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Dat-Firefox

This is a prototype browser extension which makes dat:// urls function in Firefox using a slightly modified dat-gateway as a bridge to the dat network.

It aims to implement native-like dat support possible in Firefox. This means:

  1. Links to dat:// addresses and sites should work directly. While Webextensions protocol handlers are limited - we cannot show dat:// in the address bar on a loaded page - we can at least properly process the initial URL or link.
  2. Dat site operate on the correct origin. When using the dat-gateway to bridge to the dat network, all dat addresses look like http://localhost:3000/{hash}/path. This has the effect of potentially breaking relative URLs on the page, and also preventing the web's cross-origin policies from preventing data leakage between sites. To fix this we have to make {hash} the origin.

Usage

  1. Install dat-fox-helper

  2. Install the extension from the Mozilla Addon Store

  3. Visit a dat:// URL.

Local development

You can also build and run the extension locally. You will need a version of node greather that 7. nvm is recommended for installing node.

git clone https://github.com/sammacbeth/dat-fox.git
cd dat-fox
# install build dependencies
npm install
# build
npm run build
# if you want to watch for file changes
npm run serve

You can now load the addon folder as a temporary addon in Firefox:

  1. Go to about:debugging in Firefox.
  2. Chose Load Temporary Addon.
  3. Browser to the addon folder and chose any file in this folder.

What works

How it works

  1. The protocol handler redirects dat:// urls to a special handler domain (dat.redirect), passing the full url.
  2. A webRequest listener intercepts requests to this domain and redirects to a http:// URL with the dat key or hostname as the origin.
  3. A proxy PAC file intercepts hostnames matching a dat key pattern, or hostnames the user has explicitly ask to load over dat. Requests for these URLs are proxied via the dat-gateway (acting as a HTTP proxy). This allows us to make 'fake' hostnames work, and create the origins we need for dat sites.