I'm infected. All other programs work fine. I deleted and reinstalled FF. I deleted FF and installed an older version. No luck.

See this: 
https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox%20hangs#w_hang-at-exit

Why do I have to use task manager to close FF after I exit FF?

I use Firefox close it like normal. If I start it again it will not open and I get and error message "firefox working with other program, try closing firefox".
I then open the task manager, end process, Firefox*32.~.
I thought maybe it could have been a plug so I disabled all plug-ins. Restated FF it went to google/FF home page. I closed firefox at the X. Opened the task manager and it was still running in the end process tab.

Use "Firefox > Exit" (Windows: Firefox/File > Exit; Mac: Firefox > Quit Firefox; Linux: Firefox/File > Quit) to close Firefox if you are currently doing that by clicking the close X on the Firefox title bar.
In case you are using "Clear history when Firefox closes", try to exclude the clearing the Cookies
*Tools > Options > Privacy > Firefox will: "Use custom settings for history": [X] "Clear history when Firefox closes" > Settings
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/remove-recent-browsing-search-and-download-history

What is the cause of Firefox seizing up and having to use task manager to close down

When I use Firefox within 2 pages it seizes. When you try to click on anything I hear a ding with no response, even when you try to shut it down. You have to shut it down with Task manager. I have uninstalled it and reloaded but the same thing happens. When I use Explorer I have no troubles. I need Firefox as a site that I use only works with Firefox. This problem has occurred after the recent upgrade

Start Firefox in [[Safe Mode|Safe Mode]] to check if one of the extensions or if hardware acceleration is causing the problem (switch to the DEFAULT theme: Firefox/Tools > Add-ons > Appearance/Themes).
*Don't make any changes on the Safe mode start window.
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Safe+Mode
*https://support.mozilla.org/kb/Troubleshooting+extensions+and+themes
Which security software (firewall, anti-virus) do you have?

I have Firefox 3.6.13 with Firefox for Yahoo 1.7 on Win XP and when I close the browser window, I can't open it again without using Task Manager to close firefox.exe any suggestions?

This started when I first set started using Yahoo Messenger. It appears to me that Yahoo messenger is keeping the application firefox.exe open in the background and this prevents the browser from opening. The only thing I can't understand is why the broser will open the first time with Yahoo Messenger running.

See "Hang at exit":
*http://kb.mozillazine.org/Firefox_hangs
*https://support.mozilla.com/kb/Firefox+hangs

Firefox is totally unresponsive, the page loads but all buttons are disabled. I have to use task manager to close it.

Page loads but totally unresponsive!

Troubleshooting extensions and themes
* https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Troubleshooting%20extensions%20and%20themes
Update All your Firefox Plugins
* https://www-trunk.stage.mozilla.com/en-US/plugincheck/
* http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/plugincheck/
** Remove Checkmark from Downloading other Optional Softwares with your Plugins (e.g. Toolbars, McAfee, Google Chrome, etc.)
Clear Cookies & Cache
* https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Template:clearCookiesCache
Clear the Network Cache
* https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/How%20to%20clear%20the%20cache#w_clear-the-cache
Troubleshooting plugins
* https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Troubleshooting%20plugins
Check and tell if its working.

Frequently, when waking the computer up from Standby and opening a new browsing session, I get a message that Firefox is already running and needs to be closed, even though it was closed during the previous session. I use Task Manager to close it.

Internet connection is AT&T highspeed DSL via Westell modem. Antivirus is AVG 2011. OS is XP Home SP2, circa 2002.

* [[Firefox is already running but is not responding]]
-> Profile in use
* http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_in_use
Check and tell if its working.

Firefox seems to hang when gmail is open. I must use task manager to exit. Frequency of hangs is increasing. Now typed characters don't always appear first time I type them. Other programs seem unaffected. Problem is getting progressively worse. Help?

I only noticed today that Firefox works fine until I open gmail, so I'm not 100% sure of that. I usually work with gmail open, so it's hard to separate the two. Problems started before Christmas. Firefox would hang occasionally (every few days). Keyboard worked fine. Then Firefox started to hang once a day or so. Now it hangs several times a day. Every now and then, it crashes (especially if left unattended, the brat), but apparently I never sent a crash report. ( I couldn't get it to crash today -- it would rather hang. Fatal either way.) A week ago, I completely removed Firefox to the best of my ability and reloaded, hoping that would fix any hidden out-of-date or cookie issues. No joy. Keyboard issue started yesterday, so now Firefox is useless. Please save me from having to use Explorer!
P.S. I have Vista.
P.S.S. Oh, google calendar wouldn't load in Firefox, just now - said it's "redirected", and then Firefox crashed. Crash id is below. I did the about:crashes thing and Firefox could not find the report! (Oh Noes!)
This sounds like malware to me, not that I know anything at all. I have current McAffee and it did not detect anything.
Problems started around the same time that I got a new canon pixma MG8120 printer, which loaded a plugin apparently. Might be a coincidence.
If you tell me to remove any plugins, tell me how. I think I tried that and couldn't find a way. Or maybe that was something else...

New information and answers to the questions:
1) I've never used dropbox on this machine, so that isn't the case
2) I use Firefox as my browser and don't touch Safari unless it is a site that Firefox balks at. I did all the hardware scans, software scans, resetting prefs, and PRAM as well, almost every day.
New info: I had to do a complete system format and reinstall. It actually seems to have solved the problem and corrected a few things that the recent updates hadn't resolved (the disk sound on sleep-wake didn't work until I installed the update on a new system install). I think the issue had to do with either the recent Java or Airport updates and I haven't installed them this time due to that fear. What forced me to do a complete install was the computer wouldn't hold an internet connection *at all*, even when directly plugged into the router via ethernet. System time got messed up and keychain passwords got hosed too if they related to recent internet/network connections. I wish I had more info to share but that's it. Thanks for the suggestions. I am going to keep this open for now as I am interested in seeing if anything else could explain this issue.
I opened a bug report at the Apple Dev. site (https://bugreport.apple.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/RadarWeb.woa/110/wo/klAiofleLooe0 XCbERCOUM/5.79.28.0.9) as well.

When I close Firefox by clicking on X in the upper right corner of Vista, Firebox doesn't close and the next time I click on FireFox I get a message that FF is still running but not responding. I use alt,ctlr,delete to use Task Manager to close FF. Why?

The details are in the question. Don't know what else to add.

https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox%20hangs (See '''hang-at-exit''')

Seeing all open windows in 10.7

I just upgraded from 10.6.8 to 10.7.5. I miss being able to use a hot corner to see all open windows. I cannot find that in 10.7. Does anyone know where it is?

Thank you, brenden dv. I found that and used the hot corners to show the windows open, grouped by application. One thing that confused me was that the Help Center window stayed front and center, even though I was clicking on other windows. When I closed that window, then the correct application window opened up front.
However, the problem remains that all the windows are grouped by application, and it is almost impossible to tell which window is which when I have 3 or 4 windows open from one application, since they are stacked so tightly on top of one another. This means that I often cannot get to the window I want.
Grouping windows by application makes no sense from a user point of view. When I want to get to a certain file, I do not think, "Oh, that is a Word doc, I better get to Word." No, I just want to see my doc and click on it. Who still organizes all their files by the application that created it? No one I know.
OS 10.6.8 had a hot corner that showed icons or large thumbnails of all open windows, all shown separately on the desktop, so all one had to do was go to the hot corner, find the window and click on it, and voilå, that was your window, front and center. I cannot find that in 10.7.
Thanks for the help.

How do I stop Firefox from thinking it crashed and doing a recovery when forced to use Windows Task manager to close a bad URL that I never want to go back to?

Long question, I know :~) There are web sites that I may visit that will not allow me to exit the site, so I use Alt-Ctrl-Del in Windows to start the Task Manager and force the site to close by ending the program. The new version of Firefox (31.0) thinks that Firefox crashed and send me right back to the source of my problem.
Your documentation for this process is as follows:
After a crash
Due to unexpected issues such as problems with a website, software errors, or an accidental loss of power, Firefox may unexpectedly close. In these situations, Firefox can restore the pages that you were visiting when it is restarted. Firefox will automatically restore your previous session, the first time you launch it after a crash.
If Firefox crashes a second time, the Restore Session (i.e. "Well, this is embarrassing") page will appear when you next launch Firefox.
...and this is what I found trying to stop this process. Next, when I am forced to use Task Manager to close Firefox a second time to stop a badware site, then the 'Well this is embarrassing' dialog appears and I am finally safely away from the URL.
I do not want Firefox automatically sending me back to a problem site.
Thank you for any procedure you can suggest to stop Firefox from restoring problem web pages, Art Clapton

I am unwilling to attempt navigation away from these sites. The pop-ups that occur on the attempt to leave a site or to close the browser are exit traps offering incentive to stay.
Once upon a time, when the internet was less dangerous, I would be willing to close the exit pop-ups. Now, after twice being infected with malware trying to close the pop-ups, I now force close whichever browser I am using.
Recently, I clicked on the red X to close one pop-up, and it installed a trojan that I had to pay to be removed. When I clicked on 'Leave' in another exit pop, it didn't exit and it turned out I was giving permission to run a script file. Now that criminals have learned these exit pop-ups can be used to force a click action, the sites using them have become dangerous.
If I force the browser to close using Task manager, Please tell me how to stop FireFox from sending me directly back to the same site because it mistakenly believes it crashed when it did not. I forced it to close because I was on a site that had taken control of my browser and was not allowing me to leave the site.
No other browser sends me back to the potentially dangerous sites. I prefer Firefox, but the new version must have a setting that allows me to get safely away from a problem site?

When re-starting FF, after a close, FF says that there is FF already running. Have to use task m. to close firefox.32*exe.

after using task manager to close the firefox.32*exe process, then FF will restart properly. Doesn't seem to happen if the laptop is powered off.

Must be the "hang at exit" problem. You already know how to do Step1; now just determine which Add-on (Extension or Plugin) is causing the problem. 
#Stop the Firefox process:
#*[http://kb.mozillazine.org/Kill_application Mozillazine - Kill application]
#*Windows 7 users click [http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/window-on-windows/reap-the-benefits-of-windows-7s-task-manager/2576 here]
#Why Firefox may hang:
#*[http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+hangs Firefox hangs] (see Hang at exit)
#*[http://kb.mozillazine.org/Firefox_hangs Firefox hangs (Mozillazine)] (see Hang at exit and Closing Firefox properly)
#*[https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Firefox+is+already+running+but+is+not+responding Firefox is already running but is not responding]
#Use Firefox Safe Mode to find a problem with an Extension or Plugin:
#*Don't check anything when entering Safe Mode, just continue
#*If the problem does not occur in Safe Mode it is probably and Extension or Plugin causing the problem
#*See:
#**[[Safe Mode]] and [http://kb.mozillazine.org/Safe_Mode Safe Mode (Mozillazine)]
#**[http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Troubleshooting+extensions+and+themes Troubleshooting extensions and themes]
#**[http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Troubleshooting+plugins Troubleshooting plugins]
#**[http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Basic+Troubleshooting Basic Troubleshooting]
'''If this reply solves your problem, please click "Solved It" next to this reply when signed-in to the forum.'''

All open windows lock up, cannot minimize/close, must use task manager to close everything

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