139393 - [meta] Proxy: support for reading/migrating OS-level proxy prefs

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Core :: Networking, enhancement)

Description

[benc]

Almost every OS seems to have some kind of proprietary proxy config preferences.

This bug is for tracking a solution for each OS (hopefully we can have a basic
functionality that we implement commonly for each OS).

(also, w/o a meta bug, searching for these bugs is really difficult.)

Comment 1

[Bradley Baetz (:bbaetz)]

I have a bug on this, I think. I was going to make a generic API, and impl it
for unix.

I just never had time.... Check for a bug assigned to me, possibly for either
1.1 or 1.2

Comment 2

[benc]

bug 125995 is for Mac OS X.

Comment 3

[benc]

found bug w/ general UNIX environment variable request.

Comment 4

[Jerry]

there are already one implementation in trunk.
read gconf's setting under linux

set bug 195708

Comment 5

[Daniel Küstner]

Since we have separate bugs for Mac and Unix, there should be one for Windows too.

Comment 6

[benc]

Danie: Where are the Windows OS-level prefs?

Comment 7

[Daniel Küstner]

Don't have a windows computer at hand, but I remember "System Preferences ->
Internet Options" or something like that.

Comment 8

[Mathias Homann]

The registry path to the proxy settings on windows xp is: 
 
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet 
Settings] 
"ProxyEnable"=dword:00000001 
"ProxyServer"="http=proxy:8080;https=proxy:8080" 
"ProxyOverride"="<local>;*.eregion.net;192.168.238.*" 
 
 
and for all i know, the dialup networking does nothing but change these 
settings on dialin. so it would be really useful if mozilla would use these if 
configured to do so. 
(checkbox: "use system settings", should lead to usage of http*_proxy 
environment on unix, and usage of these registry keys on windows. no clue 
about mac, tho.) 

Comment 9

[benc]

Mathias, we can start a windows-only bug, and make this bug "Depend" on it.

Comment 10

[Mathias Homann]

then lets handle it that way... who'll do it?

Comment 11

[Urban A. Haas]

This is going to have to also look for changes from time to time at best, every network error, or every open at worst. Although I've been waiting for this for years. Anyone who moves a machine (laptop) daily, this is really frustrating. Almost all windows programs that aren't Microsoft now pick up proxy changes from the "Internet Options". Let's get on the ball with this.

Can this get into 1.7?

I can't believe this hasn't gone farther in priority when releases are so far and few between. I may have to try and hack in, but am deeply involved with other non-profit work.

Comment 12

[Lars Oppermann]

For the windows solution, I would suggest either using the WinINet or WinHTTP API. WinINet provides the InternetGetProxy() function to get the Proxy for a given URL and WinHTTP provides WinHttpGetIEProxyConfigForCurrentUser(), WinHttpGetProxyForUrl() and others. This might offer a better system integration then just reading the configuration directly from the registry. WinHTTP is only available since Windows 2000, so I guess the WinINet solution should be the preferred one...

Comment 13

[Max Waterman]

I see a comment about a fix for Linux, but I don't see any fix in v3.0a8 running on Ubuntu 7.10. The referenced bug here is marked 'resolved'.

On Ubuntu 7.10, there's a setting under 'System/Preferences/Networ Proxy', but it seems to be ignored.

Am I missing something?

Comment 14

[Florian Thomas]

Is there still activity on the Windows issue? I still hate this missing feature in Firefox when moving between office/VPN/private network connection. I have a tool that automatically switches the Windows OS-level network preferences, but Firefox just ignores everything.

There needs to be an option in Firefox "Use OS network settings" adapted to every OS.

Comment 15

[Jo Hermans]

Florian: Firefox 3.6 will use the system proxy settings on Windows, see bug 485764

It will also be the default for all operating systems, see bug 500983

Comment 16

[Patrick McManus [:mcmanus]]

system proxy settings is an option for firefox on osx, linux, and windows