Fix the "cannot go back in history" Back button problem in Internet Explorer
Like probably everyone online, you have faced the problem where you cannot go back to the previous page of a website in Internet Explorer: you click on the Back button repeatedly, but nothing happens, except perhaps a refresh, but you stay on the same page; even hitting the Backspace key over and over doesn't bring you back to the previous page as it should. This is very frustrating problem, all too common, but fortunately a very easy issue to fix, as you'll learn in this tutorial!
Force Internet Explorer to go back in history (to previous page)
Follow these steps to force IE to return to the previous page, when the Back button doesn't work, and you are seemingly stuck on the same page:
In many cases, all you need is two or three clicks on the Back button, or the equivalent keyboard shortcut (Backspace key). Try hitting fast 2 or 3 times that key, it is easier than clicking fast enough the Back button.- Most of the time, Internet Explorer will end up bringing you back to the page you came from, and your problem is fixed. Read the next section in this tutorial to understand what causes this issue that blocks the back button from functioning normally.
If this did not work, and the Backspace / Back button left you on the same page, do the following instead: click on the dropdown arrow next to the history buttons in Internet Explorer 8 or Internet Explorer 7.- Note (for earlier versions of IE): Internet Explorer 6 and previous versions show the dropdown as part of the history Back or history Forward buttons - in that case, click on the Back button's dropdown.
- Then, manually pick the previous page to which you want to go, and Internet Explorer will bring you there, without having to go through the Backspace key or pointlessly clicking the Back button!
Why can't Internet Explorer go back to the previous page? (Back button doesn't work)
The reason behind this problem is not Internet Explorer, but how the web page was created: when you click on the Back button and nothing happens, this is only the surface - actually, Internet Explorer is bringing you back to the previous page, but that previous page happens to be a screen that uses JavaScript to redirect you to the next page.
In some cases, unfortunately not uncommon, you have several redirection screens, so even if you succeed going back to the page before that in your browsing history, it will automatically redirect you to the next one: by accessing your history levels from Internet Explorer's "Recent Pages" dropdown menu, you are able to bypass these redirections, and go directly to the previous page you wanted in the first place.