Troubleshooting (Users)
TODO, at least:
- Blank profile
- Grey monkey
- Error console
Smaller Problems
Greasemonkey Enabled Status
Greasemonkey can be disabled, so that none of its scripts are run. Check the monkey menu icon. If it is displayed in light grey, Greasemonkey is disabled. Click it to re-enable Greasemonkey. Similarly, you can check the Tools, Greasemonkey, Enabled menu item. Is it checked? If not, check it off and try again.
Script Enabled Status
If you have installed a [user script] and it doesn't seem to work, or it used to work and does no longer, there are a few things to consider.
- Scripts do not run on every page. Check the [Greasemonkey Manual:Monkey Menu monkey menu] in the status bar. It should list every installed script that runs on the current page. If the script is not listed, it does not run on this page.
- Are you sure it is installed? Open Tools, Greasemonkey, Manage User Scripts. Is the script in the list on the left?
- The script must be enabled in order to function. Is the script's name greyed out? When you select it in the list, is the enabled check box below the list checked? If not, check it, and try again.
Bigger Problems
Fresh Profile
Creating
Firefox stores all of a user's preferences and settings in a profile. This includes browsing history, cookies, saved passwords, installed extensions, all settings, and other personalized data. You can read more about profiles at Mozilla's support site.
Unfortunately, sometimes the Firefox profile can become corrupted, causing all kinds of problems. Also, it's possible for two Firefox extensions to break each other, which is difficult to recognize.
Thankfully, there is a straightforward way to find out if either of these have happened. You can create a second fresh profile, run a test in it, and then remove it and switch back to your existing profile with nothing lost.
You can follow Mozilla's "Managing Profiles" instructions, with screenshots and videos. For clarity, the steps are also explained here
First: Start the profile manager.
- For Windows, click Start, Run... and type: firefox -profilemanager, then click OK.
- For Linux and Mac, just type firefox -profilemanager at the console.
Then: Select Create Profile..., click Next, and in the box that comes up type a name, like "test". Click Finish. Select the profile you just created, and select Start Firefox.
After testing is complete, repeat step two, but select the original (probably "default") profile to switch back.
Running
With this fresh profile running, you should see Firefox at it's completely default settings, like after the first time you ran it.
First: Install Greasemonkey and restart Firefox. Open Tools, Error Console. Is anything displayed there? It should be empty. If not, right-click and copy the text of each, these details can be important.
Second: Install user scripts, preferably one at a time, and check after each that everything is working. If adding one causes a problem, please note which script it was.
Third: If you've installed all your scripts, and everything works OK, another extension may be conflicting. Install all the other extensions you have in your normal profile, one by one, and note which if any causes the problem to return.
Details of exactly what you noticed, and when, when running through the steps above are invaluable for anyone else to help you. Take them with you as you try getting help.
