Need to get addon no longer listed signed for private use only

Hi Jorge,

This may get a little complicated, so please bear with me. Your help with this is greatly appreciated.

I’ve been trying a number of things, including, as the final step, instead of re-zipping Redirect Cleaner back up (zipping has been problematic) installed node.js, installed the jpm tool, and then ran jpm xpi. (Found out about the jpm tool from someone I know).

For Redirect Cleaner, either edited or not, that fails with this message: (please see first screenshot).

Since running jpm xpi completes successfully with any other extension, that seems to mean that the copy of Redirect Cleaner I have is corrupt or broken. Perhaps you can look through the copy I have to spot what might be wrong with it. I’ve uploaded it to http://www.filedropper.com/redirectcleanerexamplenet

Note: although it appears as .zip at File Dropper, I didn’t actually zip it (I know it’s already zipped), only changed the file extension to .zip. Otherwise, if left as .xpi, File Dropper see its individual components and it can’t be uploaded.

Maybe you can either tell me how to fix it, or, if it’s easily fixed, you can give it back to me fixed. In any case, even if it weren’t corrupt, I’m not sure what to do with the resulting packaged xpi file. What should the proper extension be? This was the output after running jpm xpi successfully with another extension, Throbber Restored. (Please see second screenshot).

Even when I try to install that (which ran successfully) either with no file extension, with .xpi or null.xpi, I still get the message back that it can’t be installed because it’s corrupt. Maybe some additional step is needed with this, or I’m not doing this correctly?

Many thanks, W.

You need to create a zip file using either no compression or using the deflate method of compression (not deflate64).

“You need to create a zip file using either no compression or using the deflate method of compression (not deflate64).”

Puzzled by your reply. Are you saying this for the file upload to File Dropper, or as one of the steps for editing and then re-zipping the add-on?

If the former, I did not zip that file or alter it in any way. I only changed the file extension from .xpi to .zip, so File Dropper would accept it. You can just change it back to .xpi and it will be exactly the same as I found it in Extensions.

If the latter, I already tried re-zipping it without any compression.

Perhaps you might want to re-read my latest post, which concerns the strong possibility that the add-on is corrupt to begin with (was asking help to fix it) and that I was using the jpm tool (jpm xpi) as the final step, instead of re-zipping it and then changing the extension back to .xpi

jpm is a tool mainly for the addon sdk. I unzipped it and rezipped it as is. When I tried with Deflate64 it threw an error. Just normal deflate, and it installs no problem. http://www.mediafire.com/download/9ltj33db0jf2ddm/redirectcleaner%40example.net.xpi

Therefore it’s likely something on your system that’s corrupt.

Hi Jerod,

The problem I’m having certainly has to do with the final re-zipping with no compression. I’ve been knocking my head against the wall now to get this addon signed privately by editing its install.rdf since before my first post here on 8/30. I have tried several different Mac compression utilities, which can be set to Store, aka, no compression, including Keka and B1FreeArchiver. I have no idea why this is happening. I’ve tried both from 10.6 and 10.8, so don’t think it’s anything to do with the system, which, otherwise is functioning perfectly.

I’ve really exhausted everything I can think of, and I’m wondering if you can help me out by uploading the Redirect Cleaner.xpi with its install.rdf edited any way you like. If I had any other option, believe me, I wouldn’t be asking this.

Thanks, W.

Worked no issue with me: http://www.mediafire.com/download/f6lo6l70b62610t/redirectcleaner%40example.com.xpi

Many thanks for that Jerod. What’s the next step, first submit it to Mozilla for signing, or install it first and then submit it?

I didn’t review the code at all, nor did I ensure it is freely available. I’d suggest making sure it’s freely available first. Then submit it to Mozilla to ensure there’s not issues with it. Then you can install the signed version.

Can you explain what you mean by “ensure it is freely available?” As I pointed out in my first post, the dev simply walked away from it some time ago, and it is no longer available anywhere at Mozilla. I kept a copy, which now needs signing or it will will be disabled by FF 43.

The code is copyrighted by the creator on creation. If it’s not under a free license then you can use it only for your personal use. If it’s under a free license you can distribute it to friends etc.

I intend using it only for my personal use, so this question would seem to be moot. But just for any future situations like this, how does one tell if it’s under a free license or not?

I’m not sure I’ve done this correctly. Submitted it as a new add-on not to be listed (beta), which was the only option I could see for private signing.

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/developers/addon/submit/1

Now, at Manage My Submissions, this is what I’m seeing. Will this prevent signing?

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Also, the validation report passed, but there were a number of warnings, of medium severity, which determined it required a manual review.

The compatibility warning is not a problem, so don’t worry about that. As for the manual review, it should happen soon. You’ll receive an email once it happens.

Thanks Jerod and Jorge with all the help with this. But I still have a lingering question. Since none of the compression utilities I tried, including the Mac native zip for zipping with no compression (zip -r0 ), worked, I’m wondering if those who have done this successfully are doing it using some Windows compression utility, which might explain why this isn’t working in OS X.

As a test, to see if it was something to do with my system, I even sent the file to someone else on Mac, who tried zip- r0 on it and he came up with the same corrupt/can’t install message. On mine and his, it always finishes zipping recursively at 0%, but no dice.

So could this be a Windows vs. Mac thing?

A reply would be appreciated. If this can’t be done from OS X, then I won’t bother wasting any more time when a similar situation arises, where an install.rdf needs to be edited for private signing. At least, please tell me if the final re-zipping with no compression for this add-on was done with Windows.

Thanks.

I can get it to zip fine with and without compression on Windows and Debian. I’ve been trying to figure out how to get my hands on a copy of OS X, but so far haven’t been able to.

You probably know this, but unless you have a Mac (or some “self-build,” aka Hackintosh–and that can get tricky, especially with a just released OS), no OS you manage to find will install. Any OS needs the appropriate drivers present in the Apple hardware. Since 10.9 (Mavericks) new OS versions have been free from Apple. The latest is 10.11, El Capitan, just released, and it’s available free for download from Apple by starting here. https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/os-x-el-capitan/id1018109117?mt=12

Unfortunately, as soon as a new OS is released, Apple pulls the current free version, which, until a few weeks ago, was 10.10.5 Yosemite. I usually like to wait until at least one point update has been released, which fixes the most obvious bugs, but since you just want to have this for testing purposes, maybe this will do.

If push comes to shove and you want Mavericks 10.9, I can put that up on File Dropper for you, in maybe 7 or 8 splits, but you need a fast connection to get that because FD has problems when downloading with a slow connection–things end up downloading corrupt or just partially, if the connection isn’t relatively fast. Or maybe you can suggest a better, preferably free, alternative that doesn’t involve too much hassle for signing up, if signing up for such a site is required.

I was considering a virtual machine, but things don’t seem to be adding to working towards that. The only thing I can suggest is asking @noitidart if he has a mac to test this with to see if he can help.

Thanks arenlor for bringing me up for the mac test!

I would love to help you test! I know how hard it was for me to find someone with a real mac to test I don’t want others to go through that.

I have a virtual box with osx setup, it works 90% like a real mac. I would love to help you out. I’m on 10.10.1.

I can also help you set this up on your computer, it uses VirtualBox. Jump on irc my names noida.

Hi Noltidart,

Thanks very much for the offer to test this in OS X. From the command line (Terminal), assuming that the now extracted folder is sitting on your Desktop, this would be the command for the final re-zip without compression (using the native zip program built into Terminal). (Using redirectcleaner@example.net here as an example, but obviously, you can do this with any extension you care to try it with).

Open Terminal in /Applications/Utilties and enter, no quotes

“zip -r0 redirectcleaner@example.net.zip /Users/“your user name”/Desktop/redirectcleaner@example.net”

Hit enter/return (or whatever that is on your PC keyboard) and it will zip with no compression, leaving a new zip file inside your user folder, which you can then just drag to the Desktop.

Just in case you’re not that familiar with OS X “your user name” (no quotes) will be the name next to the little house icon (your user) in a finder sidebar. Or it can be viewed by opening the root folder, which unless you’ve re-named it, will be “Macintosh HD,” and open the Users folder at the bottom, where it will be visible next to the little house icon.

Thanks, W.