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Add Chrome extensions to Plexii's browser

Add a Chrome extension from its unpacked folder so it runs in Browser widgets, the full-screen browser and connected apps. Turn it off or remove it any time.

All plansUpdated

PlexiDesk's browser can run Chrome extensions. Add an extension once, and it works in every place PlexiDesk shows web pages: Browser widgets on your desks, the browser panel, the full-screen browser and your connected apps.

Extensions that change the pages you visit work well here: tools that tidy or restyle pages, fill in forms, block requests or add buttons to a site. Extensions whose whole purpose is their toolbar button are limited for now, as explained below.

Before you start

  • Browser extensions are on every plan, in the PlexiDesk desktop app.
  • You need the extension as an unpacked folder: the folder that holds the extension's manifest.json file. PlexiDesk cannot install extensions from an online extension store, or from a packed .crx or .zip file.
  • Only add extensions you trust. An extension can read and change the pages it runs on, including pages you are signed in to.

Get an unpacked folder

  • Extensions published as source code by their makers usually come as a folder, or as a .zip file you can unzip into one.
  • If you build your own extension, use its folder directly.
  • Open the folder and check that manifest.json is inside it, not in a folder below.

Add an extension

  1. Click the gear at the right-hand end of the header to open Settings.
  2. Click the Advanced tab, and scroll to Browser extensions, below Connected apps.
  3. Click Add an unpacked folder….
  4. In Choose an unpacked extension folder, pick the folder that contains the extension's manifest.json, and confirm.

The extension appears in the list with its name, version and folder, and it starts working straight away in pages you open from now on. Reload a page that was already open to use it there.

If the folder cannot be added, a message in red says why:

Message What to do
No manifest.json in that folder. Pick the extension's own folder, the one with manifest.json in it, not the folder above it, a .crx or a .zip.
That manifest.json is not valid JSON. or That manifest has no name. The extension's files are damaged or incomplete. Get a fresh copy.
That extension is already installed. It is already in the list.
That folder does not exist. The folder was moved or deleted. Pick it again.

What works, and what does not

PlexiDesk lists this under What works, and what does not in the same section:

  • Works: content scripts, which change the pages you visit; storage, so an extension remembers its settings; and request blocking.
  • Best with Manifest V2 extensions for now. Manifest V3 extensions run, but their request-blocking rules are only partly supported.
  • Toolbar buttons and popups are not shown yet. If an extension has one, its row says This one has a toolbar button, which Plexii does not draw yet — its content scripts still run.
  • Extensions that manage the browser itself, such as bookmarks, history or identity, have no equivalent in PlexiDesk and do not work.

Turn an extension off or on

Click Disable beside the extension. It stops running in new pages, and stays in the list. Click Enable to turn it back on.

Remove an extension

Click the × beside the extension. Its tooltip says Remove from Plexii — the folder on disk is left alone. The extension is removed from PlexiDesk, and its folder stays on your computer, untouched.

Keep your extensions

PlexiDesk remembers the extensions you added and loads them each time it starts. Keep each extension's folder where it is: PlexiDesk runs it from that folder. If you move or delete the folder, add it again from its new place.

Common questions

The extension does nothing on a page. Reload the page. If it still does nothing, check that the extension is enabled, and whether its row says it has a toolbar button: an extension that only works through its button cannot be used yet.

I added a connected app, and my extensions do not run in it. A connected app added during this session picks up your extensions the next time you start PlexiDesk. Quit and reopen PlexiDesk.

Can I install from the extension store? No. PlexiDesk needs the extension's unpacked folder.

Do extensions work in the web version of PlexiDesk? No. The section says Extensions need the desktop app.

Still need help? Contact support at [email protected].