Arch Linux

gay

Member

Registered: 2012-12-16

Posts: 93

Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

I am unsure if this is an upstream issue or perhaps a Firefox configuration issue and might therefore not belong here.

I updated Firefox to the newest version (57.0.2), but just Firefox, not the rest of the system, as I am travelling and afraid it might destroy something major. The system was last updated in early November; it broke my GUI, so I am a bit reluctant to repeat this experience. The Firefox update resulted in Firefox disabling most extensions and me being unable to reinstall them. addons.firefox.org refuses this and says my Firefox version was 38.0 (not 57.0.2).

E.g. Print edit WE shows:

This add-on requires a newer version of Firefox (at least version 51.0). You are using Firefox 38.0.

I am aware that Firefox recently disabled legacy extensions with version 57, but this seems unrelated as it should show "Not compatible with Firefox Quantum".

Does anyone else have this problem? Will it be resolved if I update the rest of the system? Is it better to downgrade Firefox again until I feel comfortable upgrading the rest of the system?

Thanks.

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We are exactly the people our parents always warned us about.

Scimmia

Fellow

Registered: 2012-09-01

Posts: 13,729

Re: Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

Who knows what the partial update broke. They're not supported, so we really can't help you.

FWIW, add-on installs fine for me.

heisenberg

Member

Registered: 2017-05-27

Posts: 87

Re: Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

Does anyone else have this problem?
Will it be resolved if I update the rest of the system?
Is it better to downgrade Firefox again until I feel comfortable upgrading the rest of the system?

Not me.
Maybe yes, maybe not.
Probably

Roken

Member

From: South Wales, UK

Registered: 2012-01-16

Posts: 1,366

Re: Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

I've had no breakages since way before November. I'd go with the update, though I update once or twice a day. It makes what breakages there are easier to identify.

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Linux user #545703

/ is the root of all problems.

flv

Member

Registered: 2017-12-01

Posts: 10

Re: Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

Are you using privacy.resistFingerprinting in about:config or any addon that alters your useragent?

gay

Member

Registered: 2012-12-16

Posts: 93

Re: Firefox 57.0.2 cannot install most extensions (misidentified as FF 38)

Thanks to all & sorry for the delayed reply; I wanted to perform a system update before getting back to this.

With everything up to date, the problem is - with the same firefox profile - unchanged.

I unfortunately did not try earlier with a different/new firefox profile; there installing add-ons works nicely.

Curiously, disabling the add-ons (one by one or all) in the old profile does not help. It is possible that the old profile was compromised somehow with something. I will avoid using it but I might try to investigate the reason for this again. I find this very curious, would love to find out what happened and am happy to investigate any theories that might be put forward.

Two final remarks (for now):
1. To answer the question by flv: no, privacy.resistFingerprinting is set to false.
2. With regard to partial updates not being supported: Note that I am explaining a problem that other users might encounter or might have encountered as well. I am neither complaining nor expecting something like a customer service. If I was, I would be using Mac or Ubuntu. I am much more comfortable with a community of users helping each other and I would find it very sad to see that community attitude replaced by a customer service attitude.

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We are exactly the people our parents always warned us about.