10.0.2 and search providers

feniks
Posts:4
Joined:Tue Jul 24, 2012 3:33 pm
Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by feniks » Fri Jul 27, 2012 2:06 pm

not true, sorry, you are overcomplicating it, because it's really simple and efficient.
it took me 15 minutes to create the package and edit my prefs in mozilla.cfg, so t gets deployed over GPO to all workstation in domain. also for specific groups of users (departments) we use administrative templates applied to each of those OU in AD with different custom settings ... try doing that with an admin install point easily ...

thanks for advice, I never include profiles with MSI packages. everything works on all desktops in our domain, just fine. I'm not here to argue, I'm just saying that once one learns how to create an MSI (even the simplest one using a free tool), it takes really little time and works flawlessly later on.

MonkeyBoy
Posts:73
Joined:Wed Oct 05, 2011 2:37 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by MonkeyBoy » Fri Jul 27, 2012 2:34 pm

But I'm not overcomplicating it, you took more time. It takes 5 minutes, tops, to create an administrative install point and edit the text file. It should have taken you far more than 15 minutes to test your GPO across all the test systems in all the departments, which I surely hope you have done and didn't just wing it.

I can do everything you're doing now with an administrative install point and GPOs because FMFCE supports GP completely, down to configuring almost everything available in about:config. As I already explained, I can not only change those settings, but I can lock them enabled or disabled with preconfigured information all through GPO. As I'm able to make those changes through GP, I can make different policies for different OUs and have them applied as selectively as is needed.

I know how to make MSIs, the problem with free tools is they have limitations on what they can do, and once you bump into those limitations you'll come to appreciate the hard work that others have done in creating MSIs for you using non-free tools.

caustic386
Posts:11
Joined:Tue Aug 03, 2010 4:38 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by caustic386 » Wed Aug 01, 2012 12:28 pm

Sorry to dredge this back up, it seems like a heated issue.

We do not deploy FrontMotion through GPO, we do manual installs (this is easier than it sounds due to Citrix PVS). Is there any way to reset the Google search now that all 120 users have this info in their profiles?

char0n
Posts:5
Joined:Tue Nov 29, 2011 11:30 am
Location:Berlin, Germany.

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by char0n » Fri Aug 03, 2012 7:32 am

caustic386 wrote:Sorry to dredge this back up, it seems like a heated issue.

We do not deploy FrontMotion through GPO, we do manual installs (this is easier than it sounds due to Citrix PVS). Is there any way to reset the Google search now that all 120 users have this info in their profiles?
Yes sir there is. As far as my understanding goes you need to replace the google.xml file in %INSTALLDIR%\searchplugins with the original Mozilla version (or the "just delete the partner-line" fix as described somewhere in this thread - I used the original one) and then delete the search.json in every users Firefox profile that is located under %APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[random].default\search.json - or delete the whole Firefox profile.

Only replacing the .xml-file or just deleting search.json doesn't do the trick, you have to do both steps.
I decided to just delete the search.json for my 25 testing users that received the version with that 'little' change rather then deleting their whole profile and was able to establish this with the following login script (run in user context for sure). You should also be able to run login-scripts in Citrix environment...

Code: Select all

@echo off

cd "%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles"
if exist "fixed_search_json.txt" goto :exit
for /F "usebackq" %%i in (`dir /a:d /b`) do @cd %%i
del search.json /s /q
cd "%APPDATA%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles"
echo "done" > fixed_search_json.txt
:exit
exit
Please note that this will delete the search.json of *every* Firefox profile that exists in the users's profile...

The original google.xml was deployed via startup-script (and robocopy) for the existing problems and was put into the MSI for future installations.

There may be solutions that are more "beautiful", but the fast, reliable and working result is what counts for me - and this was working fine.

Good luck.

caustic386
Posts:11
Joined:Tue Aug 03, 2010 4:38 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by caustic386 » Fri Aug 03, 2012 10:57 am

Thank you for this. Just last night I figured out that I could reinstall using an admin point with the modified .xml, and that seemed to overwrite the "bad" install.

I appreciate your input, and I will certainly keep this in mind for the next update!

srechtman
Posts:9
Joined:Tue Mar 06, 2012 10:30 am

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by srechtman » Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:09 am

Is there a guide/instructions on how to setup the admin install point?

Do I still use /Computer Configuration/Policies/Software Settings/Software installation/ ?

srechtman
Posts:9
Joined:Tue Mar 06, 2012 10:30 am

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by srechtman » Mon Aug 13, 2012 8:53 am

DraconPern wrote:sure can. You can do an admin install point and change firefox\searchplugins\google.xml to not submit the cx value. Just remove that <param line with the partner-pub id.
I see three of these <param partner-pub lines in the google.xml file. Should I remove all of them?

Thanks!

caustic386
Posts:11
Joined:Tue Aug 03, 2010 4:38 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by caustic386 » Mon Aug 13, 2012 9:18 am

srechtman wrote: I see three of these <param partner-pub lines in the google.xml file. Should I remove all of them?

Thanks!
I only removed the ones that pertain to the Google search (I believe they said something like vendor-id), that worked well for me.

MadFurai
Posts:18
Joined:Tue Oct 18, 2011 10:05 am

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by MadFurai » Mon Aug 27, 2012 10:08 am

I have to agree that this stinks. I deploy FireFox to 26,000+ computers with SCCM and a single .msi file. The Google Custom search looks like total junk. If this continues, I will not be using Frontmotion anymore.

donzoomik
Posts:4
Joined:Mon Mar 14, 2011 6:34 am

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by donzoomik » Tue Aug 28, 2012 8:28 am

Firstly it's annoying. True that it can be patched with administrative install.
Secondly the sideeffect is that unpacking into administrative install point makes deployments over slow links extremely slow as it needs to fetch tons of small files (~2000). Using Active Directory to deploy there is no option to precache files.

CybrFyre
Posts:27
Joined:Tue Sep 09, 2008 10:30 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by CybrFyre » Tue Aug 28, 2012 1:21 pm

I would certainly be willing to pay some amount of money for a version of the Firefox 10 ESR Community Edition (we need the group policy managability) that does not have the search provider set, so that we don't have to edit this with each deployment. Your work is well appreciated and you provide a valuable service. And we'd love to reimburse you for your effort. Thanks.

caustic386
Posts:11
Joined:Tue Aug 03, 2010 4:38 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by caustic386 » Tue Aug 28, 2012 1:23 pm

CybrFyre wrote:I would certainly be willing to pay some amount of money for a version of the Firefox 10 ESR Community Edition (we need the group policy managability) that does not have the search provider set, so that we don't have to edit this with each deployment. Your work is well appreciated and you provide a valuable service. And we'd love to reimburse you for your effort. Thanks.
I second the motion.

User avatar
DraconPern
Site Admin
Posts:1218
Joined:Thu Oct 30, 2003 11:47 pm
Location:Texas
Contact:

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by DraconPern » Thu Aug 30, 2012 2:05 pm

The online packager no longer modifies the search providers!
FrontMotion Lead Developer

caustic386
Posts:11
Joined:Tue Aug 03, 2010 4:38 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by caustic386 » Thu Aug 30, 2012 2:19 pm

DraconPern wrote:The online packager no longer modifies the search providers!
Thank you - donation sent. (see, we weren't lying!)

MonkeyBoy
Posts:73
Joined:Wed Oct 05, 2011 2:37 pm

Re: 10.0.2 and search providers

Post by MonkeyBoy » Thu Aug 30, 2012 3:34 pm

caustic386 wrote:donation
The packaging service is only available to those who've bought a subscription to it.

Post Reply