diff --git a/netwerk/base/public/nsIIOService.idl b/netwerk/base/public/nsIIOService.idl
index 89334d1d9aa9..14b06e1e87e9 100644
--- a/netwerk/base/public/nsIIOService.idl
+++ b/netwerk/base/public/nsIIOService.idl
@@ -18,10 +18,6 @@
 
 #include "nsISupports.idl"
 
-%{C++
-#include "nscore.h"     // for PRUnichar
-%}
-
 interface nsIProtocolHandler;
 interface nsIURI;
 interface nsIEventSinkGetter;
@@ -31,6 +27,7 @@ interface nsIStreamListener;
 interface nsIEventQueue;
 interface nsIBufferInputStream;
 interface nsIBufferOutputStream;
+interface nsIFileChannel;
 
 [scriptable, uuid(01f0a170-1881-11d3-9337-00104ba0fd40)]
 interface nsIIOService : nsISupports
@@ -128,6 +125,11 @@ interface nsIIOService : nsISupports
     nsIStreamListener NewSyncStreamListener(out nsIBufferInputStream inStream,
                                             out nsIBufferOutputStream outStream);
 
+    /**
+     * This convenience routine first looks up the file protocol handler, and
+     * then uses it to construct a file channel from a native path string.
+     */
+    nsIFileChannel NewChannelFromNativePath(in string nativePath);
 };
 
 %{C++
diff --git a/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.cpp b/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.cpp
index 2ead13f2eebd..0341b426d7f0 100644
--- a/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.cpp
+++ b/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.cpp
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@
 #include "prprf.h"
 #include "prmem.h"      // for PR_Malloc
 #include <ctype.h>      // for isalpha
+#include "nsIFileProtocolHandler.h"     // for NewChannelFromNativePath
 
 static NS_DEFINE_CID(kFileTransportService, NS_FILETRANSPORTSERVICE_CID);
 static NS_DEFINE_CID(kEventQueueService, NS_EVENTQUEUESERVICE_CID);
@@ -292,6 +293,29 @@ nsIOService::NewSyncStreamListener(nsIBufferInputStream **inStream,
 
 }
 
+NS_IMETHODIMP
+nsIOService::NewChannelFromNativePath(const char *nativePath, nsIFileChannel **result)
+{
+    nsresult rv;
+    nsIProtocolHandler* handler;
+    rv = GetProtocolHandler("file", &handler);
+    if (NS_FAILED(rv)) return rv;
+
+    nsIFileProtocolHandler* fileHandler = nsnull;
+    rv = handler->QueryInterface(nsIFileProtocolHandler::GetIID(), 
+                                 (void**)&fileHandler);
+    NS_RELEASE(handler);
+    if (NS_FAILED(rv)) return rv;
+    
+    nsIFileChannel* channel;
+    rv = fileHandler->NewChannelFromNativePath(nativePath, &channel);
+    NS_RELEASE(fileHandler);
+    if (NS_FAILED(rv)) return rv;
+    
+    *result = channel;
+    return NS_OK;
+}
+
 ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
 // HELPER ROUTINES
 ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
diff --git a/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.h b/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.h
index 079b576a2b33..68ebe8c46e8d 100644
--- a/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.h
+++ b/netwerk/base/src/nsIOService.h
@@ -51,6 +51,7 @@ public:
     NS_IMETHOD NewAsyncStreamObserver(nsIStreamObserver *receiver, nsIEventQueue *eventQueue, nsIStreamObserver **_retval);
     NS_IMETHOD NewAsyncStreamListener(nsIStreamListener *receiver, nsIEventQueue *eventQueue, nsIStreamListener **_retval);
     NS_IMETHOD NewSyncStreamListener(nsIBufferInputStream **inStream, nsIBufferOutputStream **outStream, nsIStreamListener **_retval);
+    NS_IMETHOD NewChannelFromNativePath(const char *nativePath, nsIFileChannel **_retval);
 
     // nsIOService methods:
     nsIOService();