Question

According to this manual I tried to set the proxy extension.

In my_prof_dir/extensions there was my already installed and working (unpacked) extension named my_guid.xpi.

I created a file named my_guid and the content was “path_to_my_extension_directory”. I deleted my_guid.xpi and restarted Firefox. After restart Firefox deleted my_guid file
and extension is not installed any more.

Should I do something different?

version: Firefox 8.0

thank you

Answer 1

You shouldn’t change the way an existing extension is installed (i.e. directory/xpi -> “pointer file”). Does it help if you start with a profile where your extension is not installed at all, close Firefox, then add the pointer file?

If not, you should check:

• the exact path, name, and contents of the pointer file. (Pay attention to the tips @ MDC.)
• check that the path format you’re using matches your OS native paths
• check the output in the Error Console after setting extensions.logging.enabled preference in about:config, then quitting Firefox and installing your “pointer file” to the extensions/ directory (for details see Setting up extension development environment).
• Does the extension get installed if you copy all content (when Firefox is closed)
  • from the folder pointed to by the “proxy/pointer” file
  • to the folder named exactly as the pointer file (you’ll need to delete the pointer file first).