If you use Sync then best is to disconnect Sync temporarily during troubleshooting.

This can be caused by a problem with the places.sqlite and favicons.sqlite databases in the Firefox profile folder.

• use "Verify Integrity" button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page

If errors are reported with "Verify Integrity", close and restart Firefox or reboot and retry.

If "Verify Integrity" cannot repair places.sqlite, rename/remove all places.sqlite and favicons.sqlite files in the Firefox profile folder with Firefox closed. Firefox will rebuild places.sqlite and restore the bookmarks from a recent JSON backup in the bookmarkbackups folder.

• keep a backup copy of places.sqlite in case a new places.sqlite database has to be created

See also:

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/Bookmarks+not+saved#w_fix-the-bookmarks-file
• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/fix-bookmarks-and-history-will-not-be-functional

You can use the button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page to go to the current Firefox profile folder or use the about:profiles page.

• Help -> Troubleshooting Information -> Profile Folder/Directory:
  Windows: Open Folder; Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder
• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/profiles-where-firefox-stores-user-data

I am sure that this file is complete because I verified it in Excel (.csv).

Hi Patrick, the bookmarks.html file should be a webpage: when you open it in a tab in Firefox or another browser, it should have a link for each bookmark. It should not be a comma-separated values (CSV) file. I'm actually not sure how it could be exported as a CSV file, at least using the built-in feature: Export Firefox bookmarks to an HTML file to back up or transfer bookmarks.

Maybe it's a file name problem? If you set Windows to show file extensions (example how-to article: https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tuto.../how-to-show-file-extensions-in-windows/), can you verify that the file isn't named

bookmarks.html.csv

If it is, try removing the .csv from the end of the file name and see whether it works any better.

Thank you "jscher" ! Unfortunately, I already know all these suggestions and all these tracks have been already explored ... Many thank to have spend little bit time for me ! Patrick

So, you can confirm that this bookmarks.html backup is a valid HTML file ?

What do you see if you open this file in a Firefox tab ?

Hello cro-el ! Thank you for your cooperation. It seems that my trouble don't come from these files, as showing after execution of "Verify Integrity" : > Task: checkIntegrity + The places.sqlite database is sane + The favicons.sqlite database is sane After reading, the links you proposed don't seems to answer to my question as well. Since my question, I recovered my bookmarks by using the ".json" file. Then all is right about that. Anyway, the ".html" bookmarks are interessant because you can normally convert the file in ".xlsx" Excel via the ".csv" format. But the columns of bookmarks.html don't match with. Have you a solution ? My purpose, with Excel, was to merge the bookmarks of two different PC (as suggested on some sites). Thank you by advance ! Patrick

Quote: But the columns of bookmarks.html don't match with

A bookmarks.html file doesn't have columns.

Did you try to open this bookmarks.html file in a tab ?

If you are not sure about the file type then you can open the file in Firefox via "Firefox -> New Tab -> Open File" or "File -> Open File". A JSON backup will show as one long text line without line breaks and a HTML backup shows as a web page with clickable links.

You can also open the file in a text editor.

A  JSON backup starts with: {"title":"","id":1,"dateAdded":
An HTML backup starts with: <!DOCTYPE NETSCAPE-Bookmark-file-1>

Thank you cor-el how can I execute this control : {"title":"","id":1,"dateAdded": ? Patrick

A file that starts with this content is a JSON backup and not an HTML backup. A JSON backup needs to be restored in the Library. Note that this will replace all the bookmarks and you lose bookmarks that aren't in this backup.

• Bookmarks -> Show All Bookmarks -> Import & Backup -> Restore
• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/restore-bookmarks-from-backup-or-move-them

how can I execute this control : {"title":"","id":1,"dateAdded": ?

The bookmark backup file defines an object that has no functions of its own, it's just holding data. So there is nothing to execute in the file.

If you write JavaScript yourself, of course you can read through the file and output whatever you like. For example, I have a converter page that generates an HTML Export-format file from the JSON backup. You could revise the code to generate CSV if you prefer:

https://www.jeffersonscher.com/ffu/bookbackreader.html

(Bear in mind that I'm not a professional developer and my scripts are not a model for good coding!)

Sorry, I don't understand this answer relative to my question : What means the control {"title":"","id":1,"dateAdded": ? Is it an executable ? May I copy it in the executable field of Windows (which, otherwise, I don't find in W10 ! This field existed in former versions like XP ...) Sorry for my ignorance ...

The .json file is not executable. It cannot be run as a program. It is a data file.

If you want to see its contents, you can open it in a tab in Firefox. After a few moments, Firefox will show a structured view of the data.

By the way, to call up the Run dialog in Windows 10, you can use the "Windows" key on the keyboard + R.

A JSON bookmarks file is just like an HTML bookmarks backup a way to save a backup of your bookmarks. It is only a different format and a JSON backup contains more information. An HTML backup only stores limited bookmarks data and a JSON backup is a full backup including all meta data. An HTML backup is the same format as used for saving a webpage. A file in JSON format stores its data as JavaScript object data (JSON = JavaScript Object Notation) and you need a special application to handle such a JSON file

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JSON

Firefox comes with a JSON viewer that you can use to browse a JSON file.

• https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/Tools/JSON_viewer

Dear jscher2000 and cor-el,

Please, try to understand that :

• I know since long time that bookmarks.html or .json are just holding datas but aren't executables ; the question was just this one I more specified at the end of my post 20/10/2020 12:56
• I know since long time that to call up the Run dialog in Windows 10, I can use the "Windows" key on the keyboard + R ; the question was just about the former field for the msdos executables, which don't appear more in W10

Please understand that my problem is very simple and focused ; I don't need all these considerations. In my post of 20/10/2020 12:56, I more specified my purpose : "My purpose, with Excel, was to merge the bookmarks of two different PC (as suggested on some sites)". After further new searches, I found the answer which is so simple : the function "Sync", of which you told me, need to respect an accurate process which I didn't know. This process is very simple and don't need to use an Excel conversion of the bookmark.html file to be manually managed, which is a good new. I tried it, it works very well. I would have liked that you only explain that to me, nothing more ... This is the main problem of the forums : people ask very simple questions ... and many very kind persons answer with very complicated explanations and solutions ... but do not answer at the real question asked ...

Thank you anyway for spending time for me, it's so kind of you ! I am very sorry. Best regards Patrick