Firefox defaulting update preferences & solution

[MrMobodies]

I have different versions of Firefox and profiles for experimental use and I don't use them that often yet but I discovered something that I was very displeased about:



Despite doing as much things to disable the updates to the program last year they still update with no warning. I did disable the nagging message somewhere which worked in hiding the message but still no control over it. So had to copy a backup of the program and profile in question a couple of times everytime it does that. When looking further quite a few preferences seem to reset on startup especially this one on the top of the list: app.update.auto.migrated.


Further looking it does indeed do this disregarding my preferences:


Changed value to false, saved at time 02:24 and start Firefox from shortcut above:


Surprise, surprise, file unexpectedly edited at 02:26 and Notepad++ reports a program had changed it and whether to reload it in edtor:


Reloaded and value set back to true:


I was furious. Very naughty isn't it?


Solution:


With the help of: https://old.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/ghsvu3/why_ff76_doesnt_respect_the_policiesjson_file/

LunosOuroboros 5 points 1 year ago
I generated a policies.json very quickly using this addon that has worked for me in the past, and certainly, when I went to about:policies, I couldn't see "DisableAppUpdate" listed in there on my copy of Firefox v76.0.1.

I remembered that some time ago I saw a post explaining how to integrate Firefox's policies to the Windows Group Policy Editor though, and enabling the "Disable Update" policy in there by going to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Mozilla > Firefox did seem to work just fine, as when I restarted, DisableAppUpdate did show up normally.

I can't find the link to that post, but I did find this page in Mozilla's Support Page where it's also explained.

I hope this helps.

It took me a while to get the syntax right but found out it was getting it wrong after trying out the "Enterprise Policy Generator" but I had problems with  that where it installs but would not extract or show the gui for some reason at first and so tried to do it manually but worked on another profile so a setting I set caused that:


Policies.json

{
  "policies": {
    "AppUpdateURL": "https://localhost",
    "DisableAppUpdate": true,
    "DisableFirefoxStudies": true,
    "DisableTelemetry": true,
    "ManualAppUpdateOnly": true
  }
}

No comma (,) on the last entry.

I was a bit unsure but all that just a file to edit (Policies.json) in a certain folder (Distribution), in the Firefox program folder.



Also works for Firefox 95 see attachment.

Just found some more similar to what I would want:
https://old.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/bxuvsn/how_to_completely_block_update_checks/

    "policies": {
        "DisableSystemAddonUpdate": true,
        "ExtensionUpdate": false
    }
}

Did this automatic defaulting of Firefox preferences affect you in any way/ what do you think?

[BradC]

I've used the following for years to mitigate any potential issues :

Code: [Select]

brad@xxxxx:~$ cat /opt/firefox/distribution/policies.json
{
    "policies": {
"DisableAppUpdate": true
    }
}


[floobydust]

Firefox has no revenue model, how does this massive free S/W get funded and compete with google and microsoft?
I find they have jumped on the slutty silicon valley bandwagon and I spend literally an hour disabling bullshit in about:config only to have the policy names/setting changed at the next update. Just getting sick of it.
Google has signed deals with Mozilla $400M/yr for 3 years search engine agreement "...Google as the default search provider in the Firefox browser" as if that's worth that much money. I think the two are a little too close now to expect respectful software.

[MrMobodies]

I was very upset seeing this when it automatically updated yesterday where I had to replace the program and profile from a backup:


Contemptable spammy behaviour: Suddently dimming the background which hurts my eyes in the process and thereby obscuring cutting me off from the contents which I find rude and disrespectful. This is one reason why I decided to not to try the later editions past 89/95? where it started to happen excessively. It would do this on prompts,offers (that i thought I disabled before) and I absolutely despise this behaviour with interfering with the background. Why can't they leave the contents alone like before.

I thought in June last year let's leave some feedback.
The feedback button redirected to this site:

Firefox feedback leads me to:
https://mozilla.crowdicity.com/

Signed up, started a suggestion on a potential issue, it was still waiting moderator approval a couple of months or so later and it seems to have been removed.




GONE:


Complete waste of my time so no point in leaving feedback there.
I felt a bit disheartened with it being removed like that.

My irrational paranoia tells me: Some arrogant person up there (who thinks thy are better than everyone else) decided to start put DIMMING OVERLAYS over everything found "my idea" and had it removed without giving it a chance for others to vote. So my idea is not up for discussion or votes when they feel like it. More like their idea is suppose to be my idea.

I suppose could go on the support pages where they comments and complain ask for a solution.

There are other things I am not happy about Firefox 78+ is with pages/messages like this that I find insulting and the arrogance I see:


We're? It is not we're. it's not human. I find it very insulting and puts me off. Like I am somewhat stupid and confused, don't know what I am doing and they expect me to think it is human and it can think as if it was "smarter" than me. I don't find the messages and notifications from the two other browsers Vivaldi and Firefox 22 (attached) insulting. They look respectable to me. Palemoon 28 has the same connectivity page/notification as Firefox 22.

Those are some of the reasons I don't use Firefox 75+ often but I have been trying to gradually alter it to make to look and behave more the way I want it to behave but I found Vivaldi 3 and 3.8 was so much more easier to customize and has been serving me very well for two years.

[magic]

Nothing will improve until WW3 creates an open season on software developers.

source: am a software developer

[MrMobodies]

Firefox has no revenue model, how does this massive free S/W get funded and compete with google and microsoft?
I find they have jumped on the slutty silicon valley bandwagon and I spend literally an hour disabling bullshit in about:config only to have the policy names/setting changed at the next update. Just getting sick of it.
Google has signed deals with Mozilla $400M/yr for 3 years search engine agreement "...Google as the default search provider in the Firefox browser" as if that's worth that much money. I think the two are a little too close now to expect respectful software.

Just found this... Ex Mozilla employees commenting on this dedicated Mozilla hate website:

http://firefox.sucks/Firefox

Former Employee - Team Member says

"I worked at Mozilla full-time for more than 3 years Cons: - Mozilla is struggling to create a sustainable financial model that doesn't require cash from Google( the company they claim are destroying user privacy) -Bully behavior is common here and people who are favorites get away with it. This is a place for people who are extremely extroverted people who loves to step on other people's shoes & can play politics. If you don't fall under that category you might feel overwhelmed. Employees are not treated well, they fall victim of too much politics and are scared to speak up and express themselves. -Mozilla has a racially charged environment, being a person of minority race I have faced discrimination on many levels. Their focus is not on being fair to people of color, their focus is on looking good to the outside world. -Leaders are not trusting of their team and they decide to micro-manage which slows down execution. Employees feel over-worked and stressed due to lack of direction & politics, which results in making mistakes. Developing employees is not on the agenda for HR and leaders, they are too busy playing politics."... and the arrogance

Well that sounds like a sad state of affairs

Former Employee - Staff Software Engineer says

"I worked at Mozilla full-time for more than 8 years Cons: Mozilla has become a more business-oriented hierarchical model in its structure over the past five years and has steadily declined as a flat organization that acknowledges, encourages, or engages the open-source community that once made it great. Ideas now come from the top and not from within. 1 It has continued to struggle to create a sustainable financial model that doesn't require regular and generous financial infusions of cash from Google and other search providers. The very companies that Mozilla deems as the organizations that are destroying privacy on the web. Roughly a year ago (2019), senior leadership pushed through raises for all employee bands (IC and management).Senior management, in particular, received significant pay increases. The now CEO received millions of dollars in inducements for leading a steady ship that hit it's target goals. 2 At the end of the year the senior leadership team decided to cut costs [unrelated to COVID-19] and without ceremony embarked on a layoff of it's higher-paid, and more senior staff while largely leaving the director and above level untouched. This is the same group that received pay increases and bonuses for staying on target. Mozilla is a shadow of its once great self and the psychological safety that allowed for groundbreaking ideas to germinate and go-to-market are long over. Mozilla ungenerously executed a layoff into one of the most difficult economic events in the history of the current generation while it's leadership team financially benefited. Pair this against companies within the tech space which have fought to prevent layoffs and Mozilla does not measure up to the challenge."

1 That's when, their idea whatever they decide (at the top) is suppose to be the user's idea.

2 So the management are director are getting greedy.

Not looking good for Mozilla.

I find it a bit sad for what it once was but there is Palemoon around the corner and I am hoping more will go over there to help maintain it for it to do a lot better.
Since 28.9.6 it seems very stable.

[Bassman59]

Firefox has been getting worse and worse with each release.

Their mail client, Thunderbird, is unusable, and the only saving grace it has is that it's better than the mail client that ships with Windows 10 (not Outlook, the free thing) which is so gawd-awful.