Publish chrome and firefox extension in private mode - google-chrome

I created a browser extension for my coworkers that enhances the system we use daily but can't modify it.
So far we've been using it locally. Everyone has a copy of the files on their own machine and everytime there's an update I have to notify everyone to manually update it.
I'd like to publish it on the chrome and firefox stores but I would rather not make it public.
Is there a way to publish it privately, so only the people with a link could access and download it ?

Related

Facing issue while trying to run Robot framework script in google chrome browser

I am facing a Chrome popup while trying to run Robot Frame work script:
Microsoft Security Essentials wants to restore your Chrome settings to their
original defaults.
This will reset your homepage, new tab page and
search engine, disable your extensions, and unpin all tabs. It will
also clear other temporary and cached data, such as cookies, content
and site data.
In chrome extension, my developer mode is unchecked, whereas it should be checked.
The Robot Framework automation script is just to open the google Chrome browser and load google search page.
I am using Win 7 Home Basic OS.
I have attached screenshots.
It appears that most Chrome support specialists will ask you to run an anti-malware tool to verify that your system is running normally. These can be found by searching on the popup message.
One Reddit user commented that in his case the problem was resolved by altering the Windows registry:
I finally found a fix for this. There is a setting in the registry
that's causing it.
In the registry it's under
HKEY_CKU\CURRENT_USER\Software\Google\Chrome\TriggeredReset
Delete the TriggeredReset key and then close regedit. Fixed.
This is an API for 3rd party programmers who want to create cleaning
tools. But if the tool isn't written properly, the triggered reset
never gets deleted and we have it always asking.

Sharing the Realtime Documents

I have created a playground application. I see that it creates shortcut files in my google drive. I tried to share it with incognito (because I want the doc to be available to anybody and do not know how to create another google account, so I log out into incognito). The shared link looks like https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B00--A0eRH1JLTdsX2t0LWw5RE0. But, incognito fails to view it. It says that "No preview avaialable" in what is supposed to be its google drive window and offers the log in
The key problem that I see is that playground application has the following structure, which comes from the official demo
function onAuthorized() {
function onFileLoaded(doc) {display(doc)}
gapi.drive.realtime.load(your_doc_id, onFileLoaded)
}
// App entry point -- start by authorization
gapi.auth.authorize({
client_id: rtClientId, scope: ['install', 'file'],
//user_id: userId,
immediate: !popup }, onAuthorized
);
which seems to demand authentication in the first place before displaying any doc. Authorization is problematic for the unsigned mode that I want my app to be available. I want to share a file and make it viewable to the general public, without the need to log in. This raises a question if incognito users are able to view or event edit my document. I also concern how to copy the doc to their account if desired: one thing is when you have created a file on your drive with my app, you can probably list the files and use drive.copy api to copy desired one and other thing when you want to copy a file that is not available on your google drive and the only thing you have is its id.
BTW, can you tell me which account to use for non-incognito testing from another account? If I create the document in one account I want to see how it looks/accessible from the another.
The Realtime API does not provide anonymous access by default. See https://developers.google.com/google-apps/realtime/faq#does_the_realtime_api_support_anonymous_access
"BTW, can you tell me which account to use for non-incognito testing from another account? If I create the document in one account I want to see how it looks/accessible from the another."
Use Chrome for one account. Use Firefox and other browsers for succeeding accounts.
Additional note:
Just so you have a clear understanding what Incognito is all about. What it can and cannot do so you don't mix things up.
How incognito mode works
What you view
Incognito is a mode that opens a new window where you can browse the
Internet in private without Chrome saving the sites you visit. You can
switch between an incognito window and any regular Chrome browsing
windows you have open. You'll only be in incognito mode when you're
using the incognito window.
Be careful. Incognito mode only prevents Chrome from saving your site
visit activity. It won't stop other sources from seeing your browsing
activity, including:
Your internet service provider Your employer (if you're using a work
computer) The websites you visit themselves What you've downloaded
Chrome won’t save a record of the files you download in incognito
mode. However, the downloaded files will be saved to your computer’s
Downloads folder, where you and any other users of your computer can
see and open them, even after you close your incognito tabs.

Google User Log-In from Chrome Extension

I am making a chrome extension, and for the purposes of my Chrome Extension, I am wanting users to be able to sign in to their Google account so they can send information to a server. I have been reading about user authentication and whatnot from the Google documents, but this is for apps that are being published into the store, and mine is in development. This is brand new territory for me, and I am lost. I feel like there's something that I must be missing, but I don't know how to get started.
Thanks.
Check this documentation about the quick way of loading up your working directory for testing. Extensions that you download from the Chrome Web Store are packaged up as .crx files, which is great for distribution, but not so great for development.

Disable update of specific chrome extension

With recent news of adblock being sold to some unknown company, first thing i want to do is disable any possible update for that extension.
I've found number of questions but they are outdated. So chrome pros please tell how do we disable a specific plugin? and please take into consideration that there are many instances which synchronize it is important that the change gets synchronized to other computers, if it is not how do we do that?.
And a secondary question : where do we find sources of already installed extension? so that we could later pack and run it?
Chrome does not offer a way of disabling an update for a specific extension.
If you want to make sure that you run some specific version of an extension, you could try any of the following options:
Read-only extension folder
Go to the directory containing the extension, and mark the directory as read-only. To find that directory, visit chrome://version and look at the path at "Profile Path". The extension will then be at [value of Profile path]/Extensions/[32-character extension id].
Download the source code
Download the source code of the extension, and load it as an unpacked extension (or upload it to the Chrome Web store, and then install it).
There are several ways to get the source code (including just copying it from the directory as I mentioned at the previous step).
If you want to download a Chrome extension without installing it (e.g. because the new version contains unwanted "features" that you want to remove), then you could use my Chrome extension source viewer to download the code.
Some extensions expect to be run with a specific extension ID. You can forge this extension ID if you load the extension in unpacked mode (but you cannot upload the extension to the CWS if you do that). For instructions on fixing the extension ID, see How to change chrome packaged app id Or Why do we need key field in the manifest.json?.

Custom Extensions on Managed Chromebooks

I am a developer looking for the best way to set up different schools with their own custom, private extensions (ie School A should be the only one with access to Extension A). Theoretically, I am aware that there are a few ways to get a custom, private extension pushed out on a domain:
Host the .crx on a server and click "Specify a Custom App" in the management console.
Create a Domain App by uploading a zip to the Chrome Web Store
Upload the extension from my developer account to the Chrome Web Store and publish to a single "trusted tester," or make it unlisted
Option (1), hosting the .crx, has not been working. I am not sure why, but the extension is simply not pushing out. I link directly to the crx file, which has the right ID and MIME type, still, no dice. If anyone has any tips or suggestions for getting this to work, I would love to hear them!
Option (2), having the school create a domain app, seems a bit inefficient because it requires all schools to upload their own zip. So essentially I would have to email a zip file to the school, and have them publish it. All updates to the extension will also require a similar process, so this doesn't seem ideal.
I doubt that option (3) would work. If I published to the admin as a "trusted tester", I don't think that the other people in the domain would be able to access it. If it is unlisted, I do not know how an admin could find it in the Chrome Web Store dialog. Also, I would rather avoid security through obscurity.
Has anyone had success with hosting the extension and using the Specify a Custom App feature? Any other suggestions for getting a Custom Extension pushed out by the management console? Thanks so much!
To get option (1) working from the management console, it is important to specify the correct extension id and a valid update xml url (not a crx).
One useful feature Google offers that you can use is getting the extension id and the version from the update request.
For instance, you can create a update.php file that outputs an xml file specific to each extension and version. See http://developer.chrome.com/extensions/autoupdate.html under "Advanced Usage".
For more info on packaging an app or extension for managed chromebooks, see https://support.google.com/chrome/a/answer/2714278?hl=en.