also this version of FF will not save bookmarks - I took one of the sites and tried to save it and came up empty when I looked

Can you restore (older) bookmarks rather than importing them? I have heard that FF31 will not make bookmark backups. If you have some older .json backup files, will they restore?

this is a clean install of EVERYTHING - nothing to get them from except another computer I loaned the family member and put their "places" on for them as I had on old copy of their "places" from Feb and most was there

Make sure that you copy the places.sqlite file to the correct location.

• C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\

You can use this button to go to the currently used Firefox profile folder:

• Help > Troubleshooting Information > Profile Directory: Show Folder (Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder)

I am copying and pasting it to the right spot - I copied it into FF27 yesterday to get the bookmarks for this family member working on that other computer. I copied it into the right spot months ago when I set up the windows 8 computer for them but it was probably FF27 or so at the time.

But also FF32 is not accepting bookmarks to be added and this is a clean install off FF32 - 3 times now.

Places.sqlite is a very complicated database file with many tables that are linked to each other, so it is quite possible that a places.sqlite file from an older version isn't working properly. If you update to each major version then there is usually some conversion code run.

You can try to delete the prefs.js file and the compatibility.ini file to force Firefox to reinitialize the profile.

Press the Alt or F10 key to bring up the tool bar. Then select Bookmarks. Hot key is <Control> (Mac: <Command>) <Shift> B. Once the window is open, at the top of the page, press the button labeled Import and Backup. Select Export Bookmarks To HTML, and follow the prompts and save it to a HTML file. Copy the file to another computer. Repeat the instructions above, BUT select Import Bookmarks From HTML,

this does not work - tried it on each of the 3 installs of FF32 - sometimes more than one try

this is a major glitch with FF32 I expect - not sure who to report it to other than post here

can't bookmark, can't import bookmarks, can't get replacement of the places.sqlite file to work either - oh I can copy it into the profile just it doesn't accomplish anything except more hair-pulling

"You can try to delete the prefs.js file and the compatibility.ini file to force Firefox to reinitialize the profile."

I will try this but this is a clean install of everything.

Hi nameless-1, do you mean you did a Firefox reset (which creates the Old Firefox Data folder on the desktop) or you reset Windows itself? In the case of Windows, did it create a C:\Windows.old\ folder?

For working with places.sqlite, you could try to generate a clean bookmark backup file using an older "portable" build of Firefox. This won't disturb your main installation of Firefox and its profile folder will be wherever you unpack/install it. You can download any old portable version from:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/portableapps/files/Mozilla%20Firefox%2C%20Portable%20Ed./

When you save the backup, I suggest a "neutral" location like Documents.

• Restore bookmarks from backup or move them to another computer

windows 8 reset - there is no old windows folder - just searched the HD for the word "old"

I am using places.sqlite from another almost identical PC - bought with same specs at the same time just not used much and so it still had FF27 on it. I copied the places file I had saved in Feb from the old XP machine into this second Win 8 machine (FF27) the other day and have tried to copy both that same places file as well as the places file from the FF27 2nd machine onto this first FF32 machine without success. I have also tried to export bookmarks off the FF27 2nd machine and import them into the FF32 first machine without success. I have a second copy of FF to work with just not on a external drive; the files I am trying to move are on external and / or flash drives. I have used the desktop to store these things in transition.

I can look into the SourceForge site more and see if I can figure it out.

I have the url for the storage of old versions of FF for FTP but once I transfer one I have no idea what to do with one.

I do our tech work but sometimes this is beyond my abilities due to age. Can I say I hate Window 8 too? I am still using Windows 7.

The family member has the ability to get to the bookmarks right now by loading the bookmark file into FF from the desktop and picking and choosing. But no bookmarks stored in the right spot so there is no way to add them on this Win 8 FF32 machine. This family member is going back and forth between the 2 machines right now - uses the FF27 one for browser issues and the FF32 one for other things as I get it up and running more (have had to reinstall the programs etc.).

I'm a little confused, because I assumed you only had access to Firefox 32. If you have access to an older version, too, with the bookmarks accessible, could you try the Backup/Restore approach to transfer the bookmarks? This is different from Export/Import in that a Restore completely replaces the bookmarks on the destination Firefox and put them in their proper places, while an Import may drop them into an Imported Bookmarks subfolder or even into the Unsorted Bookmarks category.

Sometimes with importing an HTML backup the bookmarks do not end up in the correct folders, but may end up in sub folders in the Bookmarks Menu folder. In such as case you can use copy (or cut) and paste them to another folder. It is also possible that some bookmarks have weird or very long names that cause the import to fail and in such a cause you may have to check the file in a text editor. Opening the file in a Firefox tab (File > Open File) should still be possible in such a case.

I haven't had the opportunity to do much on this today.

The FF27 machine is now running FF32 (****) - I didn't change it but it happened. It can bookmark urls . It is where I have the bookmarks stored right now and working - it is not the Reset machine.

I can open the bookmarks in a tab in FF on the Reset PC but I don't have ability to add more bookmarks so I can't just open that tab and insert them one at a time directly into bookmarks in FF which was an idea I tried yesterday. I will look and see if I can find them in a secondary folder on the HD. The "reset" PC with the FF clean install will not add Bookmarks last I checked.

I have an XP machine on the floor that has almost all of the bookmarks too (hasn't been on since Feb). I am limited by only 3 monitors all of which are in use right now but can swap things around. That XP machine has an old version of FF but both the windows 8 machines now are using FF32.

Hopefully I will have some time tonight to see if I can try some of these things.

Sounds like I might not fully grasp the current status, but here's a try:

System #1: Win8/Fx32 (was Fx27) -- operates normally.

System #2 (RESET PC): Win8/Fx32 -- can use existing bookmarks but cannot add any new ones. Is this correct? Does it matter which method you use, e.g.,

• click the star icon on the toolbar to automatically add the site to Unsorted Bookmarks
• press Ctrl+d to call up the Add Bookmark dialog (defaulting to the Bookmarks Menu)
• right-click the page > Bookmark This Page to call up the Add Bookmark dialog (this item doesn't appear if you right-click a link or image)

System #3: WinXP/Fx(old) -- working as far as we know.

By the way, on System #2/RESET PC, do you notice any other menu or toolbar problems?

Starting in Firefox 30, most plugins were switched from being available to all sites for automatic activation to requiring approval to activate. For some plugins that are meant to operate in the background, this causes interface problems. You may want to review your list of plugins on System #2 and switch any that are "global" in scope (e.g., related to fingerprint reader or from your security software) to "Always Activate". You can do that on the Add-ons page. Either:

• Ctrl+Shift+a
• "3-bar" menu button (or Tools menu) > Add-ons

In the left column, click Plugins.

You may not notice any difference in existing windows. You could check for a change in a new window (Ctrl+n) or after exiting Firefox and starting it up again.

Have you tried this?

Download Firefox Full Installer For All languages And Systems {web link}

somehow it is now working - it wasn't a few minutes ago but I do have bookmarks now and can add them

I tried lots of the suggestions - "You can try to delete the prefs.js file and the compatibility.ini file to force Firefox to reinitialize the profile." - tried it but it alone wasn't enough

I also installed Java during this process - it was probably needed and might be automatic to a techie but I am a mathematician not a computer person. I know I had installed java in the last few days but it wasn't visible in a search for the word java so I downloaded it again.

I took bookmarks back up file, places.sqlite, and bookmarks off the working Win 8 machine and tried to move them into the right spots in the folders - didn't work at first

I discovered the date on the working Win 8 machine was a day off and so when I opened a backup bookmark that was old enough with all the other changes I had made it finally worked.

I see now where the bookmarking star has moved - I liked the star in the location bar. I normally just use history. I also do not like the tabs on the top and other toolbars hidden away and change some of those on install. I will change these two Win 8 to my liking over this week but all of those changes were not urgent.

I have relinquished control of that Reset PC back to its "owner" until the next disaster. I know I have one program left to install (no rush I was told) and a handful of files to straighten out still but this last thing is status quo around here.

Thank you for all the ideas.

There is also System # 4 - Windows 7 with FF31 which is my main computer - System #2 exists as it was bought for me but I have not used it. I hate Windows 8 and hate the idea of moving all my files onto it. But there are enough problems on this CPU that if I gave it away as a hand me down I would spend too much time trying to fix it for my spouse so they got a brand new PC instead to replace XP. When I gave them the XP they got it "clean" with a new install of XP on a just cleaned HD.

Good luck.