Firefox 57 and NoScript

[Aaron Martin-Colby]

Likewise, I made a donation. And I'm going to make another one next month. NoScript is, without doubt, the most important extension I use.

[bonanza]

Unfortunately some APIs have been deferred by the Firefox team to 58.

Thanks for the information/update.

The postponed APIs, are they part of the standard WebExtensions or Firefox-specified APIs that will be offered on top of the standard WebExtensions?

[barbaz]

I'm really curious what the status of WebExt-NoScript is by now. I imagine that there are bugs left, but considering the time left until FF57 gets released (and knowing that NoScript is a hybrid addon for some time now) I presume it's in a working condition.
So, dear Giorgio, is there any chance we will see a beta version of webext-only Noscript beforce it even hits the dev-channel? Maybe it could be posted in this thread?

Bump.

Firefox 57 is now in release and only a week away from coming out. NoScript Webext is slated to go stable before Firefox 57 is released -

IMPORTANT: if you're using Firefox 57 you'll need to open about:config and turn the extensions.legacy.enabled preference to true, otherwise the browser will refuse to install Noscript.
Furthermore, you need a "blueish" Firefox, either Firefox Developer Edition or Nightly. The preference trick doesn't work in "orange" Firefox (beta/release). NoScript is currently a Hybrid WebExtension, and therefore won't install on Firefox 57 pre-releases without this trick. Before Firefox 57 is released in the stable channel, a pure WebExtension NoScript will be available an you'll be automatically migrated to it.

(red color emphasis mine)

Given the time scale, I would think NoScript Webext has got to be in a mostly-working state at this point.

Yet NoScript Webext isn't even in the dev channel yet.

That is beginning to look like scary little time for publicly testing NoScript Webext before it goes stable.

Now, I'm sure there is a good reason it hasn't been pushed to the dev channel. Perhaps it's because legacy NoScript still needs to be supported while Firefox 56 is the current release. Perhaps it's due to some AMO policy to the effect of not allowing legacy version of extensions uploaded after a pure WebExtension has been uploaded? But whatever the reason, by now it can't be so major that users of Firefox 57 pre-releases can't even try it out and report bugs, can it?

Giorgio, a lot of us in this community would be happy to help with testing. I imagine you can use all the help you can get now with this whole Webext deal being so rushed.

[4td8s]

in the meantime, I am temporarily using uMatrix (which is webext ready) with the 1st Firefox 57 candidate build that has recently came out.
hopefully a webext ready version of Noscript will be available by this coming veterans day weekend.

[barbaz]

Split the off-topic uBlock Origin/µMatrix discussion to https://forums.informaction.com/viewtop ... 18&t=23527 .

[name000000]

So as a NoScript user I'm a bit confused now. I don't want, for any period, to be browsing without NoScript's protection, yet I know that firefox will update to 57 fairly soon. Should I disable firefox's updating until a post-release-of-web-extensions-API-version of NoScript is released? Or will Noscript update itself to become the web extensions version as soon as firefox updates to 57. I don't think a date for the release of 57 has been announced yet. What steps must I take to ensure a seamless transition between older and newer firefox versions while ensuring I have NoScript running at all times? Thanks

[barbaz]

So as a NoScript user I'm a bit confused now. I don't want, for any period, to be browsing without NoScript's protection, yet I know that firefox will update to 57 fairly soon. Should I disable firefox's updating until a post-release-of-web-extensions-API-version of NoScript is released? [...] What steps must I take to ensure a seamless transition between older and newer firefox versions while ensuring I have NoScript running at all times? Thanks

already addressed https://forums.informaction.com/viewtop ... 453#p89453

I don't think a date for the release of 57 has been announced yet.

Firefox 57 will be released on 14 November 2017 - https://wiki.mozilla.org/RapidRelease/Calendar

[name000000]

So I should probably download the ESR release for myself and run that until the situation clears up? As opposed to temporarily disabling updating in firefox 56 pending when an announcement of NoScript's web extensions release is made.

[barbaz]

So I should probably download the ESR release for myself and run that until the situation clears up? As opposed to temporarily disabling updating in firefox 56 pending when an announcement of NoScript's web extensions release is made.

Up to you.

NoScript Webext is slated to be released and stable before Firefox 57 is released. So my recommendation for you would be to stick with Firefox 56 for now, unless NoScript Webext ends up delayed more than a few days relative to Firefox 57 release, in which case I would recommend going to 52 ESR.

I've read on mozillaZine that you can't "just" switch from Firefox 56 to Firefox 52 ESR. You'll need to create a new profile in Firefox 52 ESR, then copy over only the important data per this link - http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_ ... _-_Firefox

[name000000]

Just downloaded the firefox ESR exe file for the british english version (note to mozilla, you ought to be using mroe than just sha-1 hashes for your digital signatures on these downloads) onto my primary windows computer. Ran the installer, it overwrote my install of version 56 and when I opened firefox again all my settings and extensions were still in place but firefox had downgraded to the ESR channel (checked in the settings-->question mark-->about firefox bit, also evidenced by the curves reapearing at the tops of tabs rather than the straight edges of FF 56). Even all of NoScript's settings remained unchanged. The process of switching release channel seemed very quick and easy. I'm not sure I understand the comment about profiles, everything migrated across to the install of ESR automatically by the look of it.

[barbaz]

I'm not sure I understand the comment about profiles, everything migrated across to the install of ESR automatically by the look of it.

https://www.ghacks.net/2017/08/02/you-c ... -profiles/

[name000000]

Right now I'm typing from firefox 52 ESR yet a few hours ago this machine (ignore the machine specs in my earleir post, I was typing from a diffferent PC) had version 56. Yet I downloaded the ESR installer, ran it and now find myself with waht appears to be a working firefox ESR install with all my preferences and add-ons still in place. Has something impossible just happened to me, or does this mean the ESR release I've switched to will be somehow corrupt?

P.S. by profile you're meaning "all my settings, options and add-ons along with any settings put into the add-ons"? I have never signed into firefox though or set up a firefox account to let me access my settings on different machines, so if it's that signed in stuff you're discussing then my prior profile didn't exist so although it might be "gone" now I've gone to ESR it wasn't there for me in the first place so to speak.

P.P.S. I've been using firefox and Noscript for many years, perhaps by "downgrade" to ESR was so easy because maybe an old settings file had remained on my pc from some time before I updated to FF55?

[name000000]

If this explains anything:
I used to be one firefox 32 bit before I switched (today) to ESR, I'd never got round to switching to 64 bit and the improvements that brings. But when downloading the ESR installer I went for 64 bit, so I've replaced a 32 bit firefox 57 with a 64 bit firefox ESR 52, maybe that's how my bookmarks, add-ons and settings survived?

[barbaz]

or does this mean the ESR release I've switched to will be somehow corrupt?

This. i.e. if it's not corrupt yet, it will be.

P.S. by profile you're meaning "all my settings, options and add-ons along with any settings put into the add-ons"?

Nope. That stuff is inside your profile and is part of the content you would transfer over to a new profile. Click the link to understand what a profile is.

I have never signed into firefox though or set up a firefox account t

And doing so is not necessary. Please read the link about profile and this link http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_ ... _-_Firefox

[name000000]

Ok, all my bookmarks are backed up as html files (I do that once every few weeks), and I know the two extensions I use (Noscript and adblock plus), as for firefox's settings I can set them to my desired settings in under 5 minutes, so I'm not too worried about losing my profile. But right now I've already done the switch to ESR (I made the download asuming I'd end up with ESR installed alongside 56 rather than the reality which was ESr replaced 56), so what do I do at this point to stop firefox getting corrupt. I don't really care if my profile is lost along the way as I can rebuild it in minutes, but I definitely don't want my browser to have problems in future.