Locked or damaged places.sqlite

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Revision as of 11:14, 1 February 2009 by Alice Wyman (talk | contribs) (→‎Locked Places database: moved paragraph about Firefox 3.1 notice to the end and added reference for ending firefox processes as workaround)
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This article applies to Firefox 3

Starting in Firefox 3, bookmarks and browsing history are stored in the places.sqlite file, located in the Firefox profile folder. If the Places database is locked or damaged, many Firefox functions will not work and the following symptoms may occur:

  • Firefox opens to a blank page instead of the home page
  • Toolbar buttons such as Back/Forward are disabled
  • Bookmarks and history are missing
  • URL is not updated in the Location Bar as you browse
  • Bookmarking a page has no effect
  • Unable to delete, move, or edit certain bookmarks

Note: For other solutions to missing bookmarks, see Lost bookmarks. If changes made to bookmarks are lost when you restart Firefox, see Bookmarks not saved. If deleting a large quantity of bookmarks is very slow or causes a hang, see Firefox hangs.

Locked Places database

If Firefox works normally when you first open it after starting up the computer but multiple symptoms arise after you close and later reopen Firefox, it's likely that a Firefox process from a previous session did not close properly and the Places database ("places.sqlite" file) is locked. To work around the issue, close Firefox completely, end any Firefox processes (or reboot the computer), and restart Firefox. [1]

If this is a recurring problem, see Firefox hangs - Hang at exit and check for problematic extensions. If you use Norton 360 2.0 or Norton Internet Security 2008.5, this is a known issue. [2] Update to NIS 2009 or, if you use Norton 360, run Norton LiveUpdate and install all updates (for more help, contact Norton Support). If the problem persists, either disable "Phishing Protection" in Norton's settings [3] or delete "coFFPlgn.dll" from the Firefox components folder (details here) to remove the Norton anti-phishing toolbar from Firefox. [4]

Note: Starting in Firefox 3.1, if you open Firefox and the Places database is locked you will see the message, The bookmarks and history system will not be functional because one of Firefox's files is in use by another application. Some security software can cause this problem. [5]

Damaged Places database

If the symptoms described above occur even when you first start Firefox after rebooting the computer, the Places database ("places.sqlite" file) may be damaged or missing essential information. If you have a recent profile backup you can remove the file "places.sqlite" (and "places.sqlite-journal", if found) from the Firefox profile folder and replace it with the "places.sqlite" backup. If you have no backup or if it doesn't resolve the problem, you can rebuild the Places database as follows: (You may wish to export your bookmarks to an HTML file first, as a precaution.)

  1. Close Firefox completely
  2. Open the Firefox profile folder
  3. Delete or rename all files named "places.sqlite", including "places.sqlite-journal" and any "places.sqlite.corrupt" files, if found.

When you restart Firefox, "places.sqlite" will be rebuilt and your bookmarks will be automatically restored from the latest JSON bookmark backup; however, your recent browsing history will be lost. [6] [7] [8]

Note: In rare cases, your JSON bookmark backup files may also be damaged. You can optionally rebuild the Places database without using any JSON backups by also removing all "bookmarks-(date).json" files from the bookmarkbackups folder but this will result in missing bookmarks unless the profile folder contains a bookmarks.html file with your current bookmarks. If you have a bookmarks.html export or a saved copy of bookmarks.html, you can place it in the Firefox profile folder after removing the "places.sqlite*" and all JSON bookmark backups and Firefox will use those bookmarks to rebuild "places.sqlite".

Problems limited to bookmarks

If the Places database damage seems to be limited to bookmarks, for example, if certain bookmarks cannot be deleted, moved, or edited [9], try creating a new bookmark backup file in Firefox ("Bookmarks -> Organize Bookmarks -> Import and Backup -> Backup") and then restore the new backup as an alternative to rebuilding the Places database. This may work in Firefox 3.0.5 or above, since the bookmark backup process now bypasses certain invalid places.sqlite entries that may exist. [10] and has the advantage of preserving your browsing history. Using PC Tools Spyware Doctor is reported to cause this type of bookmark damage so you should contact PC Tools support for a solution or else stop using the software. [11] [12] [13]

Other solutions

  • A Windows user reports that running the CHKDSK utility resolves the Places database issues. [14]
  • A Linux user suggests that you check file permissions within your profile directory (e.g. ~/.mozilla/firefox/ljzv2exp.default/). [15]
  • Linux users report that updating Sqlite and then removing all places.sqlite* files resolves the issue. For more information, read this Firefox Support topic and this forum thread.
  • A Mac user reports multiple problems with bookmarks and history if the environment variable DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH is set for the login via the file ~/.MacOSX/environment.plist. Removing "environment.plist" and then logging out and back in resolves the issue. [16]
  • Go through the standard diagnostic steps or create a new Firefox profile to see if that solves the problem. [17]

See also

External links

Related bug reports