Microsoft Begins Turning Off uBlock Origin, Other Extensions In Edge (neowin.net) 22
Microsoft Edge is following Chrome's lead by disabling uBlock Origin and other Manifest V2-based extensions in its browser. Neowin reports: The latest Edge Canary version started disabling Manifest V2-based extensions with the following message: "This extension is no longer supported. Microsoft Edge recommends that you remove it." Although the browser turns off old extensions without asking, you can still make them work by clicking "Manage extension" and toggling it back (you will have to acknowledge another prompt).
Google started phasing out Manifest V2 extensions in June 2024, and it has a clear roadmap for the process. Microsoft's documentation, however, still says "TBD," so the exact dates are not known yet. This leads to some speculating about the situation being one of "unexpected changes" coming from Chromium. Either way, sooner or later, Microsoft will ditch MV2-based extensions, so get ready as we wait for Microsoft to shine some light on its plans.
Another thing worth noting is that the change does not appear to be affecting Edge's stable release or Beta/Dev Channels. For now, only Canary versions disable uBlock Origin and other MV2 extensions, leaving users a way to toggle them back on. Also, the uBlock Origin is still available in the Edge Add-ons store, which recently received a big update.
Google started phasing out Manifest V2 extensions in June 2024, and it has a clear roadmap for the process. Microsoft's documentation, however, still says "TBD," so the exact dates are not known yet. This leads to some speculating about the situation being one of "unexpected changes" coming from Chromium. Either way, sooner or later, Microsoft will ditch MV2-based extensions, so get ready as we wait for Microsoft to shine some light on its plans.
Another thing worth noting is that the change does not appear to be affecting Edge's stable release or Beta/Dev Channels. For now, only Canary versions disable uBlock Origin and other MV2 extensions, leaving users a way to toggle them back on. Also, the uBlock Origin is still available in the Edge Add-ons store, which recently received a big update.
Chrome Also (Score:2)
When I updated Chrome I started seeing adds and when I checked, Chrome had turned off uBlock Origin saying it was not supported. You just have to turn it back on in the extensions and its all ok, until the next update.
Re:Chrome Also (Score:4, Funny)
You just have to turn it back on in the extensions and its all ok, until the next update.
That's a good workaround, since modern browser makers are fairly conservative in their release cadence. ...how did we get to version 133 again?
Re: (Score:2)
Uninstall Chrome. Problem solved.
Re: (Score:3)
Fuck chrome, fuck ms and especially fuck google.
Use Firefox.
Time to go back to Firefox (Score:2)
When I updated Chrome...
Same thing happened to me - I regarded it as my "time to go back to Firefox" warning. The main reason I switched to Chrome years ago was that they shared all my settings between computers. I believe Firefox does that now too and Google is now strongly encouraging me to switch back so who am I to argue?
Re:Time to go back to Firefox (Score:4, Informative)
Firefox will sync your bookmarks, settings and extensions if you create an account and activate it. If you choose using a primary password it will also sync your (encrypted) passwords. The reason I returned to FF very quickly is that Chrome and Edge will save (and sync) your passwords without the option of using a primary password.
Re: (Score:3)
Unfortunately I have to use either Edge or Chrome to watch Formula 1
Last season I could use FireFox but this year they aren't supporting it.
Oh no! (Score:4, Funny)
Won't someone please think of Edge's user?
Re: (Score:2)
I use Edge, because it seems to block YouTube ads far more reliably than Firefox does, for whatever reason. But that's all I really use it for.
I don't know why, I guess it updates extensions far more often than Firefox so when YouTube breaks it Edge gets the updated version?
automatically disabling extensions is "criminal" (Score:3)
Not going to jump into the whole v2 vs v3 thing here, but the logic of ever automatically starting up a browser without its security extensions, or a computer w/o it's VPN or firewall, if so configured, is bizarre to me. It's a total failure of failsafe principles of engineering.
I've run into this with Ghostery when an update of he plugin itself turned off most of its own blocking ... silently and w/o warning (about 6mo - 1 yr ago when the update the Chrome / Edge version to be compatible with v3 ). Also an issue with e.g. the GoogleFi VPN on android. sometimes it'll silently fail, or just won't start after phone reboot and when that happens everything works just as before, but not over VPN.
Like... Both of these products ( and obviously Edge as well) are designed and run by people who, i assume, clearly understand that in computing security that just turns itself off randomly say 0.5% of the time is almost as bad as it not existing at all... and yet the whole ecosystem seems basically fine with it.
(to me this is in the same space as the existence of Stripe (the banking API thing). Basically according to normal understanding/ application of tenets of banking security, Stripe is practically an illegal hacking service. And yet it is a $91B company... and practically underlies all of fintech that in any way integrates with bank accounts and everyone's just fine with it.)
Shucks (Score:1)
Gee now, isn't that just too bad, I was just about to start using Edge, but if they've made it unusable...
What's with you stupid pimps thinking you have the right to control what we have in our homes? Grow some fucking balls you absolutely terrible people
Alternatives... (Score:3)
Move to Brave -- since it will continue to support v2 extensions
Or move to Firefox / Waterfox / LibreWolf / PaleMoon / etc. -- any Firefox-derived browser.
I'm assuming there will likely be a few other Chromium forks out there that will continue to support v2 extensions.
I only use Edge when explicitly required for work (Score:2)
If they turned off you block origin I wouldn't even notice.
My employer's intranet sites should not have spam that needs to be blocked
I have never met anyone who uses Edge for surfing public websites
Re: (Score:2)
ublock*
Stupid voice to text
Re: (Score:2)
>"My employer's intranet sites should not have spam that needs to be blocked"
Nor should the sites require using Edge.
Its not official until it's official. (Score:2)
Until Microsoft's documentation on MV3 changes, I wouldn't take this DEV build as being set in stone.
I don't see Microsoft flushing away it's only good chance to pull users from Chrome when the Ublockalypse happens in Google land. They know as soon as that happens there's going to be a mass exodus of Chrome users to other browsers, and they want to be the one people and businesses flock to since they're based on chromium for maximum compatibility and they also make it easy to Sync your Google account Chrome
All your browser belong to us (Score:2)
Yet another reason to use Firefox.
Not great, not terrible (Score:2)
In Chrome, I've been migrating to MV3 alternatives to the remaining MV2 extensions that I had in preparation for the cutoff. I switched from uBlock Origin to uBlock Lite, and honestly, after setting the default to "complete", I haven't really noticed any difference from uBlock Origin. I know that it's not getting 100% of the rules, but it's good enough that the vast majority of people won't notice the difference. It does mean that the handful of custom rules that I had added are gone, but none of them were