EXTRA INFO, about: firefox lost or reset all its settings???

[Marco Fioretti]

On Mon, Oct 31, 2022 10:44:35 AM +0000, Marco Fioretti wrote:

> command line, I saw an HTML file, and to check its content I typed
> "firefox.html".
> 
> Instead of opening that page in a new tab of the already open window, Firefox
> opened a new window, showing its welcome page in another tab as if it were the
> first time I was using it.

what I typed was "firefox a.html" But the main thing I forgot
to add is what happened in the terminal window where I typed it:

#> firefox ~/a.html
/home/marco/Desktop was removed, reassigning DESKTOP to homedir
Gtk-Message: 11:16:22.228: Failed to load module "canberra-gtk-module"
Gtk-Message: 11:16:22.231: Failed to load module "canberra-gtk-module"
ATTENTION: default value of option mesa_glthread overridden by environment.
ATTENTION: default value of option mesa_glthread overridden by environment.
ATTENTION: default value of option mesa_glthread overridden by environment.
ATTENTION: default value of option mesa_glthread overridden by environment.
Missing chrome or resource URL: resource://gre/modules/UpdateListener.jsm
Missing chrome or resource URL: resource://gre/modules/UpdateListener.sys.mjs


^[[A^[[A^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^[[B^CExiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.
Exiting due to channel error.

Yes, I had removed the Desktop folder a couple days before, because I
like a different layout for my $HOME. But I do this after every
install, and never had such problems. Not even this time,
initially. So what does this mean?

> 
> then, I typed CTRL-C at the prompt (istinct, I had my hands on the keyboard
> instead of the mouse...)
> 
> then, I restarted firefox, and now all my settings are lost. No extensions, no
> customized toolbar, history, no nothing.
> 
> Right now, my $HOME/.mozilla folder contains this:
> 
> drwx------  2 marco marco 4096 ago  6  2021  kde55qzu.default
> -rw-rw-r--  1 marco marco  259 ago  6  2021  profiles.ini
> -rw-rw-r--  1 marco marco   62 ago  6  2021  installs.ini
> drwx------  5 marco marco 4096 gen 14  2022 'Crash Reports'
> drwx------  2 marco marco 4096 mar 15  2022 'Pending Pings'
> drwx------ 16 marco marco 4096 ott 25 09:25  jnpu0exe.default-release
> 
> and the newest file in there is timestamped october 25th, the day I installed,
> IIRC.
> 
> What this looks like to me is as if firefox switched to a default, empty
> profile: but how and above all WHY on Earth should this happen in this way,
> without warnings, or asking for confirmation?
> 
> Does anybody have ideas of what happened, and of what to do next, without
> risking to lose all my settings? Sure, I can google myself how to restore
> profiles and similar, and will do it right after sending this email, but this
> seems so idiotic that I'd rather hear some feedback, before touching
> anything....
> 
> TIA,
> Marco
> 



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