Firefox won't start after update

Hi,

I'm running a fully updated windows XP installation. From past few days, I'm finding that Firefox 3.5 simply will not open after update, either from the taskbar, the start menu, or a desktop icon. The only way I have found to get it going is to use system restore in safe mode to restore to a date on which it was working. It will work for a while and then quits after closing the browser. System restore did not work and allowing firefox by my firewall did not work and pausing Avg Antivirus did not work. Has anyone else run into this? Anything you think may work appreciated...

Firefox cannot start if the application Iolo System Mechanic is installed. You can see an error message like this: firefox.exe - Application Error. The memory can not be "written". (the memory address varies). Internet Explorer 8 and other browsers also may fail to start. To see if the system update corrects the mechanical problem, or if not need the program, consider uninstalling it. As a workaround, try disabling the system of two mechanical services. You can also try to rename "ioloHL.dll" file in the folder C: \ Program Files \ iolo \ common \ lib.

After upgrading from a previous version, Firefox 3 will not start after update. It hangs immediately after typing the "firefox" command in a CMD window before displaying the browser window or an error message.

After an Google search, I found the problem is similar to what is described here: Firefox 3 will not start if not set the Firefox Profile Manager to automatically start the selected profile. As a workaround, open the Profile Manager, select a profile, place a checkmark in the "Do not ask at startup" and then start Firefox with this profile, to configure it as default.

This should work for you. Just write "firefox-p" in the Start-> Run window to start the Firefox profile manager, and then click the button "Start" Firefox "and the popular Firefox browser appears again!

If Firefox does not open then try to open in safe mode. Safe Mode is a special Firefox execution mode that can be used to troubleshoot issues in Firefox. In Safe Mode, you can reset some settings or disable add-ons that might be the source of the issue. By comparing Firefox behavior in normal mode to its behavior in Safe Mode with various items disabled, you may be able to diagnose issues.

This is happening because you have an incompatible extension installed from a previous version of Firefox, Firebird or Phoenix - such as Tabbrowser Extensions. Follow the below steps :

1.Open My Computer.
2.Open Local Disk (C) (or wherever your profile data is stored). (Show Me)
3.Open Documents and Settings. (Show Me)
4.Open the folder whose name is your Windows user name. (Show Me)
5.Open the Tools menu and click Options... (Show Me)
6.Click the View tab and ensure Show hidden files and folders is selected in the Advanced settings: section. Click OK to close the panel. (Show Me)
7.A folder called Application Data should be visible. Open it. (Show Me)
8.Open the Phoenix folder (Show Me)
9.Open the Profiles folder (Show Me)
10.Open the folder called default. (If you are using another Firefox profile, open the folder matching the name of the Firefox profile you are using.) (Show Me)
11.Open the folder whose name contains a strange sequence of characters and a .slt extension. (Show Me)
12.Find the chrome folder (Show Me)
13.Rename the chrome folder to something else, like chrome-backup. (Show Me)
14.Close the Explorer window and try and launch Firefox again.
If after this you get the same error, uninstall Firefox completely, and remove the folder you installed it into (e.g. C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox) completely, then reinstall Firefox.