Saving settings / extensions in Firefox (was: Firefox SUCKS when you reformat!)

[beatle]

I recently reformatted C: when I installed a new mb/cpu last night. Today I attempt to use Firefox (installed on D and I find that I have none of my extensions, and all of my bookmarks and passwords are gone! :disgust: I never had this problem with Opera. Is there some way to get my stuff back or is this just another growing pain with this browser?

Edit: topic edited to aid in searches for help with the same issue.

Short answer: Firefox saves your settings in Documents and Settings, NOT the Firefox directory. This can be changed in Firefox if you do not want to use D&S as your settings folder.

 

[Feneant2]

I don't see how Opera would keep your setting unless its logged on their site. I mean you format so erased everything on the drive so why would there be any information remaining there?

 

[jfall]

While firefox itself may have been installed on your D drive, it's likely that it's config files were in c:\doc. settings\ which would have been deleted when you formatted.

 

[beatle]

Grrrr, I wish I'd known that next time. Are there some steps I should take before reloading Windows next time so this doesn't happen again? Losing data is the WORST feeling.

Feneant2, my Firefox directory was NOT erased, which is why I'm ticked that I lost everything. I have every program that has valuable data installed on a drive other than C: just so when I do a clean format, I don't lose everything.

 

[jfall]

I'd recommend backing up your document and settings folder before reformatting.. then you can simply replace the firefox content

 

[n0cmonkey]

It's common knowledge that Mozilla and it's retarded children store their information properly, in your home directory.

 

[theinsen1]

Originally posted by: jfall
I'd recommend backing up your document and settings folder before reformatting.. then you can simply replace the firefox content

the entire folder??
also is there any third party uitlity for saving the bookmarks??
thanks

 

[duragezic]

All your bookmarks are in a file called Bookmarks.html. Pretty neat actually, easy to save and transfer to another computer or whatever.

 

[drag]

Yep that's Linux style. Everything is stored in text files in your user directory. Designed for multiuser enviroment, you see. You can copy that directory to directory and generally you can keep your configurations insync even between multiple computers if you use something like rsync or you run a bash script or something. More or less, something don't work out that well. Everythingn should be in your user's firefox settings directory and accessable using normal text editors. Backing up firefox settings is as simple as making a zip file of that settings directory and saving it to another computer or removable media.

Actually in firefox lingo that's called your "profile folder" and some of the details are laid out here.

You can only get away with having user configurations in your installation directory if you designed the application to be single user only, which isn't uncommon for Windows apps especially smaller shareware type things.

Of course if it was a big Windows app you would of lost everything anyways because it would of been stored in the registry and/or your documents and settings files anyways.

 

[Cheetah8799]

Originally posted by: beatle
I recently reformatted C: when I installed a new mb/cpu last night. Today I attempt to use Firefox (installed on D and I find that I have none of my extensions, and all of my bookmarks and passwords are gone! :disgust: I never had this problem with Opera. Is there some way to get my stuff back or is this just another growing pain with this browser?

dude, you formatted your hard drive and wiped out all the data on it. Even Opera isn't going to save you unless if you set it to auto-backup somewhere.

no offence, but you should have backed up and double checked all your data before formatting.

 

[Todd33]

Office XP sucks!! I installed it on my D: drive, but when I formatted my C: drive I lost all my docs!!! whaaaa.

Ya, most everything in XP uses "\Documents and Settings" to store your... documents and settings.

 

[notfred]

Are you still using windows 95? Do you have understand the concept of a multi-user operating system? Do you know where firefox keeps data for each of the multiple users that might have an account on any machine it's installed on?

C:\Documents and Settings\Application Data\Firefox

If you delete your home directory, of course all your settings, preferences, etc will be lost.

 

[Cawchy87]

How would you expect your bookmarks to be written to a disc?

 

[BigJimbo]

ghost an image before a format just incase you can always go back and grab what you need.

Windows also has "fast wiz (older versions) and files and settings transfer wizzard on XP that will grab all your files and settings (duh) and migrate them to your new build.

 

[KoolDrew]

Thats because Opera is better

 

[Nothinman]

Thats because Opera is better

If it's true that Opera stores user's bookmarks in it's program directory that makes it much worse.

 

[klah]

Originally posted by: theinsen1

also is there any third party uitlity for saving the bookmarks??

None is needed.

Bookmarks -> Manage Bookmarks -> File -> Export

 

[beatle]

To those of you who think I erased my Firefox folder, please read my original post. Firefox was installed on D: which was NOT formatted. I install my OS and any applications that do not keep personal settings or important data on C:. that way I can (in theory) reformat my OS drive and start over without losing important data.

Apparently this knowledge of where Firefox stores its info is not as commonplace as you think (oh, of COURSE it's stored in Documents and Settings, n00b!) Firefox, Opera, my FTP client, games, and mIRC are all on D:. Why oh why would I ever think Firefox would follow the same rule of thumb?

To those of you who have tried to help, thank you. Hopefully I don't make this mistake again.

To those of you with a God-complex, stop posting in my thread.

 

[Todd33]

1. You did zero research on where your info was stored.

2. You formatted your OS drive with the settings directory.

3. You get angry when people point out the obvious.

4. You blame Firefox, it was 100% your fault - you were a noob and had the balls to blame Firefox.

Use crappy Opera then. Better yet, go back to DOS and every program will be self contained in its own directory.

 

[Vexx]

Originally posted by: Nothinman

Thats because Opera is better

If it's true that Opera stores user's bookmarks in it's program directory that makes it much worse.

During the installation, if you choose to use the same settings/bookmarks for all users, everything is stored in the program directory. Otherwise, it stores everything in the user's application data folder under documents and settings.

 

[Nothinman]

Why oh why would I ever think Firefox would follow the same rule of thumb?

Oh because just about everything defaults to your "Documents and Settings" directory these days.

 

[beatle]

Originally posted by: Todd33
1. You did zero research on where your info was stored.

Wrong. I searched for quite a while about backing Firefox up. I saw some other posts on other boards about backing up extensions, but there were no responses.

2. You formatted your OS drive with the settings directory.

It's nice to have 20/20 hindsight.

3. You get angry when people point out the obvious.

I get angry at people who do so in a condescending manner. Take some advice from jfall, who was nice and to-the-point about it. It's only obvious if you already know the answer.

4. You blame Firefox, it was 100% your fault - you were a noob and had the balls to blame Firefox.

Of course I do! I have more evidence pointing to non-microsoft programs using their own directory to store personal settings than I do to non-MS programs using Documents and Settings.

Use crappy Opera then. Better yet, go back to DOS and every program will be self contained in its own directory.

Way to be constructive.

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Oh because just about everything defaults to your "Documents and Settings" directory these days.

Except games, mIRC, Bulletproof FTP, Opera, ViceVersa...

 

[Kilrsat]

Originally posted by: beatle

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Oh because just about everything defaults to your "Documents and Settings" directory these days.

Except games, mIRC, Bulletproof FTP, Opera, ViceVersa...

Maybe your old Win95 games.

All EA Games use the Docs and Settings Folders, the new release of Pirates! uses it, just about every game I"ve played in the last 3 years uses the docs & settings folder.

A few other companies/programs that store user settings correctly in the user profile folder:
Adobe
ATi
Azureus
Cyberlink (PowerDVD)
InterVideo (WinDVD)
Macromedia
Microsoft
Sun
Van *** (SecureCRT)
QuickPar
SnapStream
nVidia
DVD Shrink
Apple

So you're right, no *real* company would use the user's profile folder to store settings. These must all be small, no-name businesses doing taking this radical approach.

 

[n0cmonkey]

Originally posted by: beatle

Originally posted by: Nothinman
Oh because just about everything defaults to your "Documents and Settings" directory these days.

Except games, mIRC, Bulletproof FTP, Opera, ViceVersa...

It was stated earlier in the thread that opera can, if you set it up to be multi-user/correct. mIRC is ass, who uses that shit? Bulletproof FTP is a server, there are different rules for them. Never heard of ViceVersa. Games are dealt with in the post above this one.

 

[brain29]

Dude sorry to here this. Losing data sucks. No matter what. Although I do find it harsh to blame Firefox for your assumptions. You know what happens when you assume. you make an A$$ out of u and me.

Anyways, if you plan on installing Firefox on the D: drive again, I suggest you download Portable Firefox. Everything is contained to one folder so when you do reformat, nothing is lost.