This desktop-only addon shows information about your Sync account, including showing all server data for your account. It is designed primarily for Sync developers, or advanced users who would like insights into their Sync data.
Once installed, type about:sync into the URL bar.
This is only possible in Nightly. To proceed, you must use about:config to
set extensions.experiments.enabled=true.
- Clone the git repo locally.
- Run
npm installinside the repo. - Optionally, run
npm run devwhich should start a daemon which means any edits you make while Firefox is running should get picked up, and only need a "refresh" rather than a full browser restart to be seen. - In
about:debugging, load the extension by selecting any file in the root directory (eg,chrome.manifest). - Open
about:sync
- To see verbose debug messages from bootstrap.js, set a boolean preference
extensions.aboutsync.verbose=true- messages will be sent to the browser console. Most non-bootstrap code can just useconsole.log()etc.
The CI process creates "dep signed" XPI files which can be used to test - this is useful to test the artifact of a PR, or to pre-test a release XPI before final "production signing".
See the official docs but a tl;dr is:
- CI will have a
dep-signedjob which will have the .xpi as an artifact. - This can be tested on Nightly only and only if the preference
xpinstall.signatures.dev-rootis true - this pref does not exist by default, so you need to create it as a bool pref. - As with running from source, you also need
extensions.experiments.enabled=true
Because this addon must be signed by the addons team, the release process is more difficult than for regular addons.
The general process followed by the addons team is documented here, but at the current time, the maintainers of about-sync don't have the required permissions. Therefore, the process is:
-
Consider bumping the version in
package.json- that's not strictly necessary as the final version string will be something likeX.Y.Zbuildid20220601.073719, but it makes it easier to work out what's in a version. -
Find the exact github revision revision you want as the new build; usually current
main. Ensure this revision is tested using the testing process described above -
Join the #addons-pipeline slack channel, asking for a release to be built specifying that exact revision.
-
You will be notified of an initial build, with will include a "dep-signing" task - however, this doesn't create the .xpi you can submit to AMO. Two additional sign-offs from the addons team is necessary and you will be given another taskcluster link.
-
In this second taskcluster build, you should find a link to a "release signing" taskcluster job, look for the built, signed .xpi and download it locally.
-
This release signing task should also have created a github tag in the aboutsync repository. Check that it has!
-
Upload the xpi to addons.mozilla.org. If you don't have the permission for this, ask for help in the #addons-pipeline channel.