Fix: Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing on Windows PC

Firefox Browser, which is also known as Mozilla Firefox, is a free-to-use open-source web browser. It has millions of users worldwide, and the number keeps increasing day after day. Though a few of the users among them have been recently experiencing a “Firefox freezing” issue.

How to Fix the “Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing on Windows PC”?

As per the suffered users, while they use the Firefox Browser on their Windows PC, the browser keeps freezing in between, keeping them from doing their required job. Once the Firefox Browser stops responding to any click on the website gives no fruitful result. However, the problem is resolvable, and we have some sure-shot methods for the same. Have a look:

FIX 1: Turn off hardware acceleration:

As per a few suffered users, turning off the Hardware Acceleration helped them in resolving the “Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing on Windows PC” issue. Hardware Acceleration is a feature that allows Firefox to use its PC’s graphics processor for displaying graphics-heavy web content. For turning off the Hardware acceleration, follow the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch Options from the sub-menu.
• Now go to the General Panel from the left-pane menu, and under the Performance section (on the right-pane menu), untick the checkbox for the option Use recommended performance settings.
• After that, a new option, Use hardware acceleration when available, will appear. Untick the checkbox for that as well.
• Now again, click on the three-line menu button and then click on Exit.
• Wait for Firefox to shut completely.

Once done, relaunch the Firefox browser and check whether the said issue got resolved or not.

FIX 2: Clear History in Firefox:

Like any other browser, Firefox stores and saves a history of every input done by the user. However, at times a piled-up history can cause Firefox to freeze; thus, it is always ideal to clear the browsing history, caches and cookies from the browser. For doing so, follow the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch Library from the Sub-menu.
• Now inside the Library window, click on History and then select the option Clear Recent History.
• On the next window, click on OK.

Lastly, check whether the Firefox freezing issue got resolved or not.

FIX 3: Disable Add-ons:

Extensions and Add-ons can potentially freeze the Firefox browser and keep the user from clicking on any of its features. As per a lot of suffered users, incompatible or outdated extensions were the main triggers for the “Firefox freezing” issue. However, when they disabled these extensions, the browser begins running smoothly again. You can also try the same with the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch Add-ons from the sub-menu.
• Now inside the Add-ons Manager window, navigate to the Extensions->Enabled section and then toggle off the button for each of the extensions there in the list.
• Once done, close Firefox, re-launch it again, and check for improvement.

FIX 4: Update your graphics drivers:

Incompatible and corrupt drivers at times can trigger the “Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing” issue. Here the best solution is to update the Graphics Drivers. For doing so,

For updating the Drivers Manually:

• Navigate to the NVIDIA and AMD official websites and locate the correct drivers.
• Once found, download them manually.
• Further, double-click on the downloaded file and follow the on-screen instructions in order to complete the process.

For updating the Drivers Automatically:

If not manually, you can also update the drivers automatically with any of the trusted driver updating software available online. The automatic method saves your time and makes it easier and more hassle-free.

FIX 5: Update to the latest version:

If you are encountering the Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing issue repeatedly, then it might be the time to update the browser to its latest available version. Every new update is designed to fix some bugs, add new features, and improve performance. Here to update your Firefox browser to the latest version, follow the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch the option Help from the sub-menu.
• Further, click on About Firefox.
• Now you will see the About Mozilla Firefox Here the browser will auto-locate for the latest update and download them as well.
• Once the downloading process gets completed, click on the Restart to Update Firefox tab.
• Lastly, check whether the “Firefox freezing” process gets resolved or not.

FIX 6: Create a new places database:

Firefox, when it repeatedly freezes time after time, the reason behind it can be a corrupted places database. Here the best solution is to create a new places database and check whether it helps or not. For doing so, follow the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch the option Help from the sub-menu.
• Now select the option Troubleshooting Information.
• Further on the next window, navigate to the Application Basics section, locate Profile Folder and then select the option Open Folder. It will launch the Profile folder.

Or, for opening profile folder, you can also, launch the RUN dialogue box, type %APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\ in the empty text box and then click on OK.

• Now again, navigate to the three-line menu button and then click on Exit.  Let Firefox close completely.
• Inside the Profile folder (you just opened), scroll down the list of options, locate the file name places.sqlite, right-click over it, and then select Rename. Here Rename the file as places.sqlite.old.
• Further, locate the file as places.sqlite-journal, right-click over it, and then select Rename. Here Rename the file as places.sqlite-journal.old. (This file might not exist for every user, and if you fail to locate it, then consider skipping the step).
• Finally, restart your Firefox and check whether it works smoothly or freezes again.

FIX 7: Delete duplicate Session Restore files:

Session Restore is one of the important components of the Firefox browser that saves open windows, tabs, as well as more other information. In case, when multiple copies are created, at times can freeze the Firefox browser. Here the best solution is to delete duplicate Session Restore files. For doing so, follow the steps given below:

• Inside the Firefox browser, click on the three-line menu button (at the top-left corner) and launch the option Help from the sub-menu.
• Then select the option Troubleshooting information.
• Further on the next window, navigate to the Application Basics section, locate Profile Folder and then select the option Open Folder. It will launch the Profile folder.
• Now again, navigate to the three-line menu button and then click on Exit. Let Firefox close completely.
• Inside the Profile folder (you just opened), scroll down the list of options, locate the file sessionstore.js and delete it. Delete any related copies like sessionstore-1.js and sessionstore-2.js as well.
• Lastly, restart Firefox and check whether the said issue got resolved or not.

These were the 7 tried, tested, and proven fixes for the “Firefox Browser Keeps Freezing on Windows PC.” The Firefox browser is one of the fastest-running internet browsers, and any issues with it are annoying.

While you clear the History, we recommend you clear the cache files as well. Clearing up all such piled-up information and files time to time helps in maintaining an improved performance regularly. If you have any queries or feedback, please write down the comment in the below comment box.