645088 - Browser freezes while loading flash content using latest flash plugin

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Core Graveyard :: Plug-ins, defect)

Description

[Ron Bass]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 5.1; rv:2.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/4.0
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 5.1; rv:2.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/4.0

After Adobe's update loader installed the latest flash plugin this morning (10.2.r153), Firefox 4.0 froze when browsing to any page with flash content.  Restarting firefox in safe mode cleared the problem (of course) but re-enabling the flash plug-in caused it to immediately to reappear.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1.Start Firefox in safe mode
2.Browse to any Youtube video
3.Enable/Install Flash plugin when requested

Actual Results:  
Browser hangs after plugin is installed.  Task manager reports that no CPU resources are being used by the browser.  The browser appears to be asleep, waiting for a signal that never comes.

Expected Results:  
View selected video

Bug occurs in safe mode, with no other add-ons working.

Comment 1

[Ed Morley [:emorley]]

Safe mode doesn't disable plugins, only addons; so the flash player plugin will still operate in safe mode. Therefore if safe mode works and normal doesn't, then it's likely an addon (and not flash player) causing the problem.

Can you try with a new profile perhaps?
http://support.mozilla.com/kb/Basic+Troubleshooting#w_8-make-a-new-profile

Comment 2

[Ron Bass]

(In reply to comment #1)
> Safe mode doesn't disable plugins, only addons; so the flash player plugin will
> still operate in safe mode. Therefore if safe mode works and normal doesn't,
> then it's likely an addon (and not flash player) causing the problem.
> 
> Can you try with a new profile perhaps?
> http://support.mozilla.com/kb/Basic+Troubleshooting#w_8-make-a-new-profile

I guess I wasn't clear.  I had tested two specific cases.  The first time through, I had uninstalled the plugin before starting Firefox safe mode, and in the second test I had disabled the plugin (but left it installed) before starting safe mode. Firefox 4 freezes in safe mode if the (new) Flash plugin is both loaded and enabled when looking at any page with flash contents.  Disabling all of the other plugins in the browser doesn't change this behavior.

When I have time later this evening, I'll try testing with a new profile, as you suggested.

Comment 3

[Ron Bass]

I forgot to thank you for you reply in my earlier response.  Thank you!

(In reply to comment #2)
> When I have time later this evening, I'll try testing with a new profile, as
> you suggested.

I set up a new, "empty" profile and used it to start Firefox.  I found that all of the plugins from the original profile were still present, so I again disabled them all and opened a YouTube video in a new tab.  Of course, I was advised that I needed to enable Flash to see the video.  I then enabled the Flash plugin, reloaded the YouTube page and started the video.  The browser immediately froze, and could only be terminated using Task Manager.

Let me repeat that when I first installed the Firefox 4 upgrade, flash content was displayed correctly.  Things only went pear-shaped after I installed the Flash plugin upgrade this morning.

Comment 4

[Ron Bass]

I've been able to stabilize the Firefox 4/Flash 10.2.r153 combination by disabling the plugin container.  Flash content is again showing without causing the browser to hang.

Comment 5

[Vlad [QA]]

WFM on Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; rv:6.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/6.0 (beta 5)

This is still reproducing with the latest flash (10.3) installed? If not, can you please change the status of this bug to Resolved WFM.
Thanks.

Comment 6

[Gabriela [:gaby2300]]

Works fine for me using Windows 7 and Build identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.1; rv:16.0) Gecko/16.0 Firefox/16.0 20120713.