376305 - pave over install can lead to downgrade if update is pending (on install, remove the updates directory, updates.xml and the active-update.xml files from the right place under "Local Settings\Application Data")

Status: RESOLVED WORKSFORME

(Toolkit :: Application Update, defect)

Description

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

scenario where the user could get prompted to update to 2.0.0.3 (even though they have 2.0.0.3)

1) user is running 2.0.0.2, and they get the partial update for 2.0.0.3 but do not apply it.

because this is 2.0.0.2 on windows, assuming the are running firefox from c:\program files\Mozilla Firefox, we put the active-update.xml and mar under

C:\Documents and Settings\mozilla\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox

2)  the user do a pave over install with fx 2.0.0.3.  pave over install will remove the updates directory, active-update.xml, and updates.xml from c:\program files\Mozilla Firefox, but will *not* remove them from C:\Documents and Settings\mozilla\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox.  (This is a known issue and there might be a bug logged about this from marcia, jay, or juan.)

3)  the user starts up 2.0.0.3, it will attempt to apply the 2002 partial, but will fail.  You'll get an update wizard with this information. (see attached screen shot #1).

4) do not click "next" in the update wizard to get the complete 2003 update.  instead, exit the browser and restart.  if you do click "next" and proceed through the failed update dialog, you'll download the the complete 2003.

5) start back up, and in the help menu, you'll see we;re downloading the complete 2003, even though we are running 2003.

6) wait long enough and you'll get an update wizard telling you that firefox 2.0.0.3 is ready to install, see bug #371649 (which is the 2002 -> 2002 variation)

7) as for 2003 -> 2002 (see bug #375710), I am at a loss to describe how that could happen because to download a 2002 snippet, you need to be running 2001.  but 2001 would not save the active-update snippet to C:\Documents and Settings\mozilla\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox.  Only 2002+ does that.

ben, eli, lech:  does this sound at all like what you could have seen?  note, you would need to be installed under c:\program files\... and you would have needed to run the installer.

Comment 1

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

while this doesn't explain 2003 -> 2002, you could imagine how this could explain 2004 -> 2003 once 2004 ships, because 2002 would put the 2003 snippet in "C:\Documents and Settings\mozilla\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla
Firefox"

preed, you haven't won the BBQ bet just yet!

Comment 2

[Lech Deregowski [:lech]]

Interesting. Additionally appending to step #4 (do not click "next"): Avoid installing any extensions and or themes at the time when this dialog is present. Doing so instructs the update wizard to go forward with the update. Cancel/Exit and restart.

Comment 3

[Eli Sheldon]

Weird - I don't think this is too similar to what happened to me. I'm pretty sure 2.0.0.2 offered to update by itself, which it did, and I've ran 2.0.0.3 for a while now. I'm not entirely sure what a pave-over install is, but if I'm guessing correctly, no, I never manually downloaded a new Firefox installer and installed it over 2.0.0.2. Also, I've never not allowed Firefox to update when prompted to.

Comment 4

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like Eli, Lech also writes:  "no. this all just happened on it's own with 2002".

Comment 5

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Attachment: screen shot #1

Comment 6

[Eli Sheldon]

Definitely never saw anything like that.

Comment 7

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> Definitely never saw anything like that.

Eli, can you clarify?

Comment 8

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Attachment: screen shot showing 2003 attemping to get 2003

Comment 9

[Eli Sheldon]

Yeah, I'm just saying I've never (within recent memory) had an update fail like was shown in screenshot #1, or any other way.

Comment 10

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

going forward, the fix for this particular scenario would be to fix the installer to remove the update files in "C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox"

note, that patch will depend on the version of windows you are running and by what you're installing (thunderbird, minefield, officially branded firefox, etc.)

Comment 11

[Lech Deregowski [:lech]]

The dialogs I received appeared nothing like the ones posted, in bug 371649 what I experienced was what appeared to look like an official update dialog (ie: stepping up from 2.0.0.1 -> 2.0.0.2) without partials or errors.

To future proof this a little more, having the update/installer check what version is currently installed vs what it's updating to would be a small improvement if it doesn't already do that. This would prevent it from downgrading 2.0.0.x to 1.5.x or anything potentially nastier in case the user accidentally or intentionally proceeds with the install. They could then at least be warned that they must first uninstall the current version and show the mismatch. 

Comment 12

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

Attachment: 2003 asking for 2003 (same scenario, step 6 of comment #0 if you wait for it.)

Comment 13

[Lech Deregowski [:lech]]

Yep, that's what I witnessed.

Comment 14

[Ian]

I've got exactly what Seth found - after having spent  the best part of a day getting rid of the grey area below the status bar.

In actual fact my log-in on XP is fine - just when I try log-in as another user.  Tells me I can't update etc. (Attributes Read Only in Program Files\Mozilla Firefox etc.

Any ideas? 

Comment 16

[Carsten Book [:Tomcat]]

We have user reports that this problem happen when they try to update Firefox as non administrator user and then update as admin user

From Bug 390390

1. install firefox 2.0.0.5
2. make a user without administrator rights
3. start firefox in the user account
4. read message
5. switch to administrator account
6. start firefox in this account
7. make update to version 2.0.0.6
8. restart firefox in this account
9. switch to user account
10. start firefox -> now firefox will update until you delete in this account
the update folder

Comment 17

[Rick van der Zwet]

(In reply to comment #16)
> We have user reports that this problem happen when they try to update Firefox
> as non administrator user and then update as admin user
> 
> From Bug 390390
> [snip: reproduce steps]

Same problem from 2.0.0.6 -> 2.0.0.7 Work around: http://kb.mozillazine.org/Updates_reported_when_running_newest_version

Comment 18

[Chris Hiestand]

> Same problem from 2.0.0.6 -> 2.0.0.7 Work around:
> http://kb.mozillazine.org/Updates_reported_when_running_newest_version
> 

The problem is that this work around must be done on EVERY version update. As a sysadmin, this bug is a huge pain. All of our users are annoyed by it in order to fix it we have to rollout the firefox update AND THEN delete these files.

Will a developer please look into this? This bug didn't exist in the early versions of firefox 2. 

Comment 19

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here's another variation of this bug just hit bug ken kovash on windows xp

1) running 2004, which is installed under C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox.

2) because firefox installed under C:\Program Files, the update files are no longer stored next firefox.exe, but under C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Local Settings\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox\Mozilla Firefox

3) got the update for 2006, downloaded it (but did not apply it).

4) downloaded 2007 installer, ran it, did a pave over install.  the fix for bug #368661 won't help here, as the update files are not in the install dir.

5) started up 2007, it found the updated files, downgraded him to 2006

6) note, subsequent update took him from 2006 -> 2008

Updating summary.

Comment 20

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

That would be Bug 392150

Comment 21

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

> That would be Bug 392150

excellent, thanks robert.

Comment 22

[Ryan Hayle]

Just experienced this bug on WinXP.  I had FF 2.0.0.3 installed, and when I started it, it informed me an update to 2.0.0.4 was ready to install.  I chose not to install it.  The next time I started FF, it tried to install the update, but I did not have enough disk space available and my firefox.exe became corrupted.  I downloaded FF 2.0.0.11 directly via FTP, installed it and it ran fine.  Soon after, it told me that FF 2.0.0.4 was ready to install!  I closed this dialog, however the next time I started FF, it downgraded me to 2.0.0.4 automatically.  Really annoying...

Comment 23

[Ryan Hayle]

FYI this appears to be a dupe of bug #313057.

Comment 24

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

We clean those up now on a pave over install as well as when installing.

Can this still be reproduced as originally reported?

Comment 25

[David Young]

I was consistently experiencing problems with FF2 getting tangled up by admin/non-admin confusion when updates were available.

In FF3 this hasn't been a problem, simply because the auto-updater is inactive and greyed out for non-admin users.

I hate to sound ungrateful -- because I really don't miss straightening that one out! -- but I do miss just being notified an upgrade is available. One reason for Firefox's great security reputation is the tendancy of its users to efficiently keep up with the stable release.

Comment 26

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

David, all of what you said is completely and entirely understood and is being worked on in bug 407875 and bug 318855 but it is entirely and completely unhelpful in regards to this bug.

Comment 27

[Robert Strong (they/them - no direct email)]

As originally reported this bug should be fixed as stated in comment #24... resolving -> wfm.