Import wizard has hanged for an hour; browser doesn't start
1. I am trying to install Firefox. For the past hour it has been hanged at this point: Import Wizard Importing... The following items are currently being imported... Internet Options Cookies Browsing History Favorites [<Back][Next>][Cancel] All 3 buttons are grayed out, disabled.
2. Internet Explorer is still working even though Firefox already set Firefox to be my default browser. In Internet Explorer I tried to view http://www.mozilla.org But Mozilla's site redirected Internet Explorer to http://www.mozilla.jp At the bottom of http://www.mozilla.jp, I clicked on words "mozilla.org (グローバルサイト)". Those words are a link to http://www.mozilla.org But Mozilla's site redirected Internet Explorer to http://www.mozilla.jp Now I'm stuck in an infinite loop too. Every time I click on "mozilla.org (グローバルサイト)", it repeatedly displays http://www.mozilla.jp with words at the bottom "mozilla.org (グローバルサイト)".
3. Meanwhile, the Import Wizard is still hanged, and I still can't open Firefox as a browser.
4. By the way, the reason Firefox is trying to install in English is that a Google search for firefox showed site http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/ and http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/ did not redirect to mozilla.jp
5. Meanwhile, the Import Wizard is still hanged, and I still can't open Firefox as a browser.
The OS is Windows 7 SP1 64-bit Japanese with all Windows Updates except that Internet Explorer is version 10 because Internet Explorer 11 breaks Outlook 2003.
All Replies (6)
The import wizard is still hanged.
Now I cannot open Outlook 2003. It looks like the import wizard has locked Outlook.pst
I am not installing Thunderbird. I'm trying to install Firefox.
The [X] button in the upper right corner of the Import Wizard window worked, even though the Cancel button was grayed out. So I didn't have to use Windows Task Manager to kill it.
Firefox is now displaying "Welcome to Firefox".
Outlook 2003 is starting up. It displays an error message that my personal folders (個人用フォルダ) were not closed properly, and I suppose it's going to spend an hour checking if Outlook.pst was broken.
I have a backup of Outlook.pst from one week ago.
Maybe the Firefox installer should warn people to close Outlook before installing Firefox? (To repeat, this is Firefox not Thunderbird.)
(Deleted duplicate posting)
Modified by n0diamond
The tiniest bit of good news is that Firefox didn't delete any of my e-mail.
Mozilla's installer didn't import any of my favorites from IE. I guess it hanged before it got to that point.
Instructions in https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/import-bookmarks-internet-explorer kind of worked. I selected to import only Internet Options and Favorites, and it ran almost immediately. The bookmarks went into a separate Mozilla bookmark folder, "From Internet Explorer", instead of being immediately visible in the main bookmark list.
... Importing of cookies appeared to have worked, taking around 40 seconds. I will not try to import history.
... Outlook 2003 can still display my e-mail (to repeat, this installation is Firefox and I am not downloading or installing or using Thunderbird).
So in summary, not much damage has been done, but the hang of the original Import Wizard is not solved.
Try to exclude the IE Favorites.
If there are problems with importing the IE Favorites in Firefox then export the favorites in IE to an HTML file and import that file in the Firefox Bookmarks Manager.
If you do not have the menu bar in IE then right-click the toolbar at the top to enable the Menu Bar.
- Export the favorites in IE to an HTML file (bookmarks.html):
File > Import and Export - Import the HTML file in Firefox:
Bookmarks > Show All Bookmarks > Import & Backup > Import Bookmarks from HTML
See "Import from another browser" and "Import from file":
As previously stated: So in summary, not much damage has been done, but the hang of the original Import Wizard is not solved.
When the original Import Wizard hanged during installation, there was a Firefox icon on the desktop but double-clicking the icon did not start Firefox because there was already a firefox.exe process (the hanging installer) so it would not even be possible to do the procedure of "import from another browser". I did not know that it was hanging on favorites. In fact I think it was not hanging on favorites, it was probably hanging on history and it was hanging on abusing my Outlook.pst file because Outlook couldn't even run. I think it didn't reach the stage of importing favorites because that would come later than the hang of importing history.
But at the time, I didn't know what it was hanging on, it was just hanging there for an hour with the Cancel button grayed out (together with two other grayed out buttons). I thought I was going to have to use Windows Task Manager to kill the installer and then uninstall whatever amount of Firefox had been installed. But I tried the [X] in the upper right corner and it did work more or less, even though the Cancel button didn't.
The original problem is not solved.
Also the abuse of Outlook.pst is not solved. Why would Firefox (not Thunderbird) prevent Outlook from accessing Outlook.pst?
I do know that everyone's a volunteer and I can't complain the way I complain about Microsoft, but I can still say accurately that the problem is not solved. If you don't want to solve it then mark it WONTFIX, but don't pretend that you solved it.