You were saying the problems started with Firefox 53? Any problem before that?

Start Firefox in Safe Mode {web link} by holding down the <Shift> (Mac=Options) key, and then starting Firefox.

A small dialog should appear. Click Start In Safe Mode (not Refresh). Is the problem still there?

No, I've never had any problems like that before FF updated to 53.0, not while opening new tabs and not while restoring old tabs from the "oops, that shouldn't have happened" page (which I did almost every day).

It's weird that it only seems to happen if there are 1 or 2 empty tabs open - I don't remember the problem occuring while actively working with FF and having a couple of websites open. To me it looks like something messed up in 53.0 that's still there in 53.0.2.

FF updated to 53.0.3 just now, so we'll see if that fixes it. I'll try everything I did previously to make the problem occur again but, like I said, so far it has only happened about once a week. So sorry but I can't only use Firefox in Safe Mode - which also means no NoScript or AdBlock - for a week or longer.

If the PC freezes that way that you can't open Windows Task Manager then I don't think this is a Firefox version, but is a problem with a service or driver that runs at the kernel level. An application that runs at user level shouldn't be able to do this.

Boot the computer in Windows Safe mode with network support to see if that has effect in case security software is causing problems.

• http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/tutorials/how-to-start-windows-in-safe-mode/
• http://www.7tutorials.com/4-ways-boot-safe-mode-windows-10

Do a malware check with several malware scanning programs on the Windows computer.

• https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/troubleshoot-firefox-issues-caused-malware

Please scan with all programs because each program detects different malware. All these programs have free versions.

Make sure you update each program to get the latest version of their databases before doing a scan.

• Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware:
  http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php
• AdwCleaner:
  http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/download/adwcleaner/
  http://www.softpedia.com/get/Antivirus/Removal-Tools/AdwCleaner.shtml
• SuperAntispyware:
  http://www.superantispyware.com/
• Microsoft Safety Scanner:
  http://www.microsoft.com/security/scanner/en-us/default.aspx
• Windows Defender:
  http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/using-defender
• Spybot Search & Destroy:
  http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html
• Kasperky Free Security Scan:
  http://www.kaspersky.com/security-scan

You can also do a check for a rootkit infection with TDSSKiller.

• Anti-rootkit utility TDSSKiller:
  http://support.kaspersky.com/5350?el=88446

See also:

• "Spyware on Windows": http://kb.mozillazine.org/Popups_not_blocked

cor-el said

If the PC freezes that way that you can't open Windows Task Manager then I don't think this is a Firefox version, but is a problem with a service or driver that runs at the kernel level. An application that runs at user level shouldn't be able to do this. ....

Hi - I saw this guy confirming the issue on my post. His problem sounds EXACTLY like what I experience.

I can't speak for his machine, but on our system there is no malware/spyware (unless it's something from the NSA nobody knows about :). In addition, we have no "apps" or any other bloatware.

We run a "sterile" development system with strict controls over what goes over the network - in addition to all the regular enterprise virus scanning. Basically Win7 64b Pro, Visual Studio, Office, and Photoshop (that's enough spyware on its own) - everything else is removed.

You are correct in the sense that the FF "new tab" error leads to a deep crash inside the Windows OS windows management processes. However, it still remains a bug in FF, and one that I can confirm started with FF53.

@cor-el This problem started occuring the day FF updated to 53.0. I didn't install any other programs, drivers or Windows updates that day - otherwise I would have uninstalled them already to see if it fixes it - or between the time it happened for the first and for the 4th time, so it can't be anything with my OS. A couple of days ago I installed a huge patch of Windows updates and I still got a crash yesterday. Plus, I regularly scan my PC for viruses, malware and adware with 3 different programs (btw, Windows Defender is a Win10 thing, I'm using Win 7), so I'm 99,9% sure that it's infection-free.

Furthermore, this problem only occurs when I open a new tab with only 1-2 other, empty tabs open. I tend to have a lot of tabs open while doing work and I've never had a problem opening a new tab then, no matter if it's through the "+" or rightclick-"open in new tab". Please don't forget that it's also a weird "crash" because having sound continue playing means that it actually isn't a complete crash but more like a lockup the OS can't get out of by itself.

There are at least 2 other new threads (with a bunch of "I have the same problem" votes) in the support forums that describe the same problem that occurs when they do the exact same thing. Sorry but it really looks like the only common denominator is FF 53.x.

I also did some testing yesterday, directly after writing my second post (so when the PC was pretty much freshly started) and again directly before shutting it down for the night. I didn't manage to make FF cause a crash again with any combination of opening tabs or restoring them. But, like I said, I've only gotten it once a week to 10 days so far.

@AmityGames Thanks for confirming the problem here! How often does it occur for you? Every time you click the "+"?

Neph said

@cor-el This problem started occuring the day FF updated to 53.0. I didn't install any other programs, drivers or Windows updates that day - o... But, like I said, I've only gotten it once a week to 10 days so far. @AmityGames Thanks for confirming the problem here! How often does it occur for you? Every time you click the "+"?

@Neph - hi, it does not happen all the time. I've had about 10 such crashes, everytime when I clicked (+), but must have opened a lot more tabs since then. So maybe frequency is 1/5 to 1/10?

Usually happens when FF has been up for several days, with 20-30 tabs, but once it happened in under 24 hrs with a dozen tabs.

There must be some secondary contributing factor to the crash besides the (+) - otherwise the devs would have caught it right away - but I suspect that factor is linked to the changes in 53, and not changes to the host machine.

I hoped that 53.0.3 would fix it but looks like I got my hopes up too soon, FF just froze my PC again.

It had been up for maybe 15 minutes. Running programs at that time (apart from FF of course):

• Outlook (was finished looking for new e-mails 5-10 minutes ago)
• Skype (no old or new messages incoming)
• Steam (downloaded a small update for a game 5-10 minutes ago but everything is installed on a different HDD)
• My usual Anti-virus/-malware software
• Rainmeter + mouse driver

So apart from Steam pretty much what is always running.

When it happened:

I have a couple of websites (9 or 10) I check for news,... every day directly after starting up my PC (the same websites I've been checking for at least a year, no Facebook/other social media and I do trust them!) and I also checked them today. The order was:

• Open each website in a new tab + an extra empty tab
• Look at the website and close it once I'm done looking at it
• When only the empty tab was left, I opened another empty tab
• I clicked on the "Youtube.com" tile on the "new tab" page of the original empty tab
• Moved my mouse less than 10cm/4" away and there was the freeze while the circle next to "connecting" (instead of the tab name) was still spinning.

I haven't installed any new Windows updates, drivers or programs since the last time it happened (4 days ago).

AmityGames said

@Neph - hi, it does not happen all the time. ....

So you always had other tabs with actually loaded websites open when it happened?

That sounds really weird, same freeze but different circumstances because I always shut down my PC for the night, so it's running maybe 14-16 hours a day. While I do sometimes have a lot of tabs in a couple of Windows open, it's usually more like 1-2 windows with maybe 3-10 tabs max..

When does it actually freeze for you? Do you get the chance to enter the address for the website you want to open before it freezes? Do you use tiles on the "new tab" page?

Including the freeze today I remember clicking on a tile on the "new tab" page twice before it froze (one time with Amazon, today with Youtube) but I also think that I've had FF freeze directly after simply opening a new tab.

Is it possible that there are specific JavaScript/Flash/... elements that make FF freeze/crash? I remember that there was a website maybe a year ago that got blocked by Malwarebytes because hackers were using their IP, so the website got also blocked as basically colleteral damage. I had the website as a tile on the "new tabe" and every time I hovered my mousee over it, a Malwarebytes popup appeared that the IP was blocked - without actually opening the website in a tab.

This would at least explain why it happens while loading a website (Amazon and Youtube for now) but also directly after opening a new tab (I would move my mouse over the tiles at some point).

It doesn't explain why it doesn't happen all the time because I visit Youtube and Amazon daily but on the other hand I don't know what goes on inside FF, so...

Let's try something else.

Firefox; Extended Support Release {web link} ESR Notes System Requirements

See if the problem is still there.

Firefox comes in two or more folders on all computers. They are;

Maintenance: (Programs Folder) <Windows Only> Firefox itself: (Programs Folder) And at least one folder in the profile of each user on the computer.

If you remove the Firefox folder, the user folders would not be affected.

FredMcD said

Let's try something else. Firefox; Extended Support Release {web link} ESR Notes System Requirements See if the problem is still there. Firefox comes in two or more folders on all computers. They are; Maintenance: (Programs Folder) <Windows Only> Firefox itself: (Programs Folder) And at least one folder in the profile of each user on the computer. If you remove the Firefox folder, the user folders would not be affected.

Does the ESR support Adblock and YouTube? If not, it will be a lot of work for nothing.

I clicked (+) new tab "by accident" twice since our last exchange and in both cases the OS locked completely, forcing a reboot and RAID rebuild. Hours wasted at times when we're frantically busy with work, customer invoices...etc.

The fix would be for the devs to look at what they did in FF53 to make (+) lead to a non-responding FF and shortly afterwards to a crashed Windows session and locked OS.

At this point, FF53 gets the dubious award of being the most productive time destroying software. It even beats the "we'll force it because its good for you" upgrade to Windows 10.

Neph said

I hoped that 53.0.3 would fix it but looks like I got my hopes up too soon, FF just froze my PC again. ...

Without knowing what was changed in 53, we can only speculate.

The evidence I have points strongly to:

1) FF53 update 2) Clicking the (+) new tab - leads to chain of events that crashes your windows session and locks the OS. The latter is not immediate - it may take several seconds - but it originates with the non-responding new tab window being created. 3) This is independent of the rest of your software environment (add-ons...etc). It seems to be strictly between FF and Win7 pro 64b.

Because there is some time interval between the FF crash and the OS crash, I suspect there is some infinite loop or infinite request for an OS resource (like WinMsg being generated without end) by FF - but only the devs who know what they did in FF53 can guess exactly.

I have the same problem. It was locking up my laptop about once every day for 2 or 3 weeks. I thought it started with FF 52, but it is definitely in FF 53. I had installed Microsoft .NET 4.5.1 about the time it started happening. I backed out Microsoft .NET 4.5.1 and the problem seemed to go away, at least for 1 week, but I just got a lock up again. It seems to happen the first time using the browser after I open the laptop (resuming from hibernate). It isn't necessarily the first time of the day. Today it happened when I came back from lunch. I opened laptop, clicked on my microsoft outlook 365 icon on the Firefox startup page. It went immediately to Not Responding. Mouse worked for 20 seconds, but I couldn't do anything - No Alt-Tab, no Ctrl-alt-del. Had to hold power switch for 5 seconds to reboot. Maybe it is due to wifi not quite being all the way connected? Anyway, this is very annoying.

MichaelNicholas said

I have the same problem. I..... Maybe it is due to wifi not quite being all the way connected? Anyway, this is very annoying.

Thank you for raising the issue too. There is no wifi on my computer and I experience the same symptoms when I open a new tab with (+).

It happened again later yesterday. That time, it was not right after resuming. I opened a new tab, then typed a URL (www.youtube.com) and immediately got the Not Responding, then entire PC Locked up. I only had 1 other tab open. I don't think it has anything to do with the specific URL because it happens so quickly, whether by thumbnail (which i usually do) or by typing the URL.

One other issue I've been having is sometimes the new tab page does not respond to clicks on the thumbnails, but the computer does not lock up. I am able to recover from that by closing that tab and opening a new one, then clicking on the thumbnails.

Start your Computer in safe mode. Then start Firefox. Try Safe websites. Is the problem still there?

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Linux+Safe+Mode Starting Any Computer In Safe Mode; Free Online Encyclopedia

FredMcD said

Let's try something else. ...

Sorry, what do you mean exactly? Do you want me install that other version? The requirements are met without problem (i7, 16gb RAM, enough free disc space). I have to agree with AmityGames though, if the ESR version doesn't support AdBlock, NoScript and websites like Youtube and Amazon, I can't/won't use it.

AmityGames said

I clicked (+) new tab "by accident" twice since our last exchange and in both cases the OS locked completely, forcing a reboot and RAID rebuild. Hours wasted at times when we're frantically busy with work, customer invoices...etc. ...

I'm still really interested in when/how it happens: - Did you always have other tabs with actually loaded websites open when it happened? - When does it actually freeze for you and how much time is between opening a new tab and a full freeze? Do you get the chance to enter the address for the website you want to open before it freezes? - Does it always happen with the same website? - Do you use tiles/"thumbnails" on the "new tab" page? - Is FF installed on a SSD or HDD?

As for me: - As far as I remember, no, only another empty tab. - It's pretty fast, I click and 2-3 seconds later I get the freeze. Only happens when I click on the "+" to enter a new tab or in 2 cases after I opened a new tab, went back to the first and opened a website through one of my tiles on the "new tab" page. - I only remember it happening with Youtube and Amazon a single time each, I think the rest was with empty tabs. - Yes, I use 3 rows and 5 colums, so 15 tiles in total that are all used more or less regularely. - HDD, haven't got any SSDs in my PC.

MichaelNicholas said

I have the same problem. ...

Thanks for your post! Please also answer the questions above, maybe we can find something we all have in common! So for you it also happened while it was still displaying the spinning "loading" circle after clicking on a tile but it still let you move the mouse for 20 seconds, even though you weren't able to click on anything else? Basically it took 20 seconds before your PC locked up? I'm not using WiFi and my PC hasn't got any type of Wifi card built in, only the usual Lan port which I'm using.

FF does sometimes freeze for me, the status status bar goes from dark to light, I get the "wait please" mouse cursor and FF doesn't respond to anything. This goes away after 5-15 seconds and usually happens directly after starting up my PC, I guess Windows is still doing startup-stuff in the background. Something I did notice though which is also really annoying: FF uses a lot more RAM now that it's not a single process but 3. Before that got changed it was using 300-400mb all day long unless a lot of tabs were open at the same time. Now it's using 500-600 overall and it gets even higher than that during simple surfing (no youtube,...). Yesterday I've had the 3 processes use about 1gb of RAM according to the Task Manager even with just a single empty tab open (I did watch a few Youtube videos beforehand).

MichaelNicholas said

I have the same problem. It was locking up my laptop about once every day for 2 or 3 weeks. I thought it started with FF 52, but it is definitely in FF 53. I had installed Microsoft .NET 4.5.1 about the time it started happening.

Sorry, forgot to ask: Are you using Win 7 64bit too? What addons are installed (stuff like AdBlock,...)?

Please open your own thread in this forum and post a link here (in mine) and here (in wwwaste's): https://support.mozilla.org/nl/questions/1158873

Also don't forget to click on the "I have the same problem" in both my and wwwaste's threads and also in AmityGames': https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/questions/1160417

Neph said

Do you want me install that other version?

ESR still supports plugins.

I had another freeze/lock up on Tuesday, so 2 days ago and before the update to 54.0.

Running programs at that time:

• FF (53.0.3 I guess)
• Outlook
• Skype (no old or new messages incoming)
• My usual Anti-virus/-malware software (no scans running)
• Rainmeter + mouse driver
• Open Shot Video Editor

New programs:

• Open Shot Video Editor
• No new Windows updates, drivers,...

When it happened:

• The PC had been running for maybe 1-2 hours at that point.
• Firefox had a single, empty tab open showing the tiles.
• I was editing a video with Open Shot - only adding stuff to the timeline, moving it around and changing the new objects' settings, no exporting or anything heavy like that
• Open Shot froze - unfortunately it's pretty unstable (hadn't noticed until I already started to edit, at least I won't use it again) and I was waiting for it to either unfreeze or crash - Windows was fine at that point.
• I switched to the already open FF window, then opened a new Windows explorer window above it
• Misclicked on a tile in the open FF window (not Amazon/Youtube this time)
• Moved the mouse a bit and 1-2 seconds later there was the freeze (while the website was still loading)

What I've noticed:

• For me it only happens if I have 1-2 tabs open, never with more than that
• Every time the "loading" circle in the empty tab was still spinning when the freeze happened
• All the websites it happened with (Amazon, Youtube and another one) I trust enough to have NoScript disabled for their main page, so e.g. amazon.de, youtube.com,...
• I do think that it has something to do with scripts that make FF freeze but instead of working it out on its own/crashing, it also drags down Windows.

FredMcD said

ESR still supports plugins.

Okay. Just saw that the latest ESR version is basically 52.0, so that one should be fine but I might try it if 54.0 still causes another freeze.

Version 54 is also causing lockups too.... so the problem is still not fixed.

I also had lockup in version 54 today.