Mozilla network deployement

[Maxime Cadieux_1]

Hi,

I am trying to setup specific mozilla settings and deploy them to all users from a central location.

I don't want the existing netscape settings to transferred to Mozilla.

The end result is that Mozilla starts with a blank profile that is created for each user. The profile name is correct but the customisations applied to user.js and preferences.js do not apply.

Here is what I did so far:

1) Create a default profile with the profile manager.

2) Setup the environment as I wanted. This meant preferences.js and user.js modifications
preferences.js:
user_pref("browser.startup.homepage_override.mstone", "rv:1.6");
user_pref("browser.startup.homepage", "http://somewhere.here.com/");
user_pref("intl.charsetmenu.browser.cache", "UTF-8, ISO-8859-1");
user_pref("network.proxy.type", 2);
user_pref("prefs.converted-to-utf8", true);
user_pref("privacy.popups.remove_blacklist", false);
user_pref("security.disable_button.changePassword", false);
user_pref("security.disable_button.resetPassword", false);
user_pref("security.password_lifetime", 0);
user_pref("signon.rememberSignons", false);
user_pref("update_notifications.enabled", false);
user_pref("xpinstall.enabled", false);

Note that the home page is set locally in preferences.js. This means that the user will have a custom default home page but he can change-it.

user.js:
user_pref("network.proxy.autoconfig_url", "http://192.168.1.1:8000/some_pac_file");
user_pref("network.proxy.type", 2);
user_pref("prefs.converted-to-utf8", true);
user_pref("privacy.popups.remove_blacklist", false);
user_pref("security.disable_button.changePassword", false);
user_pref("security.disable_button.resetPassword", false);
user_pref("security.password_lifetime", 0);
user_pref("signon.SignonFileName", "abc.s");
user_pref("signon.rememberSignons", false);
user_pref("update_notifications.enabled", false);
user_pref("xpinstall.enabled", false);
user_pref("profile.allow_automigration", false);

These settings will be applied to preferences.js. The user can however modify them with about:config.

3) For each user, create a default profile with the profile manager:
mozilla -CreateProfile "profile_name ~/.mozilla/profile/destination.slt"

4) Push the user.js and preferences.js to the profile location for ex: "~/.mozilla/profile/destination.slt"

5) Start mozilla for the user with :
mozilla -P "profile" args

6) Mozilla starts with the right profile but not the customisations.


Anyone has any insight on this ?

Thanks,

Max

[Steven E. Protter]

Suggested new approach.

Make your own generic mozilla installation.

Then use tar to tar up the following areas:

mozilla binaries

the files in the .mozilla and .mozilla-license folders.

Then you can create either a network installation point or custom install script to do it right.

If you are really ambitious, you can even create your own depot.

SEP

[Maxime Cadieux_1]

Thanks for the idea.

I am already pushing the .mozilla and the .mozilla-license.

However, when I do that, the old Netscape 4.7 settings get transferred the first time Mozilla is started, even if the following is present within the user.js:

user_pref("profile.allow_automigration", false);

According to the mozilla documentation, that sould do it but it does appear to work