# Temporary Add-ons won't load: XULStore.jsm "Error: Can't find profile directory"

**URL:** <https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159>\
**Category:** Development\
**Created:** [September 16, 2019, 2:29pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159 "2019-09-16T14:29:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![scottjunk0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@scottjunk0](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/scottjunk0)\
**Post date:** [September 16, 2019, 2:29pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/1 "2019-09-16T14:29:13Z")

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The title pretty much says it all: I cannot load temporary addons anymore. They show up on the “about:debugging” page after I try to load them, but do not show any signs of running. The “Inspect” button shows an error “Can’t find profile directory” with the filename XULStore.jsm.

I’ve tried creating deleting (renaming) XULStore.jsm, restarting Firefox, creating a new profile, and rebooting the computer. Still having the issue.

One thing that _may_ be related is that I was working on a very memory intensive addon (it attempted to load 300+ multi-megabyte images) when this started. However, it is not just this addon that I cannot temporarily load; others that worked before will not load as temporary addons.

Any help would be welcome. 🙂  
-Scott

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**Author:** ![miton](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/miton/32/32462_2.png) [@miton](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/miton)\
**Post date:** [December 12, 2019, 10:16am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/2 "2019-12-12T10:16:10Z")

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How to solve this problem? anyone has idea?

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**Author:** ![jorgev](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/71c47a/32.png) [@jorgev](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/jorgev)\
**Post date:** [December 17, 2019, 7:29pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/3 "2019-12-17T19:29:41Z")

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I suggest you [file a bug for it](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/enter_bug.cgi?product=Toolkit&component=Add-ons+Manager).

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**Author:** ![QusiFR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/cdc98d/32.png) [@QusiFR](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/QusiFR)\
**Post date:** [March 10, 2020, 11:55am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/4 "2020-03-10T11:55:28Z")

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Same issue here.  
I found a bugreport in bugzilla saying this bug won’t be fixed because it shouldn’t happen for long … It’s been 10 monthts now ☹

> **[1548017 - XULStore Can't find profile directory with ProfileManager](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1548017)**
>
> RESOLVED (nobody) in Core - SQLite and Embedded Database Bindings. Last updated 2024-08-20.

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**Author:** ![Mads\_Ravn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90db22/32.png) [@Mads\_Ravn](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/Mads_Ravn)\
**Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 9:47am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/5 "2020-08-03T09:47:44Z")

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I’m still getting this error. Really unfortunate when you’re trying to learn something new.

Maybe put up a warning over here: [https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/Your\_first\_WebExtension](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/Your_first_WebExtension)

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**Author:** ![juraj.masiar](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/juraj.masiar/32/30587_2.png) [@juraj.masiar](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/juraj.masiar)\
**Post date:** [August 3, 2020, 10:44am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/6 "2020-08-03T10:44:51Z")

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I agree, the docs could be improved.  
I would say you should always use [web-ext](https://github.com/mozilla/web-ext) tool for testing your extensions.

First install it globally with:  
`npm i -g web-ext`

And then go to the folder with your extension and execute:  
`web-ext run`

It will open new Firefox instance with your extension. Plus it will reload it every time you change your sources.

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**Author:** ![hans\_squared](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/hans_squared/32/67424_2.png) [@hans\_squared](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/hans_squared)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2020, 9:10am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/7 "2020-08-29T09:10:00Z")

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Same problem in Firefox 79.0 (64-Bit) on Manjaro Linux.

When I load a temporary add-on, the console shows this error:

> Error: Can’t find profile directory. XULStore.jsm:66:15  
> load resource://gre/modules/XULStore.jsm:66  
> XULStore resource://gre/modules/XULStore.jsm:24

But:  
This error only occurs after setting  
Edit → Preferences → Privacy & Security → History → Never remember history  
(which Firefox automatically changes to “Use custom settings for history → Always use private browsing mode” after restarting)

I keep discovering bugs like this in Firefox.  
It’s the gift that keeps giving!

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**Author:** ![freaktechnik](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/freaktechnik/32/37766_2.png) [@freaktechnik](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/freaktechnik)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2020, 9:12am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/8 "2020-08-29T09:12:40Z")

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Since you seem to have isolated the exact conditions:

> [@Temporary Add-ons won't load: XULStore.jsm "Error: Can't find profile directory"](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/3):
>
> I suggest you [file a bug for it](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/enter_bug.cgi?product=Toolkit&component=Add-ons+Manager).

Thanks!

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**Author:** ![hans\_squared](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/hans_squared/32/67424_2.png) [@hans\_squared](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/hans_squared)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2020, 9:58am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/9 "2020-08-29T09:58:25Z")

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I don’t have much experience with reporting Firefox bugs…

Should I use [https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show\_bug.cgi?id=1548017](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1548017) (already posted in this thread) or create a new bug report?

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**Author:** ![freaktechnik](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/freaktechnik/32/37766_2.png) [@freaktechnik](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/freaktechnik)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2020, 10:44am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/10 "2020-08-29T10:44:18Z")

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If you’re unsure that it is the same bug, report a new bug. It’s better to have duplicates than no info…  
If you are fairly certain that it’s the same thing, post a comment on there.

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**Author:** ![hans\_squared](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex001/user_avatar/discourse.mozilla.org/hans_squared/32/67424_2.png) [@hans\_squared](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/hans_squared)\
**Post date:** [August 29, 2020, 11:33am UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/temporary-add-ons-wont-load-xulstore-jsm-error-cant-find-profile-directory/45159/11 "2020-08-29T11:33:09Z")

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Reported as [https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show\_bug.cgi?id=1661906](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1661906)