Facebook video playing in Firefox stops when clicking windows 11 start button or opening solitaire after Windows Update

Facebook videos in Firefox stop playing when clicking the Windows 11 Start button or opening Solitaire (after recent update)

This issue has just started after a Windows 11 update and restart. It has never happened before. I usually watch Facebook Reels while playing Solitaire at the same time — yes, I know, I don’t have a life.

This morning, after the update and restart, I opened Facebook and started watching a Reel as normal. As soon as I clicked the Windows Start button to open the list of programs, the video stopped. I then selected Solitaire, which opened to the taskbar. I restarted the video, clicked Solitaire to open the game fully, and the video stopped again. As soon as I minimize Solitaire, the video resumes playing.

I’ve tried all the suggestions I could find via Google, but nothing has worked so far. Note that this only affects videos playing directly on Facebook — videos playing in the Windows Media Player Legacy video player itself are not affected.

Any help would be greatly appreciated… and yes, as mentioned, I clearly don’t have a life Link to video showing what happens when I select Solitaire in the Taskbar.Screen Recording 2026-01-31 115623.mp4

Regards everyone.

Windows 11 Pro
Version 25H2 OS Build (26.200.7628)

It is not windows update that is causing this, it is the websites themselves.I have read that they have engineered such a change after 29th Jan.
It happens in linux too.
We have to wait for some extension that will be developed surely.

cineman195 said:

It is not windows update that is causing this, it is the websites themselves.I have read that they have engineered such a change after 29th Jan.
It happens in linux too.
We have to wait for some extension that will be developed surely.

Click to expand...

Thanks very much I even went as far as doing a System Restore to a setting two days before this new update and nothing changed still have the problem.

cineman195 said:

It is not windows update that is causing this, it is the websites themselves.I have read that they have engineered such a change after 29th Jan.
It happens in linux too.
We have to wait for some extension that will be developed surely.

Click to expand...

I am not sure that is correct on the grounds that - Not only can I watch reels on Facebook and play solitaire, I can watch reels on Facebook whilst watching a movie at the same time, with the focus on the movie. Sound and all.
Just make sure it's unmuted.
When testing I noticed that the reel speaker icon had an x after opening another app, enabled it and sound on both the Movie and Reels was present.

I couldn't imagine how your settings differ from mine?
I am up to date with Windows and Apps.

Enable Picture-in-Picture (PiP) mode in Firefox

antspants said:

Enable Picture-in-Picture (PiP) mode in Firefox

About Picture-in-Picture in Firefox | Firefox Help

The Picture-in-Picture feature allows you to pop videos out of their webpage, so you can watch while continuing to work in other tabs.

support.mozilla.org

Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply I tried it but still did not work.

antspants said:

I couldn't imagine how your settings differ from mine?

Click to expand...

Right now, I am able to play youtube videos by splitting screen on my monitor and play solitaire too. Facebook doesn't allow me to do that. I googled and found in a Reddit post that this feature has been rolling out gradually from 29/01/26. That once focus is taken away from the browser, the video stops playing. There are extensions, settings that don't work. Later I tried this in Linux too, same result, so it is not a windows problem. Hope some of our senior geek members pitch in.
Regards

It does it on Windows 7 as well but it's strange that if I click the start menu it freezes the video but if I put the focus back on facebook and activate the video it does not to it the second time, it only does it the first time. So it's not you. Clicking anywhere on the task bar does it. Checking again on a new video it might freeze a couple of times and then not again after may tries. It also freezes when I alt tab to another app and then it starts automatically when I alt tab back to FB Seems to me that it has always been like this

01/02/2026 about 10am I Downloaded a FB updater this morning nothing changed annoyed.

I then sent a Report a Problem and linked two videos I made of the problem after first try this morning so maybe that helped????

13.40 Started FB again and woho it's working again.

Anyway sorry Microsoft Windows to doubt you.