why is microsoft edge so messed uo now

Hello, thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A.

You may encounter this issue if your Microsoft Edge user profile is corrupted.

If the address bar in Edge is not working properly, it is also possible that a different search engine has been selected or incorrectly configured. To troubleshoot, please create a new test Edge user profile and check whether everything works correctly there.

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1. Open Microsoft Edge and go to Settings.
2. Select Profiles.
3. Click Add profile.
4. Select Start without your data.
5. Click Confirm and start browsing, then select Finish.

After that, use the Edge address bar in the new profile and see if it works properly.

If it does work correctly, you can delete the old profile and sign in to the new profile with your Microsoft account to start syncing your data again.

Let me know if you still need more help.

Several different settings or issues can cause the behavior described, but they can usually be fixed with a few checks and repairs in Microsoft Edge and Windows.

1. Check that Edge is working correctly

• If Edge is crashing, not opening, or behaving inconsistently (like not remembering things randomly), first stabilize the browser:
  1. Close all Edge windows.
  2. Restart the computer to clear any stuck processes.
  3. Make sure Edge is up to date:
     • Open Edge → Settings and more (…) → Settings → About Microsoft Edge and let it install any updates.
  4. If problems continue, repair Edge:
     • Close Edge for all users.
     • Go to Start → Settings → Apps → Installed apps.
     • Find Microsoft Edge → Modify → Yes → Repair.

2. Fix address bar acting like “search only” If the address bar is only doing search and not auto-completing URLs the way it used to, it is usually due to settings or corrupted profile data.

Try resetting Edge settings (this does not remove favorites or saved passwords, but it resets startup, new tab, search, and some content settings):

1. Open Edge.
2. Go to Settings and more (…) → Settings → Reset settings.
3. Select Restore settings to their default values and confirm.

If the address bar still does not behave correctly, there may be corruption in the profile data. In similar cases where search engine options disappeared or behaved incorrectly, forcing Edge to regenerate its “Web Data” file fixed it. The supported way to do this without low-level file operations is:

1. Close Edge.
2. Restart the computer.
3. Open Edge and sign back into the profile (if using a Microsoft account) so it can resync settings and search configuration.
4. Fix passwords not being remembered If Edge stopped remembering passwords or sites:

• Ensure password saving is still enabled (and not disabled by policy):
  • Open Edge → Settings and more (…) → Settings → Profiles → Passwords.
  • Confirm that the options to offer to save passwords and to sign in automatically are enabled.
• If passwords used to be there and now appear missing or inconsistent, check that the same profile is being used and that sync is on.
• If malware or a “browser hijack” has occurred, it can interfere with saved data and behavior. In that case:
  1. Run a full malware scan using Windows Security (see the "Stay protected with Windows Security" guidance in the Edge troubleshooting article).
  2. In Edge, go to Settings → Reset settings → Restore settings to their default values.

4. Clear corrupted browsing data (optional but often helpful) If sites are not loading correctly or Edge behaves oddly:
5. Open Edge → Settings and more (…) → History → Open history page → Delete browsing data.
6. Set Time range to All time.
7. Select at least Browsing history and Cached images and files → Clear now.

If problems persist after all of the above, repair Edge from Windows Apps (as in step 1) is the next step. This keeps browser data and settings but reinstalls the core browser components.

References:

• What to do if Microsoft Edge isn't working
• Microsoft Edge, browsing data, and privacy
• Microsoft Edge password manager security
• My edge is blocking literally almost all sites or address I want to visit. - Microsoft Q&A
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• My browser is hijacked by thaitingshospica.com how to remove? - Microsoft Q&A
• Microsoft Edge will not start. - Microsoft Q&A