Where can I download Firefox Unbranded?
Well, I just updated Firefox on Ubuntu 14 to v43 doing sudo apt-get update, and my old extensions stopped working as they are not signed. Mozilla has apparently stated that:
https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2015/02/10/extension-signing-safer-experience/
Installation of unsigned extensions will still be possible on Nightly and Developer Edition, as well as special, unbranded builds of Release and Beta that will be available mainly for developers testing their extensions.
https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2015/08/21/the-future-of-developing-firefox-add-ons/
The Nightly and Developer Editions of Firefox based on 42 and above will retain the preference to disable signing enforcement, allowing the development and/or use of unsigned add-ons in those versions. Unbranded versions of Firefox based on releases will also be made available for developers, and are expected to be in place for Firefox 42 for release (and potentially beta).
I don't want to install Nightly because I don't want to update every day; I don't want the developer version because it includes extra stuff I don't need. So, I wanted to try this "unbranded" Firefox build, which would apparently allow me to run unsigned extensions. But I'm looking everywhere for it, and I cannot find it. And Firefox 43 already landed, and (if I recall correctly), 43 > 42, so these "unbranded" builds should have already been available, no?
So, where can this unbranded Firefox be downloaded from? If it is not released yet, when will it be released?
edit: fixed some spacing which was cause horizontal scrolling
Modified by James
All Replies (6)
I don't know what the unbranded version is.
As a temporary workaround, you can make a global exception to the signing requirement (there's currently no way to only make an exception for specific extensions).
(1) In a new tab, type or paste about:config in the address bar and press Enter/Return. Click the button promising to be careful.
(2) In the search box above the list, type or paste xpin and pause while the list is filtered
(3) Double-click the xpinstall.signatures.required preference to switch it from true to false -- note that this is for Firefox 43 only
Thanks for the response, @jscher2000:
jscher2000 said
I don't know what the unbranded version is.
Well, I have supplied two, apparently official, Mozilla blog posts that announce it; otherwise there is this unofficial thread too on Reddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/39ai2w/unbranded_version_what_is_it_exactly/
Unbranded version will be the same as the release version except it will NOT have the Firefox logo and the mention of Firefox anywhere in the interface. Of course it will be also stripped of the Check for signed add-on.
Again from reddit - apparently by a Mozilla dev - claiming that building this unbranded version is not a problem:
https://www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/3gh8e6/firefox_42_will_not_allow_unsigned_extensions/
From a tech support point of view this isn't going to end well.Sure it will. We're good at compiling variants of Firefox. The machinery to swap out the Firefox name and logos has been part of our build system for at least a decade. It's what makes both first party (Nightly, Aurora, Developer Edition) and third party (IceWeasel, PaleMoon, etc.) releases possible.
Not to mention the explosion of variants we build when you consider the four operating systems, three CPU architectures, dozens of human languages, and six channels we build versions for with every release.
So that part isn't going to be a problem.
jscher2000 said
As a temporary workaround, you can make a global exception to the signing requirement (there's currently no way to only make an exception for specific extensions).
I would be OK with this, except:
jscher2000 said
(3) Double-click the xpinstall.signatures.required preference to switch it from true to false -- note that this is for Firefox 43 only
... which means that, in two months, Firefox 44 will come out, and when I update, it will disable `xpinstall.signatures.required` for good:
https://wiki.mozilla.org/Addons/Extension_Signing
Firefox 44: Release and Beta versions of Firefox will not allow unsigned extensions to be installed, with no override.
... and then I'm back to square one, and no recourse; so I'd rather start using this unbranded version now. But where is it? Where is the download link for the unbranded version? If it is not released yet, when it will be released? Apparently, the technical infrastructure for producing this build is not a problem - why is this build not existing anywhere yet, then?
Unbranded if it happens will likely be during Firefox 44.0 Release at earliest since it is not needed for Firefox 43.0
Thanks for the reply, @James:
James said
Unbranded if it happens will likely be during Firefox 44.0 Release at earliest since it is not needed for Firefox 43.0
Great to have a confirmation on status of this; cheers!
Ok, Firefox 44 is out - where is the unbranded version? Or was Mozilla just joking around about unbranded version?
You can still set xpinstall.signatures.required to false to disable this security feature in current releases. This will also be possible in Firefox 44 and 45 as they decided to postpone disabling this entirely till Firefox 46.
See: