Yes, CIP replaced the more classic VMRC. Uploads are done via OVF Tool now, instead of the Java based client. this is also in the CIP.
FF30 changes how pages are rendered and some specific API calls. Each iteration of vCD should adopt the current CIP version, which is also used in the Web Client for some features.
Also, you need to be really careful with Java versions as well. Some website components call out to JRE still, so you have to whitelist a lot of your URLs (all 3 public addresses). this is as of Java 7 u 51.