14 DAY TRIAL // Mozilla has announced that it's halting automatic updates to Firefox 7 until it fixes an add-on issue that has popped up. Some add-ons become hidden, though not deleted, when users upgrade to the latest Firefox 7, on both desktop and mobile.
Mozilla has stopped updates to minimize the impact and will have a patched version to push through the automated update channel soon.
"We’ve identified an issue in which some users may have one or more of their add-ons hidden after upgrading to the latest Firefox version, affecting both desktop and mobile," Justin Scott, on behalf of the Firefox Add-ons team, wrote.
"These add-ons and their data are still intact and haven’t actually been removed," he explained.
"We paused new updates to Firefox to minimize the potential impact on users and will soon release an update to fix this issue and ensure all your add-ons are visible and usable," he announced.
The missing add-ons are still there, they're just not displayed or used. In some circumstances, the add-ons are simply disabled, in which case you can go to the add-on manager and re-enable them.
If you're faced with the missing add-ons issue, there is a workaround available if you want your add-ons restored before Mozilla releases the updated Firefox.
Mozilla has provided the Add-on Recovery Tool, itself a Firefox add-on, which restores all of your missing extensions. Here are the steps necessary to install it.
If you can wait a bit longer, Mozilla is working on an updated Firefox which fixes the issue and also restores missing add-ons. However, while the patch may be simple, Mozilla still has to test the new version thoroughly to ensure no new issues are introduced.
Otherwise, if your Firefox hasn't been updated yet, you should be safe and should be getting the new Firefox 7 soon, albeit a bit later than expected.