Help with nsISSLStatusProvider

[MkFly]

I'm trying to do this inside of an extension:

// on event from DOMContentLoaded
getCipher: function(event) {

var gb = getBrowser();

var targetBrowser = gb.getBrowserForDocument(event.target);
var ui = targetBrowser.securityUI;
var sslStatus = ui.QueryInterface
(Components.interfaces.nsISSLStatusProvider).SSLStatus;

alert(sslStatus.cipherName);

}

This works when loading a page in the foreground, but when a page
loads in the background, I get "undefined." Any idea why? Is this a
bug?

[MkFly]

Tried this as well, same results. Although I note that if I change
target to always look a specific browser (say index 0, the first),
then I can get cipherName and everything else just fine, but only if
it is loaded in the foreground. If I then leave it open but select
another tab, wait 10-20 seconds, and attempt to query index 0 again
_without_ selecting it, all the values go to "undefined"!! Once I
select it again, the values are back for another 10-20 seconds.

Can I get any help with this issue? :(

// event called from DOMContentLoaded
function tryToGetCipher(event) {

var gb = getBrowser();
var ci = Components.interfaces;

if (event.target instanceof XULDocument) {
var target = gb.selectedBrowser; //
foreground
} else {
var target = gb.getBrowserForDocument(event.target); //
background
}

var targetUI = target.securityUI;
var sslStatus = targetUI.QueryInterface
(ci.nsISSLStatusProvider).SSLStatus;

if(sslStatus) {
return sslStatus.cipherName; // or any SSLStatus attribute
} else return "no SSLStatus";

[Neil]

MkFly wrote:

> var sslStatus = ui.QueryInterface(Components.interfaces.nsISSLStatusProvider).SSLStatus;
>
> alert(sslStatus.cipherName);
>
>
The SSLStatus property is only defined as an nsISupports which has no
cipherName attribute.

>This works when loading a page in the foreground, but when a page loads in the background, I get "undefined." Any idea why?
>

Every time the browser gets the SSL status, XPConnect creates a
temporary JavaScript object. The browser then checks that it's an
nsISSLStatus so it can update the lock icon. Later, the object gets
garbage-collected. However, there is then a time window during which,
when your code retrieves the SSL status, XPConnect will say "wait,
here's one I made earlier" and hands you the nsISSLStatus object.

Of course the browser only updates the lock icon for the active tab, so
that when you retrieve the SSL status for a background tab you get a
plain nsISupports object.

--
Warning: May contain traces of nuts.

[MkFly]

Thanks Neil for the response.

Neil wrote:
> However, there is then a time window during which,
> when your code retrieves the SSL status, XPConnect will say "wait,
> here's one I made earlier" and hands you the nsISSLStatus object.

That makes sense, since in another test I set up, I would focus a tab,
then after unfocusing it, I could still access the SSL status for
about 10 to 20 seconds without refocusing it. I assume now that that
is when the garbage collector trashed it.

> Of course the browser only updates the lock icon for the active tab, so
> that when you retrieve the SSL status for a background tab you get a
> plain nsISupports object.

So am I going about this entirely wrong? Is there any way to access
the SSL attributes such as cipherName of a document loaded in the
background?

Thanks again.

[Neil]

MkFly wrote:

Sure, but you have to use instanceof or QueryInterface to tell XPConnect
that you really want an nsISSLStatus object, just in case.

[MkFly]

Neil wrote:
> Sure, but you have to use instanceof or QueryInterface to tell XPConnect
> that you really want an nsISSLStatus object, just in case.

Ahhhh ... perfect. Thanks Neil, that was exactly what I was missing.
It works great after I changed it to:

if (sslStatus instanceof ci.nsISSLStatus) alert(sslStatus.cipherName);