Add and use connected apps

Connect the web apps you use every day, and apps on your computer, then open them in PlexiDesk or drag them onto any desk, signed in and ready.

All plansUpdated 15 October 2026

A connected app is a web app you use every day, kept in PlexiDesk with its own sign-in. Add it once, sign in once, and it is always ready: open it to fill the window, or drag it onto any desk as a Browser widget that is already signed in. You can also connect an app installed on your computer, and launch it from PlexiDesk.

Before you start

Connected apps are on every plan.
You need the web address of the app, or the app installed on your computer.
To have PlexiDesk fill in your login, keep it in the Vault. See Auto-fill a connected app from the Vault.

Add a connected app

You can add one from two places:

The side menu. While a desk is open, click + beside Connected Apps. Its tooltip says Add a connected app. If you have none yet, click Add app.
Settings. Click the gear in the header, open the Advanced tab and click + beside Connected apps. This works with no desk open.

The Add a Connected App window has three tabs.

Standard

A catalogue of popular web apps for productivity, communication, development, AI, media and design.

Type in Search apps… to find one, or browse the groups.
Click the app. Its tile shows adding…, then already added.

If the app you want is not in the catalogue, the search says No standard apps match. Click Add as custom URL.

Custom URL

In URL, type the app's web address, such as https://example.com. If you leave out https://, PlexiDesk adds it.
In Name (optional), type a name. If you leave it empty, the app is named after its address.
Click Add to sidebar.

Connected apps keep their sign-in between launches, so you stay signed in after you quit PlexiDesk, for as long as the site itself allows.

Local app

Connect an app installed on your computer. It cannot open inside PlexiDesk, but PlexiDesk launches it for you, and you can drag it onto a desk as a launcher tile.

Click Choose app… and pick the app.
Change the Display name if you like.
Click Add to sidebar.

See App launcher widget.

When you add an app from the side menu, PlexiDesk opens it straight away.

Open an app

While a desk is open, your connected apps are listed in the side menu under Connected Apps. Click a web app to open it filling the window. Click an app on your computer to launch it.

An open web app has a toolbar along the top:

Button	What it does
Back, Forward, Reload	Move through the app's pages, as in a browser.
Open in system browser	Opens the page you are on in your usual web browser.
The key	Lets the Vault fill in your login. See Auto-fill a connected app from the Vault.
Remove this app	Removes the app from PlexiDesk, after you confirm.

Sign-in windows that an app opens, such as signing in with another account, work as they would in a browser.

Put an app on a desk

Open the desk.
Drag the app from Connected Apps in the side menu onto the desk.

A web app becomes a Browser widget showing that app, signed in with the app's own sign-in. Drag it onto as many desks as you like: they all share the one sign-in. An app on your computer becomes a launcher tile. See Keep a site signed in on your desks.

You can also make a connected app from a Browser widget that is already open on a site: click pin to apps at the top right of its page. See Keep a site signed in on your desks.

Organise your apps

In the side menu, the apps you have pinned come first, then the ones you use most often and most recently, up to six in all. The rest are under More apps, with the number in brackets.

To pin an app, point at it in the side menu and click its pin, Pin to Favourites. Click again to unpin.
In Settings, each app has a pin, Pin to the sidebar, and a bin, Remove with the app's name.

Remove an app

From the app: open it, click Remove this app, and confirm with Remove. PlexiDesk says It disappears from Connected Apps. You can add it again any time.
From Settings: on the Advanced tab, click the bin beside the app under Connected apps. It is removed straight away.

Coming soon PlexiDesk 4.3.28

Unread counts

Connected apps can show how many unread items they have, beside their name in the side menu. PlexiDesk reads the count from the app's own page title, the way many web apps show it in a browser tab, such as (3) Inbox. Counts over 99 show as 99+.

PlexiDesk checks each app in the background, shortly after you open PlexiDesk and then every few minutes.
A green count is live. A grey count is the last one seen: rest the pointer on it to see why, such as signed out, so this is not current.
A sun beside an app means it is signed in and counts are arriving live. A moon means it is signed out, or not being checked right now.
To turn the count off or on for an app, open the app and click the bell in its toolbar.

Your connected apps also appear as tiles in the side menu under Apps, whether or not a desk is open.

Common questions

I cannot see Connected Apps in the side menu. The Connected Apps list appears while a desk is open, because its apps are there to be dragged onto a desk. To manage apps with no desk open, use Settings > Advanced > Connected apps.

The app asks me to sign in again. Some sites sign you out after a while. Sign in again in the app or in any Browser widget for it. To have the login filled in for you, bind it from the Vault. See Auto-fill a connected app from the Vault.

I added the same app twice by mistake. Remove the extra one. In the Standard catalogue, apps you already have show already added.

Can extensions work in my connected apps? Yes. Browser extensions you add run in connected apps too. See Add Chrome extensions to Plexii's browser.

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