Firefox turns crazy when opening xml file

MrNice · July 2, 2025, 1:06pm

Hello,
With IrScrutinizer, I created .girr files. In fact these files are xml. See here.
Until now I could open them with Firefox but now, when I open them, Firefox keeps creating tabs and empty .part files in the Download directory.
I get hundreds of tabs and files.
I tried with Firefox, troubleshoot mode, still the same problem.
I can open the same .girr files with Firefox on another PC.

How can I solve the problem?
Here’s the Firefox information

Name: Firefox
Version: 128.12.0esr
Build ID: 20250616190003
Distribution ID: openSUSE
User Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:128.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/128.0
OS: Linux 6.4.0-150600.23.53-default #1 SMP PREEMPT_DYNAMIC Wed Jun 4 05:37:40 UTC 2025 (2d991ff)
OS Theme: TraditionalGreen / Adwaita
Multiprocess Windows: 1/1
Fission Windows: 1/1 Enabled by default
Remote Processes: 8
Enterprise Policies: Inactive
Google Location Service Key: Missing
Google Safebrowsing Key: Found
Mozilla Location Service Key: Found
Safe Mode: true
Memory Size (RAM): 15.0 GB
Disk Space Available: 674 GB

Let me know if you need more info.
Thanks

dcurtisfra · July 2, 2025, 3:50pm

@MrNice:

You could try checking the XML syntax with the CLI tool “xmllint” which is provided by the “libxml2-tools” RPM package –

 > LANG=C zypper info libxml2-tools
Loading repository data...
Reading installed packages...


Information for package libxml2-tools:
--------------------------------------
Repository     : Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15
Name           : libxml2-tools
Version        : 2.10.3-150500.5.26.1
Arch           : x86_64
Vendor         : SUSE LLC <https://www.suse.com/>
Installed Size : 92.2 KiB
Installed      : Yes
Status         : up-to-date
Source package : libxml2-2.10.3-150500.5.26.1.src
Upstream URL   : https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/libxml2
Summary        : Tools using libxml
Description    : 
    This package contains xmllint, a very useful tool proving libxml's power.

 >

MrNice · July 2, 2025, 4:28pm

xmllint --valid /path/to/file.girr

only returns the file output, nothing more.

gogalthorp · July 2, 2025, 4:39pm

XML is at base a text file

dcurtisfra · July 3, 2025, 9:39am

@MrNice:

Is the XML containing the data gathered readable or, does “IrScrutinizer” generate masses of unreadable XML?

If, it’s human-readable XML then, you’ll have to manually inspect the generated XML.

“IrScrutinizer” is written in Java – is your system running the latest Java version?

I’m running OpenJDK 21 –

 > LANG=C zypper info java-21-openjdk
Loading repository data...
Reading installed packages...


Information for package java-21-openjdk:
----------------------------------------
Repository     : Update repository with updates from SUSE Linux Enterprise 15
Name           : java-21-openjdk
Version        : 21.0.7.0-150600.3.12.1
Arch           : x86_64
Vendor         : SUSE LLC <https://www.suse.com/>
Installed Size : 543.5 KiB
Installed      : Yes
Status         : up-to-date
Source package : java-21-openjdk-21.0.7.0-150600.3.12.1.src
Upstream URL   : https://openjdk.java.net/
Summary        : OpenJDK 21 Runtime Environment
Description    : 
    The OpenJDK 21 runtime environment.

 >

I haven’t found anything on the HARCToolbox web site indicating which Java version is needed for their tools …

MrNice · July 3, 2025, 10:41am

Thank you for your answers. However I need to clarify.

IrScritizer run on a Raspberry Pi3 with PiOS and home made transmitter/receiver. It’s working fine for few weeks and generate .girr files that I open in PiOS Firefox, a laptop and a desktop both with Opensuse 15.5, Firefox (I should upgrade them!) .
RPi3 is slow and my main working box is the desktop OpenSuse 15.6. This is why I need FF working on it.
Moreover, xmllint --valid, doesn’t return a single error.
With all the above, in my point of view, IrScrutinizer is not the culprit, the files are valid xml.
My original question is “How to troubleshoot Firefox?”
At present time I write this post in this “crazy” Firefox but I have plenty tabs opened in the last .girr file. As soon I click on one of them to delete it, FF starts again to create new tabs and empty files in Download at top speed.
Should I uninstall et reinstall? But I don’t want to loose my settings.
As I said, I tried in “secure/troubleshoot mode” but I get the same issue.
Is there a non destructive way to fix it?

Advices and links are welcome
Many thanks

dcurtisfra · July 4, 2025, 2:17pm

@MrNice:

I remain with my suspicion that, a Java version may well be the culprit –

If “IrScrutinizer” needs an older Java version then, you’ll have to install and use that Java version.

The only thing I’ve found is –

First make sure that the Java runtime of correct version (currently version 8 or later) is installed.

Java SE 8 and OpenJDK 8 first appeared in 2014 – more than 10 years ago …

MrNice · July 6, 2025, 12:40pm

As you say, it could be java version

sudo cat /var/log/zypp/history | grep java-
...
2025-03-24 11:44:40|install|java-11-openjdk|11.0.26.0-150000.3.122.1|x86_64||repo-sle-update|e8fe5ed24409b81aca12b7a205914def0108ad5ec0c1d0abc28acb944e78791f|
2025-06-14 12:20:44|install|java-11-openjdk-headless|11.0.27.0-150000.3.125.1|x86_64||repo-sle-update|8bffc2fc0d23972c3457e43fb4604f84913dafbd010664a5abe12692d978072e|
2025-06-14 12:21:02|install|java-11-openjdk|11.0.27.0-150000.3.125.1|x86_64||repo-sle-update|a89edfcaca111fc3849636ba100a2bce868749b3ff661f37367ad1f0fa48a996|
2025-06-14 12:21:45|install|java-binfmt-misc|1.4-bp156.4.3.1|x86_64||repo-backports-update|6b60c7efc26ec98bf9e013948795a3c819a57a1b214397169d75e7751316450e|

See the last update.
Could you tell me the right command to downgrade to 11.0.26.0-150000.3.122.1 with zypper ?

hui · July 6, 2025, 12:44pm

You can use YaST Software to downgrade via the versions tab.

MrNice · July 6, 2025, 4:28pm

I tried with
java-11-openjdk|11.0.26 and java-11-openjdk|11.0.25
Unfortunately nothing better.
Meanwhile, I checked my text editors and found “Sublime Text” installed.
It’s fine for .xml text and could be even better. I’m going to use it instead of Firefox.
I know, it’s frustrating not being able to solve the problem, but FF seems to work fine with html pages.

Anyway, thanks for your help.

dcurtisfra · July 7, 2025, 1:47pm

If your DE is KDE Plasma then, you could check the behaviour of the “Kate” text editor with the generated “.girr” files.

aggie · July 7, 2025, 3:55pm

In your orig post, you wrote:

On the Leap machine where it doesn’t work correctly, if it were me, I’d execute the Discover app and install the Flatpak variant of Firefox.

You will have a fresh install of FF to see if things work there.

The “native” openSUSE Firefox install and the Flatpak Firefox install can coexist and will NOT clash with each other.

It’s a quick test, because it’s a one-click install using Discover (and one click uninstall if doesn’t work).

What’s my thinking? There is possibly some sort of “corruption” with the FF that isn’t rendering /acting correctly. (corrupted cache files, etc)

MrNice · July 7, 2025, 4:37pm

I installed Firefox Flatpak and it opens .girr files correctly without problem.

BTW, my DE is MATE.

aggie · July 7, 2025, 6:35pm

Well, that’s a hint there’s some type of “corruption”, even if slight. And I quote the word because I don’t want to suggest it is something catastrophic

Our main browsers are Chromium based (Brave and Chrome), so I’m not familiar with Firefox idiosyncrasies.

If you used a Chromium based browser, I would suggest deleting the contents of the GPUCache subdir.

But Firefox doesn’t have that , and I have no idea if it uses similar technology, and stored somewhere else.

At the very least, you do have a workable solution on the main Leap install.

Maybe other folks who are Firefox experts might suggest some troubleshooting steps.

C7NhtpnK · July 7, 2025, 8:37pm

As always in such a case I suggest to create a new and clean profile within the Firefox of question and use that for a test.

about:profiles within Firefox or firefox -p on terminal.