Issues downloading LibreOffice Portable

users
#1

Hello,
I was trying to download the LibreOffice 4.1.3 Portable edition from LibreOffice.org, and then tried the download from PortableApps.com.
I've tried to download the package using different methods and browsers, and the download (which is supposed to be around 113 MB, according to HTTP headers) stops (at anywhere from 7.9 MB downloaded to 40.2 MB downloaded, in the multiple attempts to download LibreOffice Portable). The browser gets the impression that the download is completed. However, I get an error message when opening the "LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe" file, saying that the installer integrity check failed.
I know that:

  * I am using a direct connection to the internet router.
  * I got the same, repeating issue every time I tried to re-download
    the file.
  * It appeared as if I were being redirected to a mirror.
  * Nothing is wrong with my "hosts" file
    (%systemroot%\system32\drivers\etc\hosts).
  * I didn't lose my internet connection.

I've come to the conclusion that something might be wrong with the servers of The Document Foundation, LibreOffice, or the mirror mirror.nexcess.net.
Is there anything I can do to download LibreOffice Portable without these issues, or is something going on on your servers or the mirror?
I also noticed unusual behavior of the LibreOffice website when attempting to download LibreOffice Portable, as described below in the HTTP headers:
Data I found questionable is marked red, while data that is unusual is marked yellow, followed by a note.

When I clicked the download button for LibreOffice, I noticed that it goes to the url http://download.documentfoundation.org/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe. However, I get redirected to a mirror url (http://mirror.nexcess.net/tdf/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe).

When reviewing the headers of the requests, I found some information in the headers that is questionable, as seen below.

Request URL: http://download.documentfoundation.org/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe
Request Method: GET
Status Code: HTTP/1.1
302 Found
- For some reason, I get redirected.
Request Headers 18:57:51.000

User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.0; WOW64; rv:25.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/25.0
Referer: http://portableapps.com/apps/office/libreoffice_portable (Yes, I also tried downloading the portable software from your website.)
Host: download.documentfoundation.org
Connection: keep-alive
Accept-Language: en-US,en;q=0.5
Accept-Encoding: gzip, deflate
Accept: text/html,application/xhtml+xml,application/xml;q=0.9,*/*;q=0.8
Response Headers 251ms

X-Prefix: 72.241.128.0/17
X-MirrorBrain-Realm: country
X-MirrorBrain-Mirror: nexcess.net
X-AS: 13490
Vary: Accept-Encoding
Server: Apache
Location: http://mirror.nexcess.net/tdf/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe
Link: <http://download.documentfoundation.org/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe.meta4>; rel=describedby; type="application/metalink4+xml", ; rel=describedby; type="application/x-bittorrent", ; rel=duplicate; pri=1; geo=us, ; rel=duplicate; pri=2; geo=us, ; rel=duplicate; pri=3; geo=us, ; rel=duplicate; pri=4; geo=us, Digest: MD5=gOtt1+3GnpMsJZLQv+JwvQ==, SHA=Shu9Msjb6ftKYIuf6wDBrLspzzE=, SHA-256=Y6fhl+OsxcSFp9fGzmOkST5Lc9UflDDSEfH6Z006F2A=
Content-Type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Length: 311
Content-Encoding: gzip
Connection: close

Request URL: http://mirror.nexcess.net/tdf/libreoffice/portable/4.1.3/LibreOfficePortable_4.1.3_MultilingualNormal.paf.exe
Request Method: GET
Status Code: HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Request Headers 18:36:01.000

User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 6.0; WOW64; rv:25.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/25.0
Referer: http://portableapps.com/apps/office/libreoffice_portable
Host: mirror.nexcess.net
Connection: keep-alive
Accept-Language: en-US,en;q=0.5
Accept-Encoding: gzip, deflate
Accept: text/html,application/xhtml+xml,application/xml;q=0.9,*/*;q=0.8
Response Headers 77ms

X-Pad: avoid browser bug
Server: Apache
Last-Modified: Mon, 04 Nov 2013 03:53:47 GMT
Etag: "716ffc0-4ea51dcf2e8c0"
Content-Type:
application/x-msdownload
- Usually, binary downloads are used with the MIME type application/octet-stream.
Content-Length:
118947776
- PortableApps.com says that the file is 116 MB. In the Windows calculator, 118947776 bytes / 1024 / 1024 = about 13.4 MB, which doesn't even round to 114 MB.
Connection: close
Accept-Ranges: bytes

Thank you very much.

#2

Hi :slight_smile:
Did you manage to solve this in the end? I think the Portable Aps
version is only for Windows. On Linux it's much easier to install
LibreOffice through any of your package managers although you might
not get the most up-to-date one.

However it is odd that you were having trouble downloading with
Firefox. Any nonIE web-browser tend to be able to cope better with
intermittent connections.

The only way you could usually improve on that is by using the
torrent. You probably have a reasonably good torrenting client
built-in to your system so just download the tiny torrent and then
allow your client to use it or else double-click on it when it's
downloaded. Either way the full download should start shortly after.

It might be even better to try a different mirror but i've not figured
out how to do anything like that. Most people know but it eludes me
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#3

Hello,
Sorry for replying so late. I was just searching my disposable inbox for "portable," not expecting to find anything, and found your e-mail.

I found that LibreOffice Portable is available on CNet's Download.com service (http://download.cnet.com/LibreOffice-Portable/3000-18483_4-75449672.html?tag=mncol;1). However, the version is shown as 4.1, and last updated July 29, 2013. The LibreOffice Portable site on PortableApps.com lets me download version 4.1.3, but the same problems persist. I've cleared the browser cache, tried different browsers (IE, Firefox, and Chrome), and even tried different computers and wireless networks. I get the same result, in which the browser gets the impression that the download is complete, and upon opening the .paf.exe file, I get "Installer integrity check failed." error.
I'm using Windows Vista 64-bit.
Version 4.1 (downloadable from Download.com) downloaded successfully, and I installed it on my flash drive successfully. Did The Document Foundation quit mirroring their downloads off of Download.com?
Thank you.

#4

Hi :slight_smile:
This link might help
https://www.libreoffice.org/download/portable/

There is another portable apps type of place that has every version of
LibreOffice but i'm not sure of the address. The marketing team were
going to put their link on the same page as the link i just gave but i
didn't read the page to see if it's there.
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#5

Hi,

You can also use this plugin:
http://extensions.libreoffice.org/extension-center/libreoffice-server-installation-gui
You can install any version of LibreOffice in parallel....

Good luck!

#6

I recommend that you download the latest version from winPenPack

http://www.winpenpack.com/en/download.php?view.1354

or any version you prefer...
http://sourceforge.net/projects/winpenpack/files/X-LibreOffice/releases/

X-LibreOffice has more features and is better optimized than Portable
LibreOffice from PortableApps.

It is also supported by TDF so you can be sure it's not a hacked (in the
negative sense of the word) version.

Hope this helps :wink:

#7

What are the differences between the "winPenPack" version of LO and the one from "PortableApps.com".

What do you mean by "more features" and "better optimized"? I thought that the PortableApps.com version that LO's web site links to does not remove any features so the "more features" statement needs to be clarified.

If the "winPenPack" is so much better than the other one, then why is it not listed in the "Portable" page of LO's site?

#8

krackedpress wrote

What do you mean by "more features" and "better optimized"? I thought
that the PortableApps.com version that LO's web site links to does not
remove any features so the "more features" statement needs to be
clarified.

No features are removed on any of the Portable packs.

winPenPack allows to choose on first run the language that you want to use
as default for the interface and any other language (or languages) as
alternative for the GUI as well as for dictionaries.

PortableApps only allows to choose between English only OR English (US and
GB), Arabic, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), French, German, Italian,
Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazilian and Portugal), Russian, and Spanish
There is no option for e.g. Portuguese only.

On a slow computer when running LO from a pen drive (connected to a USB 2.0
port...) X-LibreOffice loads faster and seems to respond faster (maybe
because it has less language modules?) than Portable LibreOffice

Another reason why I prefer winPenPack is that new releases of X-LibreOffice
are usually available soon after the official release by TDF (e.g. LO 4.1.4
was announced yesterday and X-LibreOffice 4.1.4 is already available today)
This allows me to install a new version (e.g. LO 4.2.0.1 which is a Release
Candidate so it overwrites my install) and still have the previous version
as a portable ready to test for regressions.

krackedpress wrote

If the "winPenPack" is so much better than the other one, then why is it
not listed in the "Portable" page of LO's site?

Maybe because X-LibreOffice is only sanctioned by the Italian LibreOffice
Community
http://it.libreoffice.org/download/portatile/
but not by the German/Global TDF...
You should ask that to TDF.

#9

Did someone [other than you] once state that the X-LibreOffice can be run even if you have installed a version of Lo on your Windows system, while the PortableApps version cannot?

I do not use Windows, much, unless I need to deal with a Win-only package on my laptop[s]. I mostly use Ubuntu 12.04LTS, which is the only OS on my desktop [Ubuntu 12.04LTS 64-bit, Quad processor with 6 TB of drive space]. I use my laptops for both Ubuntu and Win7 OSs, when needed.

So, if I get what you are implying, you would recommend using the X-LibreOffice on a flash drive to show users how well LO could work for them, without having them install LO on their systems. Is there anything else from the winPenPack that should be installed on that flash drive [16 GB would be my choice] to make the use/process be "smoother" for the demonstration?

Also, can you install extra dictionaries and other .oxt extensions to the X-LibreOffice flash drive setup? Some of the extension that are "out there" might be useful for a potential user, plus my 797,865 word spell checking en_US dictionary is something I tend to install by default on any system that I install LO on.

If the X-LibreOffice is a good option, I may add that to the NA-DVD project as a second portable version choice. Since I got out of a week's stay in the hospital, I have been thinking about what I can do to improve that project and the presentation [again] to local business groups. So having more options and more documentation showing how well LO works for the business and educational communities would help. The option of trying out a faster portable version of LO would be one of the helpers. Last time I tried the PortableApps.com version, it was very slow on my dual core laptop.

#10

krackedpress wrote

Did someone [other than you] once state that the X-LibreOffice can be
run even if you have installed a version of Lo on your Windows system,
while the PortableApps version cannot?

That is not true. What I said (and still is true) is that you can not run
LibreOffice Portable if your installed LibreOffice is running. You get a
message saying "Another instance of LibreOffice is already running. Please
close other instances of LibreOffice before launching LibreOffice Portable."
However you can run as many X-LibreOffice versions simultaneously and at the
same time as the installed version as you wish (or your machine handles...)

(I had forgotten about that limitation when I mentioned why I prefer
X-LibreOffice. Thank you for reminding me :slight_smile: )

krackedpress wrote

So, if I get what you are implying, you would recommend using the
X-LibreOffice on a flash drive to show users how well LO could work for
them, without having them install LO on their systems. Is there anything
else from the winPenPack that should be installed on that flash drive
[16 GB would be my choice] to make the use/process be "smoother" for the
demonstration?

If your demonstration uses features that require Java you might need to
investigate how to get a portable Java (just to be on the safe side in case
the PC used for demonstration does not have an installed version of
Java...). I know there is one from PortableApps and there should be an
equivalent from winPenPack. I don't use Java so I haven't investigated that
part.

For me one of the greatest advantages of having a fully working version of
LibreOffice running from a flash drive is that you can take a presentation
in ODP with you AND the software that runs it. So there is no need to
convert to PowerPoint and there is no problem if the PC used for
presentation doesn't have an ODF compliant office suite or only has one that
(deliberately?) has problems in loading an ODP presentation.
Just load the Portable LibreOffice (either one) and load the presentation.
Easy :slight_smile:

krackedpress wrote

Also, can you install extra dictionaries and other .oxt extensions to
the X-LibreOffice flash drive setup? Some of the extension that are
"out there" might be useful for a potential user, plus my 797,865 word
spell checking en_US dictionary is something I tend to install by
default on any system that I install LO on.

Yes, of course. On both portable Offices. Any extension or theme (again,
check if Java is needed)

krackedpress wrote

If the X-LibreOffice is a good option, I may add that to the NA-DVD
project as a second portable version choice.

I think you should. More choices is always good when you are distributing
something that can be used in ways that you can't even imagine...

krackedpress wrote

I have been thinking about what I can do to
improve that project and the presentation [again] to local business
groups. So having more options and more documentation showing how well
LO works for the business and educational communities would help. The
option of trying out a faster portable version of LO would be one of the
helpers. Last time I tried the PortableApps.com version, it was very
slow on my dual core laptop.

Actually I just loaded version 4.1.3 of both portable offices from an
external USB 3.0 hard disk on a fast computer (Dual Core @3GHz) and there is
no noticeable difference. Maybe things have improved (or they are only
noticeable on slow computers...)

One of the greatest advantages of having a portable version of LibreOffice
is that you can suggest people to just try it without the need to install
anything. There is no risk. No mess. If they are not happy with it, they can
simply erase it and try another version in a few months

#11

Hi :slight_smile:
The marketing team did discuss the WinPenPack option and decided it
was a great idea and that there should be a link to it on the
LibreOffice web-page about Portable Apps. Errr but then we didn't get
around to it! :frowning: Sorry! This sort of thing does happen in any
organisation but when it happens in other types it's claimed to have
been done deliberately but when it happens in an organisation like
this one it's held as an example of why CEOs are worth paying vast
salaries too.
Apols and regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#12

Hi :slight_smile:
The only problem is quite rare. Some corporates or government
organisations block the ability to use Usb-sticks at all but even then
they tend to have some way of working around the problem.

Given the different ways different places block different
functionality on Windows i tend to make sure i have anything i need in
at least 2 formats and on 2 different media. I tend to have a LiveUsb
stick on me rather than dipping into portable apps but it's more
likely that a system will have it's bios blocked and locked preventing
that. Luckily i 'cracked' (well it was already open anyway) the
pathetic effort of doing that sort of thing at the last government
machine i had to work on! Probably NOT a good idea but i was already
getting sick of their Windows7 slow-downs. Portable apps is
definitely something i really should try out soon in order to avoid
running head-long into BIG trouble there!!

Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#13

Hi Tom

Using "workarounds" for defeating USB running and booting policies isn't
exactly what I was talking about :slight_smile:

If the place you work at is so anal about controlling software and people,
even running a portable office from your local Documents folder will freak
out the IT staff...

I simply meant in academia or public talks where LO is not available. Or in
internet cafes where you are better off using your own *clean* software :wink:

Cheers,
Pedro

#14

Hi :slight_smile:
Yeh, exactly. In most cases it's a brilliant option. it's just that
not 100% of people will be able to use it in all locations.

Also jic it looked like i was advocating breaking or working-around
established security systems please don't read it that way! It's
definitely not a good idea!!
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#15

Portable LibreOffice works fine and don't have any language problem. The web site offers two variants. One with a restricted assortment of languages (that you mentioned) and another one with all the languages.

At installation time you are asked to select a language. On second start, LO deletes the unneeded languages, except those languages that comes with the software and are global extensions.