A quick way to backup a Firefox extension or profile
Suppose you need to send a friend a copy of say… Firebug 1.2 (site down at time of writing), but your favorite backup utility is not compatible with Firefox 3 yet. Not to worry! Just zip it up and send it like so:
- Go to your Firefox extensions directory in your profile (WinXP default is C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\<profile>\extensions\*nix is ~/.mozilla/firefox/<profile>/extensions)
- Zip up the extension you want
- Unzip in another profile extensions directory
One step command-line (Cygwin or Shell) example
#Make backup cd ~/.mozilla/firefox/xxxxxxxx.default/extensions && tar -cvf ~/firebug.tar.gz firebug@software.joehewitt.com/ # OR to copy to another profile cd ~/.mozilla/firefox/xxxxxxxx.default/extensions && cp -R firebug@software.joehewitt.com/ ../../yyyyyyyy.otherprofile/extensions/
You might even use it to play around with settings of your favorite extensions! I can’t verify this for every extension obviously, but the ones I’ve tried work like a charm! You can also do this with entire profiles!
Chuck Baker’s FEBE is my preferred way to backup a Firefox extension and my profile, but it is not yet compatible with Firefox 3 as of this post. Has anyone else used a different method or other suggestions? Let’s hear them!
Chuck updates us that FEBE 6.0 beta is available at: the FEBE download site and is compatible with FF3! Great!
P.S. - I’m sure you’ve already heard about the Firefox 3 download day this coming Tuesday, June 17th. You have? Just checking. :)
FEBE 6.0 (beta) for Fx 3.0 is available at http://customsoftwareconsult.com/extensions/febe/febe60.html
Excellent news, thanks Chuck! Great job on the extension by the way. :)
Awesome tip. I went to get Firebug for ‘Fox 3 the other day and fell victim to the site being down. Site is still down. Awful.
I sent Firebug 1.2 to Chris the other day. You want it, too?
Hey, cool! I’ll have to give it a go when everything slows down a bit.
[...] A quick way to backup a Firefox extension or profileGo to your Firefox extensions directory in your profile (WinXP default is C:Documents and Settings<user>Application DataMozillaFirefoxProfiles<profile>extensions*nix is ~/.mozilla/firefox/<profile>/extensions) …Eric Wendelin's Blog - http://eriwen.com [...]
[...] A quick way to backup a Firefox extension or profileGo to your Firefox extensions directory in your profile (WinXP default is C:Documents and Settings<user>Application DataMozillaFirefoxProfiles<profile>extensions*nix is ~/.mozilla/firefox/<profile>/extensions) …Eric Wendelin's Blog - http://eriwen.com [...]
[...] utility is not compatible with Firefox 3 yet. Not to worry! Just zip it up and send it like this.http://eriwen.com/firefox/backup-firefox/backup.com - When Losing Data is Not An OptionBackup your computer&39s data and files online with [...]
The only thing that I backup are:
- userchrome, userContent and user.js
- bookmarks (via Foxmarks)
- search plugins
I have a BATCH file to update a 7z archive that I run sometimes.
For extension, I prefere to download it in my local computer with Wget to have a local copy.
I think is also possible to create a script to automatically download and install extension, but I don’t have still created it (but I think it is not very difficult to create).
For example, using this code:
http://www.gialloporpora.netsons.org/index.php/2006/11/15/impacchettare-piu-estensioni-in-un-unico-file-xpi/
you can create a file install.rdf
if you download all your extension (for example with WGET), and you pack all this XPI files (and install.rdf) with, for example 7zip, you have created a multi-xpi package of your extensions.
Sorry for my english, I hope you understand what I have said.
Ciao
If you want, I have written a little BATCH file to automatically download extensions from AMO (only from AMO) and packaging them in a multi XPI file.
After decompressing archive in a folder, you need to run install.bat to copy the Gnuwin32 tool (wget, sed and zip) to the correct path.
After executing script, you find a new file “multixpi.xpi”, installing it as extension all your extensions are installed.
To configure script to download your extensions:
1) edit the file default.mxpi (or create another mxpi file) and insert the link to the extension page on AMO.
2) run the file “quickstart.bat” (or from prompt the file createmultixpi.bat using the mxpi file as parameter)
After executing script, you find a new file “multixpi.xpi”, installing it as extension all your extensions are installed.
Problems:
- it works ongly with extensions on AMO and it doesn’t works with extensions in sand box
2) it have no support to proxy (I think is easy to modify this)
I hope it works also for you, I have tried it and I think it work.
This is the file:
http://www.box.net/shared/p4wkbgnwg0
@gialloporpora:
Nice! I’ll give that a try! Thank you!
I hope it work also for you :-)
I have tested it with some extensions and it works (for me).
Ciao
how bout using FEBE addon? it makes the backup of even themes and other things.
@julie:
You’ll see that I mention FEBE as my favorite utility near the end of my post.