Firefox Extension - Database access

Question

I want to make a Firefox extension that can store and retrieve data from a database. However I've only been finding solutions that would work locally for each user. I'd like every user to have access to the same database.

Is that possible?

Answer 1

It is possible to access remote SQL databases like MySQL and PostgreSQL with node.js modules, but it is more sensible to create REST API front ends to your databases and call them from the extension. Exposing the SQL calls directly in your web extension is not a good idea. It is basically bad security practice and will expose your database to hackers.

You will also need your addon to pass Mozilla's approval process if you are going to distribute publicly and I doubt the reviewers will be pleased to see raw SQL calls in your extension's code.

The more sensible way is to update the database is through a REST API front end.

A simple example on how to create a REST API for a Postgres database can be found at Node.js, Express.js, and PostgreSQL: CRUD REST API example - LogRocket Blog and this playlist show how to create a REST interface in a Firefox extension - Build a Firefox Extension from Scratch that integrates with Node.js - DEV Community

The above database example is quite simple. For real world use you will need a more advanced REST framework for your API which sanitizes the data before inserting it into the databasse. You have more reading to do here.

However if you need to make SQL calls directly from your extension which I still don't advise, you can include some packages from node.js in your web extension, and use browserify which extracts and packages the modules needed into your extension. Your addons though had better be for private or in-house use, not for public distribution.

Some nodejs modules for database access are - https://github.com/mysqljs/mysql, https://node-postgres.com/ and https://www.npmjs.com/package/pg.

Answer 2

Just a little advice. Feel free to ignore it if you have nothing to do with it. Your question sounds quiet generic. You should learn and doing it by yourself first and only ask here when there are specific issues you're stuck with.

By "locally", I think you mean via Web SQL or IndexedDB. They're called local database and their behaviors are totally different from what you're looking for.

I should haven't need to tell you to do this. Just in case. Of course first thing first you need to know how website is working for both front end and back end, not just local stuff, especially how they're communicating between each other. So you should know about HTTP request, Javascript, and AJAX.

What has it to do with Firefox extension?. Not just Firefox, browser extension is just another type of web page that overlaying the opened web page in all kind of browser. In Firefox the opened page is called activeTabs. The only difference from regular web page is you need to signup your account first, manifest.json file as your project root file, and it compile from command line with web-ext tools. In case if you're facing Cross-origin resource sharing (CORS) restriction, follow instructions HERE and allow the URL on server side.