Firefox 2.0.0.4 Released on 5/30/2007 - Security and Compatibility Upgrade
Mozilla.org has released a security and compatibility upgrade of the popular Firefox browser; version 2.0.0.4, on May 30, 2007.
While this edition features fixes for several critical security vulnerabilities it also contains compatibility fixes to make it work better under Windows Vista. Details are below.
Security Vulnerabilities Fixed in Firefox 2.0.0.4
MFSA 2007-17 XUL Popup Spoofing
MFSA 2007-16 XSS using addEventListener
MFSA 2007-14 Path Abuse in Cookies
MFSA 2007-13 Persistent Autocomplete Denial of Service
MFSA 2007-12 Crashes with evidence of memory corruption (rv:1.8.0.12/1.8.1.4)
* Clicking links in some applications (e.g. some instant messaging programs) might not open them in Firefox, even if you have set it as your default browser. To workaround this problem, go to Start -> Default Programs -> Set default programs for this computer, expand custom, select the radio button next to the app you want to set as the system wide default app (e.g. Firefox, etc.), and apply.
* A Windows Media Player (WMP) plugin is not provided with Windows Vista. As a workaround, in order to view Windows Media content, you can follow these instructions. Note that after installing you may have to get a security update and apply it before you can see the content in the browser.
* Vista Parental Controls are not completely honored. In particular, file downloads do not honor Vista's parental control settings. This will be addressed in an upcoming Firefox release.
* When migrating from Internet Explorer 7 to Firefox, cookies and saved form history are not imported.
Downloading Firefox 2
Mozilla provides Firefox 2 for Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X in a variety of languages. You can get the latest version of Firefox 2 here.
Installing Firefox 2
Please note that installing Firefox 2 will overwrite your existing installation of Firefox. You won't lose any of your bookmarks or browsing history, but some of your extensions and other add-ons might not work until updates for them are made available.
Some firewall software may silently block Firefox from running. Other software firewalls, like ZoneAlarm, will pop-up a Program (changed) Alert that you must interact with (twice) to allow the updated Firefox browser to connect to the Internet. This often happens immediately after Firefox has been installed or updated from a previous version. There are configuration instructions available for most popular firewall programs to help you ensure that Firefox is allowed to connect to the Internet. In the case of ZoneAlarm you know you just updated Firefox so Allow it to connect the the Internet AND check the box to remember your decision. Firefox contains a component that automatically checks for updates while you are online and you may have to allow that (changed) component to connect after updating the browser.
The release notes and caveats about this version of Firefox are found here.
Removing Firefox 2
You can remove Firefox 2 through the Control Panel in the Start Menu on Windows, by removing the Firefox application on OS X, or by removing the firefox folder on Linux.
Removing Firefox 2 won't remove your bookmarks, web browsing history, extensions or other add-ons. This data is stored in your Firefox Profile folder.
Your personal bookmarks, history, extensions, preferences and cookies are stored in your Fifefox Profile, located in the following places for various operating systems:
Windows Vista: Users\
Windows 2000, XP: Documents and Settings\
Windows NT: WINNT\Profiles\
Windows 98, ME: Windows\Application Data\Mozilla\Firefox
Mac OS X: ~/Library/Application Support/Firefox
Linux and Unix systems: ~/.mozilla/firefox
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