Migration Assistant does not migrate firefox 3 bookmarks

[Chris Gregan]

<Build: Hardy Daily Live 20081704>
<Environment: Windows XP>

Summary:
Migration Assistant does not recognise Firefox bookmarks when installing along side XP. IE bookmarks are migrated, but firefox bookmarks are ignored.

Steps to Reproduce:
1) Insert hardy disk in a working XP machine with both IE and Firefox, each containing different bookmarks
2) Reboot
3) Select Install from the boot options
4) Check Windows user from Migration Assistant installer window
5) Complete install
6) Launch Ubuntu install
7) Check Firefox bookmarks

Expected result:
Bookmarks from IE and Firefox are migrated to Ubuntu user.

Actual result:
Bookmarks from Firefox are not migrated.

[Kai Stempfle (kai-stempfle)]

Unfortunately, migrating files and settings from a Microsoft Windows Environment is currently not supported by the Ubuntu installer. Due to proprietary interfaces and filesystems used on Microsoft Windows Environments, personal settings and configurations must be migrated manually to a linux operating system.

You might want to backup your Firefox settings directory from Microsoft Windows and restore your settings using the backup after installing Ubuntu. Using a Linux operating system, your firefox configuration is most likely stored at you home directory within the .mozilla directory. Restoring your complete configuration from Microsoft Windows should work in most cases. If not, please create a new profile and enter all your settings manually.

Thank you for taking time to report this issue.

[Chris Gregan (cgregan)]

Kai,
Yahoo Messenger accounts, IE bookmarks, User Documents, Music files, Image files, and User and desktop background images are all migrated to Ubuntu during install. They are all listed in the Migration Assistant user selection screen during install and when check marked, are moved to the user created during Ubuntu install.

If we do not support Microsoft Windows migration from XP, why are all of these files moved?? Either we migrate all selectable options or we migrate nothing. I believe we support migration from XP to Ubuntu. Please re-confirm.

[Evan (ev)]

Consider this confirmation that the documents and settings listed at http://wiki.ubuntu.com/MigrationAssistant *should* get imported, if requested, during the install.

[Kai Stempfle (kai-stempfle)]

Re-confirmed using a virtual machine. Ubiquity does not import firefox bookmarks when installing a dual-boot configuration on a Windows XP based system using a new partition for Ubuntu.

I'm sorry for entering incorrect information previously.

Best regards,
Kai

[Michael Rooney (mrooney)]

Potentially useful input from Prodoc in a duplicate: "During the installation of Ubuntu I got presented with the wonderful option to import the Firefox stuff from the existing Windows XP installation. After everything was completed and I was ready to use Firefox in Ubuntu, nothing was imported at all. No bookmarks, no saved passwords, nothing. Shouldn't this have been the case? Is there an option to import the stuff again?"

[Michael Rooney (mrooney)]

While this and the duplicates seem to be regarding XP migrations, I want to add that I can confirm this with Intrepid Alpha 4, attempting to migrate Firefox settings from Hardy 8.04.1. Nothing was imported as far as I can tell. So this may be a generic Firefox migration issue and not something specific to Windows. It also doesn't seem to be specific to Firefox 2 or 3.

[Michael Rooney (mrooney)]

It is my understanding after talking to Evan that migration-assistant supports Firefox 2 but not (currently) Firefox 3. As such can Chris and Kai confirm that the bookmarks that weren't imported were from Firefox 3? And can anyone confirm or deny that a Firefox 2 migration DOES work?

I for one can confirm that my failed Firefox migration was with Firefox 3, and had not tried with Firefox 2.

[Forage (forage)]

Unfortunately Firefox 2 to Firefix 3 did not work for me as noted in dup bug #230823.

[Alexander Sack (asac)]

we would need to migrate places.sqlite file to get the firefox bookmarks (in addition to bookmarks.html)

[Michael Rooney (mrooney)]

If migrating from Linux why not just bring over the users ~/.mozilla?

[Fabio Marconi (fabiomarconi)]

Iso-testing
Same problem on lucid 20100406.1
Everithings work well, but at the restart bookmark isn't migrated.
THnx.