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Can I Revert to a Profile Saved before Creating a New Profile?

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  • Last reply by cor-el

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I'm running Firefox 113.02 on Windows 10 22H2 OS Build 19045.2965 on an older HP Laptop.

In trying to resolve an issue with another app, their help desk suggested that I needed to start Firefox fresh with a new profile, that the profile I was using might be causing the problem. My first step was to save and rename the profile that I was using before proceeding, then I proceeded as instructed. I don't know how to revert to the old, saved profile. Articles that I've read discussed too many variables confusing me ; so I'm here to ask help from the community.

The reason that I want to revert is because I lost add-ons that made my browsing life better. I failed to make a note of those add-ons, some of which I've been using for so long that I've lost awareness of them. Bookmarks have also been scrambled and lost. If it matters, I've run Firefox today using the new profile that is missing things I want and need. If browsing today added anything to the profile I will happily do without it to get my old profile settings and pointers back.

I can see the profile that I renamed and saved when I enter about:profiles. I also see several other profiles. I infer that the last profile in the list is the current and default profile, but I'm not certain; so maybe that question should be my second. My first question is can I revert to the old profile? When I see the old, renamed and saved profile, it does not appear with a button to make it the default.

From what I've read, my understanding is that I have to make the saved profile the active and/or default profile so that it will be used by Firefox each time Firefox is reloaded. Do I also have to rename it?

Help will be greatly appreciated and gratefully received.

I'm running Firefox 113.02 on Windows 10 22H2 OS Build 19045.2965 on an older HP Laptop. In trying to resolve an issue with another app, their help desk suggested that I needed to start Firefox fresh with a new profile, that the profile I was using might be causing the problem. My first step was to save and rename the profile that I was using before proceeding, then I proceeded as instructed. I don't know how to revert to the old, saved profile. Articles that I've read discussed too many variables confusing me ; so I'm here to ask help from the community. The reason that I want to revert is because I lost add-ons that made my browsing life better. I failed to make a note of those add-ons, some of which I've been using for so long that I've lost awareness of them. Bookmarks have also been scrambled and lost. If it matters, I've run Firefox today using the new profile that is missing things I want and need. If browsing today added anything to the profile I will happily do without it to get my old profile settings and pointers back. I can see the profile that I renamed and saved when I enter about:profiles. I also see several other profiles. I infer that the last profile in the list is the current and default profile, but I'm not certain; so maybe that question should be my second. My first question is can I revert to the old profile? When I see the old, renamed and saved profile, it does not appear with a button to make it the default. From what I've read, my understanding is that I have to make the saved profile the active and/or default profile so that it will be used by Firefox each time Firefox is reloaded. Do I also have to rename it? Help will be greatly appreciated and gratefully received.

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Did you rename the profile folder on the hard drive or only in the Profile Manager ? Renaming a profile folder on the hard drive is not recommended and is not necessary when you want to use/test a different (new) profile. Maybe rename the profiles to their original name and use the Profile Manager to select or re-register the profile.

Firefox uses two locations in the hidden "AppData" location for the Firefox profile folder. One location for your personal data (e.g. bookmarks) in "AppData\Roaming" and another location in "AppData\Local" for temporary files like the disk cache.