Firefox: Update doesn't work - you can do that

Firefox automatically checks for an update and offers you the installation. If the software update does not work, you have several options to get the latest version. We'll show you what these are in this practical tip.

Firefox: Perform a manual update - how it works

If you see the information "Software update failed", you can update it manually. To do this, proceed as follows:

1. Download the current version of Firefox to your computer.
2. Close the browser and double-click the installation package you just downloaded.
3. Alternatively, click on the "Open menu" menu button in Firefox and then on the help button with the question mark.
4. Then select the "About Firefox" entry. Firefox will now check for updates.
5. Once updates are ready to install, click the "Restart Firefox to complete the update" button.

Firefox: Quit running programs before update

Programs like Spybot TeaTimer or Logitech QuickCam can prevent the update process. Therefore, you should end these running programs before the update:

1. To deactivate the TeaTimer, open the Spybot program and select "Mode"> "Advanced mode" in the menu.
2. Confirm the next message with "OK".
3. Click on "Tools" and then on "Resident".
4. Remove the ticks from Resident "TeaTimer".
5. Try to install the program again and then activate the TeaTimer.
6. You can disable Logitech QuickCam using the Task Manager.
7. Select "Quickcam.exe" there and click on "End Process".
8. Occasionally there are also instances of Firefox that block processes. Find all entries in Task Manager that are specified with Firefox.
9. Then open the browser again and start the update manually as described above.

Firefox has built in many commands that most users are not familiar with. You can read about the hidden functions in Firefox with which you can get even more out of your browser in the next post.