Solved How long does it take for the latest Firefox appear in the FreeBSD repos ?

john_rambo

john_rambo

When I copied my old .mozilla folder (Arch Linux) to my FreeBSD home and launched Firefox it complained that the installed version of Firefox is too old.
When I visit the Mozilla website the version available for download (for Linux & Windows) is 96.0.2. This is the version that I was using under Arch.


How long does it take for the latest Firefox appear in the FreeBSD repos ?
 
If you are tracking say RELEASE/STABLE package repos, quarterly.
If you are building from ports, maybe sooner, but it boils down to the maintainer, probably more their available time than their mood, but both are factors.
 
If an update for say libreoffice or smplayer gets delayed for some days I don't really care but in my experience very conservative Linux distros like Debian which releases very few & only security patches releases Firefox ASAP.

If Mozilla had offered a TAR for FreeBSD that would have solved this issue.

My point is web browser updates must be released ASAP.
 
eternal_noob said:
While i understand that maintainers work for free in their spare time
Click to expand...
Unfortunately the userbase of FreeBSD is still too small as a desktop OS. Linux Mint for example is based on Ubuntu. Ubuntu recently have made a decision of moving some apps like Firefox to snaps. A lot of users didn't like it but that didn't cause much trouble for users. Mint disables snaps by default and offer Firefox using their own repo which they add besides the official Ubuntu repos.

If FreeBSD gain more desktop market share a ton of derivatives will appear which will maintain their own repos for stuff like Firefox.

That will ultimately give maintainers some releif and at the same time FreeBSD users will benefit too.
 
mer said:
If you are tracking say RELEASE/STABLE package repos, quarterly.
If you are building from ports, maybe sooner, but it boils down to the maintainer, probably more their available time than their mood, but both are factors.
Click to expand...
I am using 13.0-STABLE. Can you please explain what exactly "quarterly" means. English is not my native language.
Does quarterly means 4 times a year ? I hope not coz that's shocking.
 
from what i can tell, firefox port ( and the binary pkg in some days after that ) added with some frequency, for example even RC versions was available. It can happen, depending on certain slice of time, that user's necessity of updating coincides with an impression that port/pkg lagging with updates. it is big port, and it needs tested on different architectures, i would not be too stressed about availability of software in FreeBSD and Linux distributions as it can be easily found that in both of this worlds many pkgs are newer or older in either one.
 
Yes, quarterly means 4 times a year. It is to provide stability.
Sometimes security patches will get applied quicker, but it all boils down to the maintainer of a specific port.
 
eternal_noob said:
i think that updates of critical software like browsers should not take longer than a day.
Click to expand...

One day or less happens often enough with Firefox iirc, but it may depend on how critical the update is. If it's only UI then I'd bet no one rushes too quickly on it.


john_rambo said:
Unfortunately the userbase of FreeBSD is still too small as a desktop OS.
Click to expand...

That plays no part as to whether the maintainer updates FF or not.

john_rambo said:
If FreeBSD gain more desktop market share a ton of derivatives will appear which will maintain their own repos for stuff like Firefox.
Click to expand...

Let's hope that never happens. You want ONE version, not a multitude of script kiddie favorites.
 
drhowarddrfine said:
Yes, four times, but you don't have to use quarterly. You can select "latest" for your packages. See the Handbook on how to do that.
Click to expand...
Before I switch to latest I want to ask something.
Just because I was using Arch Linux doesn't mean that I am obsessed with bleeding edge software. If I continue with Stable will I get security updates ? I am asking specifically about Firefox. The reason I am asking this is coz in my experience very conservative Linux distros like Debian which releases very few & only security patches releases new versions of Firefox as soon as Mozilla releases one.
 
john_rambo said:
… 96.0.2. ?… How long does it take for the latest Firefox appear in the FreeBSD repos ? …
Click to expand...

Via the first of the two bug icons near the head of the www/firefox page, we get a list of bug reports. Uppermost at the moment:
  • FreeBSD bug {link removed}
<{link removed}> presents a history of commits for the port. We often get a major update slightly before Mozilla makes a release announcement.

It's unusual for a major update to not be ahead of the curve, but let's assume that it'll happen before too long.

<{link removed}> at the moment, nothing to suggest when the update will come.
 
Last edited:
When using "quarterly" packages (default on -RELEASE), you get the exact same Firefox versions as with "latest" (default on -STABLE and -CURRENT), you're not stuck with the same version for three months. Most packages don't get upgrades within the three months between quarterly releases but some do, including major browsers and other security-critical software.

About how long it takes, it probably depends on the work needed. Firefox is a fast moving beast and sometimes a change can create a problem that has to be fixed before the upgrade can be made available. Linux distributions maintainers have an easier time, because Linux is an officially supported platform and things are already tested upstream by Mozilla, which isn't the case with FreeBSD.

Our maintainers are doing a great work. It's true Firefox 96 takes longer than usual to show up, but more than once I have seen releases that were available on FreeBSD before Arch Linux, and that's pretty impressive.
 
john_rambo said:
… Does quarterly means 4 times a year …
Click to expand...

Branching occurs quarterly.

For the 2022Q1 branch, which is the current quarterly: <{link removed}> five commits so far today.

john_rambo said:
… If Mozilla had offered a TAR for FreeBSD that would have solved this issue. …
Click to expand...

grahamperrin said:
… Tier-3 …:

{link removed}
Click to expand...

Via the git link near the head of the FreshPorts page, you'll find the Makefile for the port to FreeBSD.

<{link removed}>

When I last checked, the port does make use of a Mozilla-provided archive. Maybe not a .TAR but that's the general idea.
 
Last edited:
Okay one last (non technical) question. Is FreeBSD with the version of Firefox it offers a safe OS for sensitive tasks like Internet Banking ?
 
john_rambo said:
… (non technical) question. Is FreeBSD with the version of Firefox it offers a safe OS for sensitive tasks like Internet Banking ?
Click to expand...

Answers might depend on whether the task can be affected by what's described in {link removed}.

Ports

Some of what you want can, or should, be found with FreshPorts.

Firefox, for example:

1642989510819.png


<{link removed}>

<{link removed}>

I don't know why 95.0.2_2,2 is not yet marked as vulnerable. I'll seek or raise an issue.

OS

{link removed}
 
Last edited:
john_rambo said:
Before I switch to latest I want to ask something.
Just because I was using Arch Linux doesn't mean that I am obsessed with bleeding edge software. If I continue with Stable will I get security updates ? I am asking specifically about Firefox. The reason I am asking this is coz in my experience very conservative Linux distros like Debian which releases very few & only security patches releases new versions of Firefox as soon as Mozilla releases one.
Click to expand...
As you are using stable instead of release you are already on "latest" No need to change anything.

For Firefox. Instead of just copy .mozilla you can sync your Arch Mozilla settings to Mozilla cloud and when using FreeBSD
just pick it up there.
 
john_rambo said:
If FreeBSD gain more desktop market share a ton of derivatives will appear which will maintain their own repos for stuff like Firefox.

That will ultimately give maintainers some releif and at the same time FreeBSD users will benefit too.
Click to expand...
I believe 99% of people on this forums hope and pray this will never happens.
I'm one of them.
 
john_rambo said:
Is FreeBSD with the version of Firefox it offers a safe OS for sensitive tasks like Internet Banking ?
Click to expand...
I have a policy that I only have a single window open with the sensitive site.
I don't trust cross-site wonkiness or the privacy of a window (Or tab if you use them).
owasp.org

Cross Site Scripting (XSS) | OWASP Foundation

Cross Site Scripting (XSS) on the main website for The OWASP Foundation. OWASP is a nonprofit foundation that works to improve the security of software.
owasp.org owasp.org
 
I just installed updates and now I am running Firefox 97.0. I visited Mozilla's Firefox download page & found they are offering 96.0.3 so FreeBSD is actually ahead which is really nice. I am really happy about this but I am confused about FreeBSD's update policy.

Firefox in FreeBSD repos
ffversion.png


Firefox available for download in Mozilla's homepage

ff download.png
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top