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Is there a way to execute a XUL program delivered via "trusted" web site outside of the browser sandbox?

My XUL program executes beautifully in local XULRunner and in firefox with the -add parameter.

Now, I'd like to put it on my secure intranet and allow users to click a button which will launch it. My app has behaviors that access local resources such as .exes, so it seems like the browser sandbox will prohibit the app from carrying out those behaviors. But I'd really like to create a browser-based launchpad for this app. And since I'm hosting it on my intranet, which is trusted in my users' browsers, it seems like it should be possible.

Mozilla's documentation says "It is also possible to open XUL files directly from the file system or from a remote web site; however they will be restricted in the kinds of operations they can do, and some aspects of XUL will not work." But given that "Remote XUL is DEAD", I need a way to kickoff my local XUL app without executing XUL in the browser.

If not, is there a firefox extension that could run this XUL app?

retrodrone
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    The best idea I can come with is to convert your app itself into an extension. You could even make it update automatically from your server. – Neil May 12 '11 at 19:50
  • Great, that's one alternative I was considering. But I'm a XUL noob. Got a link for how to pull that off? And would it be able to access my local resources (i.e., launch a local .exe?) Thx! – retrodrone May 12 '11 at 20:02
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    Yes, an extension has all the power of a xul app, except for some edge cases, e.g. extensions are always disabled in safe mode. – Neil May 12 '11 at 20:06
  • Another quick question, are XUL extensions dead? I've been browsing through Firefox 4 bugs, and there are comments about Mozilla dropping support for XUL in the browser. Does this impact extensions? See the "Remote XUL is dead" link above as an example. – retrodrone May 12 '11 at 20:11
  • Not yet; although I know Mozilla prefers for extensions to use JetPack, I think that the browser itself will still use XUL for some time to come. – Neil May 12 '11 at 20:13

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To elaborate on my initial comment, turn your app into an extension (although most of the steps should be familiar to you already) and then secure your updates.

Neil
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