How To Install XPI And JAR Firefox Add-ons And Themes

We all love Firefox add-ons and extensions. They are so easy to use, so useful that many of us can’t stay without them, and also easy to install…or not??

firefox_addons_logo.gif

If you find a useful add-on at the Firefox Add-ons home page, you will find a green button that you simply click to install the extension. But sometimes, when an add-on is made by someone with his own web site they tend to store them on their servers, and offer the setup as regular XPI (extensions) or JAR (themes) files.

So what do you do when you find one of those two files and you want to install them?

There are two ways you can use:

  1. The first way, is to drag and drop the file/URL of the extension in the Add-ons manager (Tools>Add-ons). The normal installation window will show and you’ll be ready to install.
  2. ib_drag_drop.gif

  3. The second way, is to modify a voice in the configuration page, to unhide a “secret” install button inside the Add-ons Manager:
  • Type about:config in the address bar to access the advanced preferences.
  • Look for the preference “extensions.hideInstallButton”.
  • ib_configuration_edit.gif

  • Double click it to change it to false.
  • install_button.gif

    Now you will have an Install button in the Add-ons Manager, that will enable you to browse your computer, and look for XPI and JAR files to easily install them.

    ib_installing-copy.gif

    23 thoughts on “How To Install XPI And JAR Firefox Add-ons And Themes

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    5. Thanks for all the great tips – Here’s another way to install xpi’s: Instead of clicking the install button, right-click and save the xpi file to a folder on your hard drive. Then you can simply drag and drop the xpi file into a FF window and the install process begins as usual. . . I work in an environment where my laptop must be re-imaged frequently with a base image that I don’t control. By saving all my favorite extensions to a USB flash drive I can very quickly set up my FF environment with this method. Anyone who re-installs their OS frequently will also find this a great timesaver.

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    12. please help.
      usually and before, .jar files on the addons site used to have the same installation window as .xpi files (installing addon/themes, but now it only brings up the default ‘save to’/open with window.
      i’ve tried using another profile so i know it’s not because i recently updated.

      thank you for reading and sorry to bother you.

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