What about Always use private browsing mode?

My Settings

• Options/Privacy Firefox will ‘Use custom settings for history’ ON
• Remember my browsing and download history ON
• Remember search and form history ON
• Accept cookies from sites Exceptions (none listed) Show cookies (several listed) Options/Security ON
• Remember passwords for sites Exceptions (none listed) Saved Passwords (none listed) Options/Advance/General OFF Use hardware acceleration

In Private Browsing mode Firefox should use saved passwords [if any are saved], but it won't offer to save new Passwords. That's the nature of Private Browsing mode - doesn't save anything and won't offer to save Passwords.

When using Private Browsing and a saved Password isn't "offered up" or auto-completed, does the "offer" appear [in a drop-down box] if you click [or double-click] in the Username field at a website?

Do you see the names and passwords in the Password Manager?

• Tools > Options > Security: Passwords: "Saved Passwords" > "Show Passwords"

If that isn't the case then there might be a problem with the key3.db file.

If you suspect a problem with the key3.db file then backup the current logins.json and key3.db files before proceeding.

Try to restore a previous version of the key3.db file and possibly the logins.json file if you still do not see passwords in the PM.

• Right-click: Properties > Previous Versions
• http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows7/Previous-versions-of-files-frequently-asked-questions

Note that you will lose all password created more recent than the file date of the logins.json file if you restore this file.

the-edmeister said

What about Always use private browsing mode?

My Settings

• Options/Privacy Firefox will ‘Use custom settings for history’ ON
• Remember my browsing and download history ON
• Remember search and form history ON
• Accept cookies from sites Exceptions (none listed) Show cookies (several listed) Options/Security ON
• Remember passwords for sites Exceptions (none listed) Saved Passwords (none listed) Options/Advance/General OFF Use hardware acceleration

In Private Browsing mode Firefox should use saved passwords [if any are saved], but it won't offer to save new Passwords. That's the nature of Private Browsing mode - doesn't save anything and won't offer to save Passwords.

When using Private Browsing and a saved Password isn't "offered up" or auto-completed, does the "offer" appear [in a drop-down box] if you click [or double-click] in the Username field at a website?

Hi the-edmeister,

No, I do not get the "Offer" when clicking or double clicking in the username field. I just can't work out why the passwords don't show in PM when they are obviously there in logins.json

Hi cor-el, The PM is empty with no passwords there at all, and it certainly sounds like key3.db could be the culprit.

Following your advice above I checked for 'Previous Versions' but nothing there.

I am quite prepared to lose all my passwords and reset them from scratch if only I was 'offered to save' them, and that they would then be available in PM in the future.

OK, so I went back to an old backup of a couple of weeks ago and retrieved both key3.db and logins.json into my current profile after having renamed the original pair. No change - nothing in PM and still no 'offer to save'.

I will post this and get out of Firefox and do a restore of my complete profile and see what that does. Saving a copy of current profile of course!

scorpion169 said

I will post this and get out of Firefox and do a restore of my complete profile and see what that does. Saving a copy of current profile of course!

No that did not solve the problem either. I had to put the profile files in the current profile folder, but still nothing in PM and no offer to save.

I'm stumped!

I have returned to the most recent profile again. Any further ideas?

A new version of Firefox was offered this week, but when I went to install, a prompt appeared "Cannot install ver 40.0 as another copy of Firefox is running" It was not, but I rebooted the computer to make sure. Same response.

After saving a copy of my profile in a safe place, as I did not want to loose my extensive bookmarks, I uninstalled Firefox completely, and reinstalled.

Version 40.0 installed, my bookmarks were available without having access to my saved profile, and guess what? My passwords were now available again in PM and the offer to save passwords at sites reappeared!

A happy camper once again!