Why doesn't Firefox completely uninstall ?
Why does Firefox 22 on a Mac Os not completely uninstall? when I remove the application on the Mac by dragging the application to the garbage and then reinstall, my book marks are still present. Why? All applications should completely uninstall but Firefox does not and it has done this since version 13.
I am aware of the procedure to manual remove the files but this doesn't make sense as if you can manually remove files it should be automated.
Alla svar (4)
"I am aware of the procedure to manual remove the files but this doesn't make sense as if you can manually remove files it should be automated."
Yes true, you can manually delete the profile folder.
And it should be automated, but I think lots would have to change in order for such to be possible. Also note we are not developers, but volunteers. You can though post feedback to input.mozilla.org or posting a bug to bugzilla.mozilla.org
Firefox stores your user data and settings (called your profile) in a separate location from the program. Mac doesn't provide an easy way to remove your profile but you can do it manually. See these articles for details:
Onnce again I know the profie location and how to remove it. However another browser is able to completely remove all infomration but not Firefox. Why ? This situation existed for several versions
Many OS-X applications will leave orphaned files if you simply delete the application folder (ie move Firefox.app to trash). After all, a .app folder (or package) is simply a folder that OS-X recognizes as special. Nothing magical happens when you delete it- you are simply dragging a folder full of files to the trash.
Although some applications provide an uninstaller that may clean up support files, most do not. So to get what you want the maintainers of Firefox would need to write, test, maintain, and support an uninstaller app that would largely go unused. This would not be as trivial as you might think.
Anyway, 99.9% of the time these files are harmless (unlike the Windows registry for example). Also keep in mind that OS-X is a multi-user operating system and there are several locations where support files may be located.
For example, open Terminal (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app) and type the following two commands and you will likely see stuff you thought you long lost removed (copy and paste the stuff between the ticks `):
`ls ~/Library/Application\ Support/`
and
`ls /Library/Application\ Support/`
The first `ls` command (list files) is displaying support files for *your* user account (the tilde ~ is a command line shortcut to your home folder- ie. /Users/yourusername/Library/Application Support/). The second one is showing system wide support files accessible by all users.
99.9% of the time these files are harmless and take very little space so we simply ignore them. However; I myself use AppCleaner to 'uninstall' applications, and for when I want to 'reset' an app back to default without having to re-download it. This app will search for files that would normally be orphaned and allows you to optionally remove them. It's worked great for me over the years, but there may be alternatives in the AppStore.