Profiles Directory in Windows 11 points to the "wrong" location
I installed the Firefox browser (version 113.0.2 (64-bit)) onto a new PC running Windows 11. When attempting to clean up the Firefox cache with another utility, I noticed that the amount of space recovered was much smaller than expected. When I tried to check my profile using the Troubleshooting Information page (to open the folder) I received a message that the location was not available. I double checked with Windows Explorer and this was the case. Searching for "cache2" in Explorer located the folder/directory in a different location.
The Firefox Profile Folder should be in this location, according to Firefox's Troubleshooting Information page (anonymized information in square brackets):
C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[character string 1].[profile name]
The best I can tell, the actual Profile Folder created in Windows 11 is located here:
C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_[character string 2]\LocalCache\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[character string 1].[profile name]
The cache folder for the profile is located here:
C:\Users\[username]\AppData\Local\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_[character string 2]\LocalCache\Local\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[character string 1].[profile name]\cache2\entries
I am not sure if this situation is unique to me, or if this is a common occurrence with Windows 11.
The use of the Packages folder may be the result of installing an application that is not fully "Windows 11-native" or it may just be the new way Windows deals with some applications. I am not sure if the data in character string 2 is consistent, or if it is a unique string created by Windows when Firefox was installed.
If I go to the Settings and clear data, the folder that is a sub-folder of Packages is cleared, so Firefox "knows" where the data is, but the Troubleshooting Information page is confused.
If this is a common occurrence, a tweak to this page in a future release would be helpful. If it is a rare occurrence, a help article may be, well, helpful.
Thanks.
Soluzione scelta
If you download and install Firefox from the Mozilla server then it should use a profile in the AppData\Roaming (main profile) and AppData\Local (cache) location.
Leggere questa risposta nel contesto 👍 1Tutte le risposte (3)
You didn't attach Troubleshooting Information, so I can't check what Firefox version you have. Are you using the MSIX version from the Microsoft Store as this version has its profile in a different location ?
- https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/download-firefox-windows-microsoft-store
- C:\Users\xxx\AppData\Local\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_xxxxxxxxxxxxx\LocalCache\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox
I assume that the cache would be in the \LocalCache\Local location Does the button on the "Help -> More Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page or on the about:profiles page brings to the correct location ?
Thanks for the reply. Since this was a new computer, I was installing apps from multiple locations. I think I got Firefox from the Microsoft Store, but I can't be certain about it.
The button on the More Troubleshooting Information does not take you to the correct location. You get a Windows Explorer window with an error message stating that the location (directory/folder) can not be found. I think that I tried the profiles page as well, with the same result.
I'm not a programmer, but it _may_ be that (some of) the directory data in this page is "hard coded" somehow, rather than using information from a configuration file. If so, changing this page to use information from a config file, and/or passing directory information from the installation process to a config file might be worthwhile in a future release.
Would removing Firefox from my computer and then downloading it directly from Mozilla create profiles in the directory that shows on the Troubleshooting Information page when I re-install it? I'm a bit reluctant to go through setting up preferences/options all over again, but I'm willing to do so in order to keep things as "unconfused" as possible.
Thanks again.
Modificato da Irgendjemand il
Soluzione scelta
If you download and install Firefox from the Mozilla server then it should use a profile in the AppData\Roaming (main profile) and AppData\Local (cache) location.