Knowledge Base

Applies To

Ion 2.x

Summary

Ion profiles are the core of how Ion allows you to run legacy web applications inside newer browsers like IE8 and IE9. This article details how and when it is appropriate to use the “Limited” Profile, available only with Ion.

Feature Specifics

This screenshot shows the Profile selection screen in Ion, from which you can select which IE engine (Profile) is run for a given web application / site:

At the end of the list, under “Advanced Profiles,” is the option to select the “Limited Profile.”

The key difference between the Limited Profile and other Ion Profiles is that the Limited Profile does not spawn addition Ion processes on the machine, saving memory & startup costs associated with having to load additional processes. The trade-off is that only some of the Ion features are available to Limited Profiles. The list below details which Ion features are not available to the Limited Profile.

Features NOT available to Limited Profiles:

• DEP/NX (Limited Profiles load content in the host browser (IE8 or IE9) so the DEP/NX setting will depend on how IE8/IE9 is configured)
• Sandbox (no sandbox is available to a Limited Profile)
• Custom Script Error Handling settings
• Custom Session settings
• Custom Legacy FTP settings
• Custom Context Menu settings
• Custom Feature Control Keys (FCKs) (read more about FCKs here)
• Custom File Overrides (via the Custom File Manager) (there is no ability to load custom ActiveX controls like Java in a Limited Profile)
• Custom Registry Settings (read more about custom registry settings here)
• Custom File Extensions (via the File Loader Manager)

Features that ARE available to Limited Profiles:

• Custom User Agent string settings
• Custom variables set via the Ion Variables Manager
• Script Injection (read more here)
• Custom HTTP Header settings
• Custom Content Overrides (read more here)
• String Replacements (see a demo here)

If a website can be configured to work in the native browser via Ion’s Limited Profile settings, then it’s a valid option given that Limited Profiles don’t incur any additional memory or process overhead to the system. However, if any of the features not available to the Limited Profile must be used to achieve compatibility, then the Limited Profile cannot be used for that web application.

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