Ferdi: Can't open links in Gmail (popup blocker)

[Dunkh4n]

Describe the bug
When i left click on a link in gmail, i have a popup telling me that i may have a popup blocker thus not to been able to open the browser.
I can however right click on the link, select 'open link in browser' in the context menu and the default browser open (or 'copy link' and past it directly in my browser)

To Reproduce
click on a link in any mail in gmail

1. Go to a mail
2. Click on a link
3. See error

Expected behavior
open the page in my default browser

Screenshots

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• OS: Win 10 pro
• Browser : Ferdi
• Version : 5.4.0

Additional context
I have this bug since the auth problem cited in #264 and made the change on my UA witch is now
module.exports = Franz => class Gmail extends Franz { overrideUserAgent() { return 'Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0'; } };
But the problem happen even with every other UA provided in #264
I do not have any problems with other services (left click open the browser normaly

[vantezzen]

Does this happen in all mails? I suspect this could be something similar to what happened in #36 with Skype (Skype used an unusual technique to open links). I am currently looking into if I can find what technique GMail is using to open links - if anyone wants to search too and share their finding they are welcome to.
Searching for the error message inside GMail's sources shows that this messages gets thrown inside a highly obfuscated "Wic.prototype.openWindow" function.

[Dunkh4n]

yes, it's happen in all mails..

[vantezzen]

Ok, I tried debugging how this works but I can't get the function mentioned above to trigger - no matter what link I click it always just uses the default link behaviour - so I can't debug this problem any further.

[mokipedia]

I switched today from Franz and experience the same issue. I also had the same login problem and had to change the user agent string. I have 2 Gmail services and both have this problem. Happy to provide more info if need be.

Desktop

• OS: MacOS 10.15.2
• Browser: Ferdi
• Version: 5.4.3.994

[mokipedia]

i just fixed my issue by switching the user agent string again, this time to:
Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10_15_2) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/79.0.3945.130 Safari/537.36
(which is what my current chrome is sending out).
Then I restarted Ferdi, just to make sure (seems like reloading multiple times may or may not yield success, so I just restart it when I change a recipe)

[nicosebastian93]

@mokipedia worked for me as well. Thanks!

[vantezzen]

The User agent changes will also be shipped with Ferdi 5.4.4 automatically - so you won't have to change that manually.

[Dunkh4n]

@mokipedia worked for me as well. Thanks!

[kytwb]

Linking to https://github.com/getferdi/ferdi/issues/264 for reference.

[lisaq]

As mentioned in #264, I am having this issue now after installing and reinstalling 5.4.4.
I did not notice it happening until this last week, around the same time I upgraded to Mac OS 10.15.3.

[kytwb]

I'm also experiencing this.

[mokipedia]

My fix still works (also for beta, updated to beta and hat the same problem again), as gmail seems to not like firefox too much. However Franz' fix for dynamic chrome version looks promising (beta)

[mokipedia]

Updated to 5.5.0-gm today and the service reloaded. Having the same problem again.
Fix from above still works though.

[lupalby]

I'm also having the same issue. I had it with 5.4 betas, as well as the 5.5.0-gmx, and still now the the official 5.5.0

[mundo03]

workaround: Control + click (or whatever equivalent is on osX) will open the link in a browser with no issues.

[CptDinosaur]

Same issue here!

[jrpeck1989]

I have the same issue.

[boekkooi-fresh]

I had the same issue on Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS running installed version ferdi_5.5.0_amd64.deb.

Changing the code in ~/.config/Ferdi/recipes/gmail/index.js to the following fixed my issue (the new user-agent is the one used by chromium).

var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
  class Gmail extends Franz {
    overrideUserAgent() {
      return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Ubuntu Chromium/80.0.3987.163 Chrome/80.0.3987.163 Safari/537.36";
    }
  };

[danielleos]

Just upgraded to latest 5.5.0 on macOS 10.14.6 - still happening on gmail - fix above works, but thought this was going to be released as standard from 5.4.4 ?

[ray-odoo]

Using:

For those using Windows, the same fix works, but it is a different location and the contents of the file are slightly different:

Location:
C:\Users[your user here]\AppData\Roaming\Ferdi\recipes\gmail

File:
var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
  class Gmail extends Franz {
    overrideUserAgent() {
      if (os.platform() == 'linux')
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0"
      else
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Ubuntu Chromium/80.0.3987.163 Chrome/80.0.3987.163 Safari/537.36";
    }
  };

(change the SECOND return line to match what is above - the code above is the file AFTER I made the changes).

[tnaseem]

Thanks @ray-odoo. That fixed it for me on Windows, running v5.5.0.

[llabusch93]

Yep 5.5.0 on Linux, still having the issue. Is there a plan to fix it in the next release, so non tech people, who can't follow the workaround patch benefit from it as well?

[mahadevans87]

I have pushed a fix in the recipes which can be viewed here https://github.com/getferdi/recipes/pull/194
. Till the PR gets merged, replace the recipe's index.js file with this file.

[Tulosi]

Still an issue on Ferdi 5.5.0 on Mac. Non tech savvy dumlock here hoping this gets fixed in the normal release asap.

[webserviceXXL]

Have the same problem, too. Mac with Catalina 10.15.5 (19F101) and Ferdi Version 5.5.0 (5.5.0.2116).

[kabronero]

Same problem here. Catalina and last Ferdi version.

[brunofunnie]

Same issue here (Ferdi 5.5.0 on Ubuntu 20.04), although pressing and holding ctrl while clicking opens the link.

[twhiting9275]

Same problem as others. Win10, ctrl-click opens these for me though.
Using the proposed fix seems to work, too

[webserviceXXL]

The solution posted by @boekkooi-fresh (Linux) and @ray-odoo (Windows) is also working for Mac.👍

On Mac, the path for the file is: /Users/$USER/Library/Application Support/Ferdi/recipes/gmail/index.js

var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
  class Gmail extends Franz {
    overrideUserAgent() {
      if (os.platform() == 'linux')
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0"
      else
         return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Ubuntu Chromium/80.0.3987.163 Chrome/80.0.3987.163 Safari/537.36";
    }
  };

[carsondarling]

For me, using the solution posted above broke keyboard shortcuts while composing emails in Gmail. A working fix for me, is below.

var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
  class Gmail extends Franz {
    overrideUserAgent() {
      if (os.platform() == 'linux')
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0"
      else
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10_15_5) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/84.0.4147.89 Safari/537.36"
        // original
        // return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10.15; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0";
    }
  };

My guess is that by adding in X11; Linux x64_64, Gmail binds shortcuts to Ctrl instead of Cmd.

[dzg]

Mac 5.5.0, I get the "Grrr" alert on Gmail links. @carsondarling patch worked! thanks

[patrickrushton]

5.6.0-beta.2 on Mac, Gmail links open in a popup, with or without the patch from @carsondarling
My preference would be for links to open in my default browser.

[mokipedia]

5.6.0-beta.2 on Mac, Gmail links open in a popup, with or without the patch from @carsondarling
My preference would be for links to open in my default browser.

Hi @patrickrushton, that's not related to this bug, see #842

[aphexcx]

I'm running into this too on Mac 5.5.0. I don't want to deal with patching all of my services manually (I use 6 different gmails and gcalendars and google keeps etc) so I'll switch back to Franz for now. Hopefully this is fixed soon!

[mokipedia]

Hi @aphexcx, understandable. However you patch the recipe, not the service. So 1 change per type (gmail, gcal, keep) and then restart ferdi should do it.

[stevengliebe]

Not sure if #942 is a duplicate. I only experience the popup error when clicking the print or new window icon in Gmail. None of the workarounds here resolve it.

[amykluber]

I'm getting this error as well on version 5.5.0 .. Mac Catalina.

[zzamboni]

@carsondarling's solution fixed the problem for me on macOS Catalina, Ferdi 5.5.0.

It also fixed another very weird issue I was having: when typing a message in Gmail using my external Bluetooth keyboard, pressing the Command key (labeled Alt on the keyboard, but configured on my system to act as Command) would indent the text, which made it impossible to copy/paste or to even switch applications without messing up the message. When using the laptop keyboard, everything worked fine. With the change suggested above, this problem is also gone, to my great relief :)

[nevvkid]

Hi! Is there a solution to be able to click links on latest MacOS and Windows (10) ? I can't figure out anything else than copying of the links to chrome... which breaks usability.

[jottr]

I consider this to be a serious UX bug.
This was already reported in January.

Is anyone actively working on a fix for this issue?
I suggest that this ticket be tagged as urgent, and possibly with needs-help.

[zzamboni]

@nevvkid @jottr in the meantime, you could try @carsondarling's workaround posted above. It completely fixed the problem for me: https://github.com/getferdi/ferdi/issues/321#issuecomment-668207379

[jottr]

Thanks @zzamboni.
I'd like to squash this bug for good - before I start working on a fix, I'd like to know if someone else is already working on one.

[mahadevans87]

@jottr I was working on this previously. I shall take this up if you haven't started. It seems the PR https://github.com/getferdi/recipes/pull/194 never got into recipes. Once that is available for download, I believe the issue should get resolved.

[Saboteur777]

This happened again to me on Linux with Ferdi 5.5.0.

Changing the user agent string to Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/86.0.4240.111 Safari/537.36 fixed the issue (for now):

var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
  class Gmail extends Franz {
    overrideUserAgent() {
      if (os.platform() == 'linux')
          return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/86.0.4240.111 Safari/537.36"
      else
        return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10_15_5) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/84.0.4147.89 Safari/537.36"
        // original
        // return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10.15; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0";
    }
  };

[vantezzen]

https://github.com/getferdi/recipes/pull/194, which should have fixed this issue, was released with Ferdi 5.6.0-beta.3 or above. We will hopefully release 5.6.0 soon so this fix will be shipped with it.

[heysimo]

Hi,

I'm sorry, but beside having the issue everyone is describing, I have no idea where this code has to be put.
I did try to google, but I don't know where to start as it is unclear to me if I have to put the code in Ferdi or in Chrome.

Can anyone please explain or maybe give a proper link?
Hopefully this might help others, too. tnx!

[mokipedia]

Hi @heysimo,
it is fairly easy to understand once you get the hang of it:

• Ferdi is an electron app, which is basically a Chromium wrapper inside a Windows / Mac / Linux application. It has nothing to do with Chrome Browser, other than they both use Chromium to run JS and Render Websites under the hood.
• Ferdi is written in Javascript and you can read and edit its files. For your purposes, you want to edit a 'recipe', which is basically a sort of configuration file(s) for each service Ferdi knows.
• They are found, depending on your OS here:
  
  
  
  • Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Ferdi/recipes/
  
  
  • Windows: %appdata%/Ferdi/recipes/
  
  
  • Linux: ~/.config/Ferdi/recipes/
  
  
• In this folder, you will find recipes for gmail, whatsapp and more. Go to the recipe you want to edit and look at the JavaScript files you see there (should be 2).
  
  
  
  • index.js -> includes transformations and configs for the service itself, like user-agent, ... (This is the file you are looking for)
  
  
  • webview.js -> hooks into the content of the service itself, like gmail and whatsapp and adds functionality like: link behavior, unread count in Franz/Ferdi, adds css if wanted, ..
  
  
  • there are other files in there too, you can read about more it, for example here (googled it): https://blog.jakelee.co.uk/super-simple-guide-to-adding-a-new-ferdi-service-recipe/
  
  

[heysimo]

Hi @heysimo,
it is fairly easy to understand once you get the hang of it:

• Ferdi is an electron app, which is basically a Chromium wrapper inside a Windows / Mac / Linux application. It has nothing to do with Chrome Browser, other than they both use Chromium to run JS and Render Websites under the hood.
• Ferdi is written in Javascript and you can read and edit its files. For your purposes, you want to edit a 'recipe', which is basically a sort of configuration file(s) for each service Ferdi knows.

• They are found, depending on your OS here:

  • Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Ferdi/recipes/
  • Windows: %appdata%/Ferdi/recipes/
  • Linux: ~/.config/Ferdi/recipes/

• In this folder, you will find recipes for gmail, whatsapp and more. Go to the recipe you want to edit and look at the JavaScript files you see there (should be 2).

  • index.js -> includes transformations and configs for the service itself, like user-agent, ... (This is the file you are looking for)
  • webview.js -> hooks into the content of the service itself, like gmail and whatsapp and adds functionality like: link behavior, unread count in Franz/Ferdi, adds css if wanted, ..
  • there are other files in there too, you can read about more it, for example here (googled it): https://blog.jakelee.co.uk/super-simple-guide-to-adding-a-new-ferdi-service-recipe/

Can't thank you enough, really.
Fixed the issue straight away.
Amazing!

[onechaiplease]

I just found out the below code to fix the popup blocker issue.

var os = require('os')

module.exports = Franz =>
class Gmail extends Franz {
overrideUserAgent() {
if (os.platform() == 'linux')
return "Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0"
else
return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10_15_5) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/84.0.4147.89 Safari/537.36"
// original
// return "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10.15; rv:72.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/72.0";
}
};