How to stop auto-updating on a Linux Centos 7, 64-bit machine?
Hi, I had version 52.8 ESR on my machine configured the way that I work and had a few carefully chosen extensions added on. A couple of nights ago the browser suddenly crashed out of nowhere. I had to manually terminate the application. On reload, I was faced with the new version, 61.0.1, installed or updated without my saying so. Most of the extensions were now obsolete as they are not in the new format. The browser also looks and feels buggy. For example, scrolling up and down the screen with the mouse' wheel works very intermittently; the links from Thunderbird do not load, you just get a blank window; etc.etc. Totally fucked up.
Now two questions and an observation: 1. How do I stop this happening again? As a long-standing user of these things [do you remember Mosaic/Netscape Navigator?] I do not want/wish to use this version that some idiot thinks it is best for me; and 2. How do I completely, I mean really completely 100%, get rid of this version and revert to 52 ESR?
Observation: Why do you update something behind the scene without informing the user? This is not good practice. What you end up doing is creating discontent with the product. Instead of this 'new ' version, I might as well use Google's Chrome, Opera or even Yandex. Of course, nobody has forced me to use your programs. I can ditch them and go elsewhere. But I have been a committed user and feel really bitter about this process.
[NB.: for idiots out there that waste their own time and mine: my system is Centos 7, 64-bit. It is a RHEL 7 fork. So please reply if you know what you are talking about.] Thanks.
Chosen solution
If you are using the CentOS package 60.1.0-4.el7 you would do the following:
sudo yum downgrade-to=firefox-52.8.0-1 firefox and then in /etc/yum/yum.conf you'd add a installonly=firefox-52.8.0-1 which would versionlock firefox to 52.8.0-1 EVEN if yum update sees a newer version.
Read this answer in context 👍 0All Replies (4)
Firefox 52.8.0 is a ESR channel version while 61.0.1 is on a separate Release channel so Mozilla certainly did not update your install. Mozilla also does not provide updates to third-party builds of Firefox on Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux, only to their own.
If you were using official Linux builds of Firefox from www.mozilla.org/firefox/all or https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/ https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/all/#legacy (52 ESR)
Then you would not get a update from 52.8.0esr to 61.0.1 Release or even 60.1.0esr
Firefox 52.9.0esr out on June 26 was the last major update for the legacy 52 ESR as it will be EOL on Sept 5th. It will only be then that users may get a update prompt to 60.2.0esr if their OS and hardware can run it (WinXP/Vista users cannot for example).
If you are using third-party Firefox packages from your Linux distro (like Centos) then they may have decided to provide package updates to Firefox 52 ESR users to either 60.1.0esr or 61.0.1 Release now instead of later after EOL.
Modified by James
Hi there, Thank you for your reply. What I can read between the lines is that Centos itself may have done the deed. However, my CRON job runs at start up, not in the middle of browsing. So how do you account for the crash and the update?
I also just checked to see how the config settings are. All of the app.update settings are set to false. [this is of course in the current version that I have: 60.1.0ESR]
Any help with completely removing the thing from my setup and re-installing 52.9ESR will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
PS. I just checked the download page for Organizations/ESR {https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/organizations/} and read this:
"Does Mozilla provide an upgrade path between two ESR versions? Yes, an ESR will be automatically upgraded to the subsequent ESR."
Now, as an ex-corporate user, how can I prevent this on my local machine?
Modified by Adrian66
Chosen Solution
If you are using the CentOS package 60.1.0-4.el7 you would do the following:
sudo yum downgrade-to=firefox-52.8.0-1 firefox and then in /etc/yum/yum.conf you'd add a installonly=firefox-52.8.0-1 which would versionlock firefox to 52.8.0-1 EVEN if yum update sees a newer version.
Corey 'linuxmodder' Sheldon said
If you are using the CentOS package 60.1.0-4.el7 you would do the following: sudo yum downgrade-to=firefox-52.8.0-1 firefox and then in /etc/yum/yum.conf you'd add a installonly=firefox-52.8.0-1 which would versionlock firefox to 52.8.0-1 EVEN if yum update sees a newer version.
Hi there, Thank you. Now, we're getting somewhere... The yum config file was not in that subfolder as you have suggested. It was in its parent: /etc/ folder on my Centos 7-5.1804.el7.centos.2.x86_64. I have added the line and hopefully that would be the end of that. Thanks again.