383441 - Upgrading Portable Firefox on a pendrive removes Default Program Settings on Vista

Status: RESOLVED INCOMPLETE

(Firefox :: Shell Integration, defect)

Description

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

User-Agent:       Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 6.0; it; rv:1.8.1.4) Gecko/20070515 Firefox/2.0.0.4
Build Identifier: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows; U; Windows NT 6.0; it; rv:1.8.1.4) Gecko/20070515 Firefox/2.0.0.4

I had installed 2.0.0.3 using the installer, and it worked flawlessy, adding a new Firefox item in Default Programs dialog.
So, i had set up Firefox as the default browser in Vista and links (for example from Office documents) opened into it.

After automatic update to 2.0.0.4 links and pages are served by ie7, Firefox item in Default Programs has disappeared and cannot reset it as the default handler.

I think that the only way to make it working again is to reinstall it from the installer.

Bug 354005 is about this but is marked as Resolved fixed, don't know if that should be reopened and this be marked as duplicate or if it's about a new problem.

Reproducible: Always

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Install 2.0.0.3
2. Set firefox as default program in Start / Default Programs
3. Automatic Update to 2.0.0.4
Actual Results:  
The default program settings are lost

Expected Results:  
The default program settings are retained

Comment 1

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

The cause of the removal under default programs is bug 384350 but it didn't cause the reset of the default browser

Comment 2

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

I have tried to reproduce on a virtual machine with vista x32, but was not able to do that... I had the problem on Vista x64 but don't think that is related... I'll try to reinstall 2.0.0.3 and upgrade to 2.0.0.4 to see if it happens again

Comment 3

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

I tried to reinstall and upgrade, and got no problem this time, don't know what was the problem initially, maybe a third party application... so marking as WFM for now, i'll reopen (if i have right to do it, don't know) when i will be able to reproduce

Comment 4

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

That happened again with update to 2.0.0.6, Firefox has disappeared from Default programs in Vista, but still cannot reproduce

Comment 5

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

Is this under "Set your default programs" and not "Set program access and computer defaults"? Can you also check if Firefox is still displayed under "Set program access and computer defaults" as well? Thanks

Comment 6

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

Can you better explain please? i'm on the italian version of Vista and i only get Control Panel / Default Programs / Set Default Programs (i'm translating from italian strings, i don't have an english version currently)

the strange thing is that this happens for Firefox only, not for Thunderbird

Comment 7

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

Attachment: screenshot - Set program access and defaults

If your account is an administrator with or without UAC turned on then you will have a 4th option under Control Panel / Default Programs / named "Set program access and computer defaults".

Comment 8

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

Attachment: screenshot - current config

Comment 9

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

In italian version it is something different like "program access settings" :)

There i don't see Firefox but i see "Use the current browser"

Comment 10

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

i'm still seeing this, but i can tell something more.
After every upgrade (0.7->0.8, and 0.8->0.9) the system is working fine for some days, the entries in the Start menu are working fine (i mean the Internet and Mail links) and external links are opening in Firefox...
Some day after the upgrade, everything is not working again, the Internet link in the Start menu tells me "Cannot find explorer.exe", if i double click a .html file  it asks me what i want to use to open it, if i choose "firefox" and "use always", then firefox tells me that it's not the default browser...
making it the default browser does not change anything and still it is not present in the "Set program access and computer defaults"... while it was there after the upgrade... 

Comment 11

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

Please open regedit.exe and export (e.g. File menu item -> Export) the following registry key and attach it to this bug
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE

Comment 12

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

i have HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\IEXPLORE.EXE
but i don't have 
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE

Comment 13

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

Are you installing multiple copies of Firefox? For example, are you installing then uninstalling Firefox besides your main install?

Comment 14

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

no, i have installed firefox on Vista the first time, then i have always upgraded to latest version... for testing purpose i use a virtual machine

Comment 15

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

Could you take a look at the following registry key and post back if it exists?
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\VirtualStore\MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE

Comment 16

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

i stop at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\VirtualStore\MACHINE\SOFTWARE\
i don't have Clients key, could that be the problem?

Comment 17

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

notice: i have found a HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Clients\StartMenuInternet\Firefox.exe (as the default value)
and a 
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Clients\Mail\Mozilla Thunderbird

Comment 18

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

(In reply to comment #16)
> i stop at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\VirtualStore\MACHINE\SOFTWARE\
> i don't have Clients key, could that be the problem?
If it was there it might have been the problem. I haven't been able to reproduce so I'm guessing at possible causes. Since this occurs several days after an update per comment #10 it is unlikely that the cause is the update. Perhaps some other application is causing this or performing an action in Firefox is causing this. Do you recall running another browser or app just prior to this happening? Could you try installing 2.0.0.8 and running software update to upgrade to 2.0.0.9 to see if you can reproduce it again and pay careful attention to what app's you launched and actions you performed in Firefox just prior to it happening again?

Comment 19

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

Also, please export the registry key in comment #11 after installing 2.0.0.8 as well as after upgrading to 2.0.0.9 via software update and attach them to this bug. Thanks

Comment 20

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

ok. something has come to my mind now, could this be connected to using (and upgrading) portable firefox from another disk? Sometimes after the upgrade of portable firefox i noticed that my normal firefox install is instead launched. Since after an upgrade or an install everything is working fine, something has to modify those registry keys, as you said, the only thing that come to my mind is that. I'll try with that, since till now i have not still found a way to reproduce.

Comment 21

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

That is quite likely what is happening. As a workaround to get the registry key values back when they get removed you can run the following two commands in this order

c:\program files\mozilla firefox\uninstall\helper.exe /PostUpdate
c:\program files\mozilla firefox\uninstall\helper.exe /ShowShortcuts

Comment 22

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

woho! here i am!
1. insert he external usb pendrive
2. launch portable firefox 2.0.0.8 and it will upgrade itself (i have upgraded to 2.0.0.9 now) 
3. after clicking restart it will launch the wrong browser (the local installed one).
4. close the local installed firefox and relaunch portable firefox.
5. close portable firerox
6. disconnect the key
7. all settings WRONG!!!

Tried your workaround in comment #21, everything is fine again.

i'll attach a log of the registry changes during the upgrade of portable firefox, don't know it this could be useful, or mark this report invalid if not.

Comment 23

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

Attachment: procmon registry log (setRegKey filter)

Comment 24

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

The log confirms that Portable Firefox is the reason these keys are removed. If I can get approval of bug 369783 for the branch it should be able to workaround this by setting the required keys when it detects that the defaults have changed.

Comment 25

[Marco Bonardo [:mak]]

looks like bug 406335 is somehow related

Comment 26

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

Marco, I doubt we will ever be able to get perfect behavior for the pendrive case but is it behaving decently now that bug 369783 and bug 406335 are fixed?

Comment 27

[Phoenix]

Resolved per whiteboard