Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords

Subject: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: Tootler
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 08:18 AM

I have just bought a new laptop, mainly for my wife's use.

She has forgotten a number of her passwords so I said I would see if could retrieve them from Firefox on the old laptop. Now it is quite easy to look them all up on the old computer and write them down so they can be typed into the new one, but I wondered if it was possible to retrieve the file they were saved on and copy it on to the new computer.

The old computer had WinXP (SP2) and the new one has Vista.

Any help appreciated.

As an aside, first impressions with Vista are that it's OK but I cannot see how it is an improvement on WinXP

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: Uncle_DaveO
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 08:46 AM

Microsoft, I believe thinks Vista is better than XP because they're forcing new system sales!

Dave Oesterreich

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: gnomad
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 09:18 AM

If you are using Firefox3 there is an addon called Foxmarks which stores both bookmarks and passwords online, enabling easy synchronising between computers (even of differing OSs) which may be of interest.

I don't regard my bookmarks as a security risk, and just use that feature, which also works for earlier Firefox incarnations. It does the job well.

I might use the password function if I was logging into lots of chat sites and such, but I don't do that, and wouldn't trust the security of an online storage with any important passwords.

I expect that Firefox has a file for all the passwords, but I can't offer any guidance, maybe one of our resident gurus will show up soon.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: SteveMansfield
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 09:56 AM

There are two files you need, both sitting in the firefox profile directory.

One will be called either signons.txt or signons2.txt (depending on the version of FF), and the other will be called key3.db. You need both files.

Copy both of them to a USB stick or whatever other transferable media takes your fancy, and put them both into the equivalent location on the new machine. Result, password transference nirvana.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: pavane
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 09:57 AM

Vista is WORSE than XP if you have old, but still useful, software.

Why? Because the HELP system has been removed by MS. So you can't look at the onscreen help.

OK, you can download a temporary fix at the moment, but MS says thet it WILL be phased out in future.

Somewhere in a training course for testing, (on the subject of Regression tests) I saw the question

Q. What is the worst thing that can happen to your software?

A. That a function which used to work no longer does.

Don't think MS ever took that course.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: Abby Sale
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 10:16 AM

Close Firefox.

Taking care to copy the old one first (ie, on the new computer), try simply copying over the settings directory. That is, move all its contents on the new computer to a zip file.

It will be like:
C:\Documents and Settings\(your default computer logon)\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\(alphanumeric).default\. You can also find it with a general search for bookmarks.html or cookies.txt. Just copy all the contents over then restart Firefox.

I _think_ that will work. If not, it will be in http://support.mozilla.com or even http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/chat/.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: Tootler
Date: 29 Oct 08 - 03:09 PM

One will be called either signons.txt or signons2.txt (depending on the version of FF)

I found 2 "signons.txt" files "signons2.txt" and "signons3.txt". Should I copy them both?

On the Vista compatibility issue, I have found one program that doesn't work properly on Vista. My wife has a Mahjongg game which she very much likes and though it works, it does not work properly. When I installed it the shortcut that the installer put on the desktop did not work - the path link was wrong. I got that sorted (after a fashion) and she found the the hint function does not work.

I'm sure it won't be the last. Microsoft seem to totally ignore the advice that Pavane got on his course every time they "upgrade" windows or any other of their programs.

I've just bought myself a netbook and I went for a Linux version. I will see how that pans out.

Ta for the hints so far.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: SteveMansfield
Date: 30 Oct 08 - 03:47 AM

I found 2 "signons.txt" files "signons2.txt" and "signons3.txt". Should I copy them both?

After a quick trip to Mr Google's Collection Of Internet Wibble, I'd say yes - looks like you're either running, or at some point have tried, a copy of the FF3 beta.

The only thing I'd add in that case is I'd work on the assumption that FF2 won't be able to read any passwords you saved in FF3, so the easiest thing is to make sure that the version of FF you put onto your new laptop is the same or a newer version than you have on the previous machine.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: The Fooles Troupe
Date: 30 Oct 08 - 07:58 AM

Re sfmans comments - if you check the creation date of the files, that may help.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: GUEST,Tootler on his new toy
Date: 30 Oct 08 - 02:24 PM

Ta. I am running FF3 on both computers. I'll check the necessary dates though

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: Tootler
Date: 31 Oct 08 - 12:15 PM

Well I tried copying the singons and key3.db into the profile folder, replacing the old ones (though I backed them up first).

The result: nothing.

Back to the drawing board :-(

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: SteveMansfield
Date: 01 Nov 08 - 08:50 AM

Gack, that's bad news.

In that case I'd second Abby Sale's wise words of 29 Oct 08 - 10:16 AM, try copying the whole profile folder onto the new machine.

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: katlaughing
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 02:50 PM

I've got a sudden problem with firefox remembering my passwords. I have it set to accept cookies, including mudcat and remembering passwords. For some reason, yesterday, it didn't register, so I had to log in to Mudcat. No problem and when the thing popped up and asked if I wanted it to remember my password I said yes. Next time I came back online, it's gone. I have to log in, again. So I dumped all of my private data, rechecked my settings, turned the computer off and rebooted. Went through the whole log-in, save pw thing, again. Son-of-a-gun did it again. If I go away and come back I have to log in. I do not have it set to delete all personal data when I log off the internet, so why is it doing this?

Subject: RE: Tech: Firefox - Saved Passwords
From: katlaughing
Date: 03 Nov 08 - 10:35 PM

anyone? I am still having to sign in every time I come back to Mudcat, after going offline. It doesn't happen with a couple of other websites to which I have instructed firefox to remember the passwords.