XULRunner 1.8.0.1 is the first stable developer preview release of XULRunner. It provides facilities for launching standalone XUL applications and embedding APIs which can be used to render web pages within native and Java applications.
System Requirements
Before installing, make sure your computer meets the system requirements. The system requirements for XULRunner are the same as the system requirements for Firefox.
Installing XULRunner
Mozilla provides XULRunner for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, in English:
Windows
- Unpack the ZIP file to a new directory using a archive tool (7zip is recommended). The following directory is recommended:
C:\Program Files\Mozilla XULRunner\1.8.0.1. - To register XULRunner with the system, open a command prompt and run
xulrunner.exe --register-global(to register for all users) orxulrunner.exe --register-user(to register for one user only).
Mac OS X
- Open the .pkg file within the installer and follow the directions.
Linux
- Unpack the tarball to a new directory using
tar -xzf xulrunner-1.8.0.1.en-US.linux-i686.tar.gz. The following directory is recommended:/opt/xulrunner/1.8.0.1. - Register XULRunner with the system by running
xulrunner --register-global(to install for all users, must be run as root) orxulrunner --register-user(to install for one user only).
Uninstalling XULRunner
Windows/Linux
- From a command prompt, run
xulrunner --unregister-globalorxulrunner --unregister-userto unregister XULRunner just as you registered it during installation. - Remove the XULRunner directory.
Mac OS X
If you have multiple versions of XULRunner installed on Mac OS X, it is not possible to uninstall only one version.
- To remove all installed versions of XULRunner, remove the
/Library/Frameworks/XUL.frameworkdirectory.
Installing XUL Applications
XUL applications can be obtained from various sources, and are typically packaged as a ZIP archive with the extension .xulapp or .xpi. Sample applications are available from the Mozilla Developer Center.
- Save the application archive to your desktop or another convenient place.
Windows
Run the following command from the Start Menu -> Run or from a command prompt:
"C:\Program Files\Mozilla XULRunner\1.8.0.1\xulrunner\xulrunner.exe" --install-app "C:\Documents and Settings\User\Desktop\myapplication.xpi"
The application will be installed to C:\Program Files\VendorName\ApplicationName
Mac OS X
Run the following command in a command prompt:
/Library/Frameworks/XUL.framework/xulrunner-bin --install-app ~/Desktop/myapplication.xpi
The application will be installed to /Applications/Vendor/AppicationName
Linux
Run the following command in a command prompt:
/opt/xulrunner/1.8.0.1/xulrunner/xulrunner --install-app ~/Desktop/myapplication.xpi
The application will be installed to /usr/lib/vendor/applicationname
Known Issues
- Firewall software may identify all XUL applications as the same application.
- On Microsoft Windows XP, all XUL applications may wind up being grouped together in the taskbar.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why is installing XULRunner so painful? Why isn't there a nice installer?
- Because nobody has written that code yet! This is a developer preview release: additional features for installing and deploying XULRunner and applications based on XULRunner will be available in future releases.
- I'm writing a XUL application, how can I deploy that application to my users?
- Right now Mozilla recommends that XULRunner should be deployed privately with each application. See Deploying XULRunner 1.8 for more information.
- Where is the source code?
- Here.
- I think I've found a bug, how do I report it?
- bugzilla.mozilla.org is used to track bugs in all Mozilla products. Please search to make sure that your bug has not already been reported.
- How can I help?
- If you want to help with XULRunner but don't know where to start, visit the XULRunner:Community page and ask questions on the newsgroups or the IRC channel.