Introduction to Firefox
Firefox is a stand-alone browser
based on the Mozilla codebase.
Package Information
Additional Downloads
Firefox Dependencies
Required
GTK+-2.8.20, libIDL-0.8.7, and Zip-2.32
Note: libjpeg should have been
installed before GTK+ and should
exist on your system. If for some reason you haven't installed
libjpeg, you should remove the
--with-system-jpeg option from the
.mozconfig file created below.
Recommended (if you will be
installing any other package that utilizes NSS/NSPR, such as
Thunderbird, Mozilla, Evolution, or OpenOffice)
NSS-3.11.3
Optional
UnZip-5.52 and libgnomeui-2.14.1 (to build the
gnomevfs extension)
User Notes: http://wiki.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/wiki/firefox
Installation of Firefox
The configuration of Firefox is
accomplished by creating a .mozconfig
file containing the desired configuration options. A default
.mozconfig is created below. To see the
entire list of available configuration options (and an abbreviated
description of each one), issue ./configure --help. If you are going to
use system-installed versions of the NSS and NSPR
libraries, ensure you uncomment the two lines near the bottom of
the file. If you are going to build the OpenOffice package and you want to use this
Firefox installation as the
default Mozilla source, ensure you
uncomment the --enable-ldap option in the
file created below. You may also wish to review the entire file and
uncomment any other desired options. If you would prefer to
download the file instead of creating it by typing or
cut-and-pasting, you can find it at
http://anduin.linuxfromscratch.org/files/BLFS/firefox-1.5.0.9-mozconfig
(the file must be installed in the root of the source tree
mozilla directory, and named .mozconfig). Create the file by issuing the
following command:
cat > .mozconfig << "EOF"
# This file contains the options used in the Firefox build. You may
# need to specify additional options for your specific build needs.
# Use the information provided by running './configure --help' to
# help you determine if you need to add any additional options.
# Some additional options can be added by uncommenting the examples
# in this file or adding options by inserting a line containing
# 'ac_add_options --some-option-you-need'.
# Use the default settings specified in the source tree
. $topsrcdir/browser/config/mozconfig
# Create an object directory and specify to build the package in that
# directory. If desired, modify the location of the object directory
# to a directory inside the source tree by removing '../' from the
# line below.
mk_add_options MOZ_OBJDIR=@TOPSRCDIR@/../firefox-build
# Specify the installation prefix. If you would prefer Firefox
# installed in a different prefix, modify the line below to fit
# your needs. You'll also need to modify some of the instructions in
# the BLFS book to point to your desired prefix.
ac_add_options --prefix=/usr
# These options are used so that the Firefox binaries are linked to
# the system-installed copies of the specified libraries instead of
# the source tree code which may not be the most recent versions.
ac_add_options --with-system-zlib
ac_add_options --with-system-png
ac_add_options --with-system-jpeg
ac_add_options --enable-system-cairo
# This option causes the installed binaries to have the official
# Firefox name embedded in them. Due to license restrictions, you
# may not distribute binaries created using this option.
ac_add_options --enable-official-branding
# This option specifies to include support for rendering the HTML
# <canvas></canvas> tag in the Firefox browser.
ac_add_options --enable-canvas
# This option is used to enable support for rendering SVG files in the
# Firefox browser. Comment out the line to disable the option.
ac_add_options --enable-svg
# This option is used so that the debugging symbols are removed from
# the installed binaries during the installation process. Comment out
# this option if you may have a need to retain the debugging symbols
# in the installed binaries. Note that this can substantially
# increase the size of the installed binaries.
ac_add_options --enable-strip
# This option is added so that test libraries and programs are not
# built. These would only be required for debugging purposes.
ac_add_options --disable-tests
# This option is added so that the Mozilla Installer program is not
# built or installed. The program is not required for a BLFS
# installation of Firefox.
ac_add_options --disable-installer
# This option is used to disable the a11y support in the Firefox
# binaries. Comment out this option if you require a11y support.
ac_add_options --disable-accessibility
# This option is used to enable source tree included LDAP support in
# the Firefox binaries.
###################################################################
#
# NOTE: You must uncomment this option if there is any chance of
# compiling the OpenOffice package from source code using this copy
# of Firefox for your Mozilla support.
#
###################################################################
#ac_add_options --enable-ldap
# Uncomment this option if you desire support for dual-monitor
# display of Firefox using the X-Window Xinerama libraries.
#ac_add_options --enable-xinerama
# These two options enable support for building Firefox with
# system-installed versions of the Network Security Services (NSS)
# and Netscape Portable Runtime (NSPR) libraries. Uncomment both
# lines to enable support for system-installed NSS/NSPR.
#ac_add_options --with-system-nss
#ac_add_options --with-system-nspr
# Complex scripts such as Thai can only be rendered in Firefox with the
# help of Pango. This option significantly slows rendering, so only use
# it if necessary.
#ac_add_options --enable-pango
# This option identifies the default binary directory of the Firefox
# installation and is used to locate Firefox's installed files. This
# option is not required for end-user browsing, and is only used for
# development purposes.
#ac_add_options --with-default-mozilla-five-home=/usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9
EOF
If you wish to use Pango for font
rendering and have uncommented the appropriate option in .mozconfig, apply the following patch:
patch -Np1 -i ../firefox-1.5.0.9-pangoxft-1.patch
If you have system-installed Network Security Services (NSS) and
Netscape Portable Runtime (NSPR) libraries and you uncommented the
appropriate lines in the .mozconfig file
to utilize them, apply the following patch:
patch -Np1 -i ../firefox-1.5.0.9-system_nss-1.patch
Compile Firefox by issuing the
following commands:
sed -i "s/^ enum$/& xptinfo_enum_1/" \
xpcom/reflect/xptinfo/public/xptinfo.h &&
make -f client.mk build
This package does not come with a test suite.
Now, as the root user, install the
package:
make -f client.mk install &&
install -v -m755 -d /usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/chrome/icons/default &&
ln -v -s ../../../icons/default.xpm \
/usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/chrome/icons/default &&
chown -v -R root:root \
/usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/extensions/[email protected]/*
If you enabled LDAP support in the Firefox build, install some additional
interface headers as the root user:
install -v -m644 ../firefox-build/dist/public/ldap-private/* \
/usr/include/firefox-1.5.0.9/ldap
If you built Firefox utilizing
system-installed NSS and NSPR libraries, the firefox-ns*.pc pkgconfig files are broken as they point to
the wrong directories where the actual libraries and interface
headers are located. Issue the following commands as the root user to replace the broken files with
symbolic links to known good files:
ln -v -sf nss.pc /usr/lib/pkgconfig/firefox-nss.pc &&
ln -v -sf nspr.pc /usr/lib/pkgconfig/firefox-nspr.pc
If you did NOT build
Firefox utilizing system-installed
NSS and NSPR libraries, issue the following commands as the
root user to install the NSS interface
headers:
install -v -m755 -d /usr/include/firefox-1.5.0.9/nss &&
cp -v -Lf ../firefox-build/dist/{private,public}/nss/*.h \
/usr/include/firefox-1.5.0.9/nss
![[Note]](../images/note.png)
Note
You should run /usr/bin/firefox once as the
root user (or any user with write
privileges) to create some necessary additional files in the
/usr hierarchy.
Command Explanations
sed -i "s/^ enum$/&
xptinfo_enum_1/" ...: This command is used to fix
an anonymous enum in an external/public interface header file.
make -f client.mk
...: Mozilla products are packaged to allow the use
of a configuration file which can be used to pass the configuration
settings to the configure command. make uses the client.mk file to get initial configuration and
setup parameters, then depending on the target parameter
(build or install), either runs the
configure script and
compiles the package or installs the package.
install -v -m755 -d
.../chrome/icons/default and ln -v -s ../../../icons/default.xpm ...:
These two commands are used to create a symlink in the required
directory so that the proper icon is displayed in the taskbar and
when Firefox windows are
minimized.
chown -v -R root:root
...: This command changes the ownership of some
installed files to more appropriate user:group names.
Configuring Firefox
No specific configuration is required as long as the
firefox script is in
the user's path. If Firefox is
installed in a non-standard location, then make a symlink to the
firefox script in the
/usr/bin directory.
If your Window or Desktop Manager does not allow you to configure a
default mail client, you can add a configuration parameter to
Firefox so that an email client
will start when you click on a mailto:
URL. There are two parameters you need to check. The procedure to
check or modify any of the configuration parameters is quite simple
and the instructions here can be used to view or modify any of the
parameters.
First, open the configuration dialog by entering about:config in the address bar. This will
display a list of the configuration preferences and information
related to each one. You can use the “Filter:” bar to enter search criteria and
narrow down the listed items. Changing a preference can be done
using two methods. One, if the preference has a boolean value
(True/False), simply double-click on the preference to toggle the
value and two, for other preferences simply right-click on the
desired line, choose “Modify” from the menu and change the value.
Creating new preference items is accomplished in the same way,
except choose “New” from the
menu and provide the desired data into the fields when prompted.
The two configuration preference items you need to check so that
Firefox uses a specified default
mail client are the network.protocol-handler.external.mailto
which should be set to True and the
network.protocol-handler.app.mailto which
should be set to the path of the desired mail client, e.g.,
/usr/bin/thunderbird.
Many applications look for netscape when they need to open a
browser. You may wish to make the following symlink for convenience
(as the root user).
ln -v -sf firefox /usr/bin/netscape
For installing various Firefox
plugins, refer to Mozdev's
PluginDoc Project. If you have the JDK-1.5.0_10 already installed, create
the following link as the root user to
utilize the installed Java plugin:
ln -v -s $JAVA_HOME/jre/plugin/i386/ns7/libjavaplugin_oji.so \
/usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/plugins
Some packages install Mozilla plugins into the default system-wide
directory /usr/lib/mozilla/plugins. If
desired, create symbolic links in the Firefox plugin directory /usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/plugins to the files in
the default plugin directory (you should link to the actual files
and not other links). Alternatively, you can move or copy the files
in the default plugin directory to the Firefox plugin directory. An example of
creating a symbolic link is shown below. Create the links as the
root user:
ln -v -s ../../mozilla/plugins/<plugin.so> \
/usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9/plugins
Contents
Installed
Programs: firefox and
firefox-config
Installed
Libraries: Numerous
libraries, browser components, plugins, extensions, and helper
modules installed in /usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9
Installed
Directories: /usr/include/firefox-1.5.0.9, /usr/lib/firefox-1.5.0.9,
and /usr/share/idl/firefox-1.5.0.9
Short Descriptions
|
firefox
|
is a shell script that sets up the environment and calls
the firefox-bin binary.
|
|
firefox-config
|
determines the compile and linker flags that should be
used to compile and link programs that use Firefox libraries and browser
components.
|
Last updated on 2007-01-21 04:05:16 -0600
![[Tip]](../images/tip.png)