I am in the process of building a Chrome extension, and for the whole thing to work the way I would like it to, I need an external JavaScript script to be able to detect if a user has my extension installed.
For example: A user installs my plugin, then goes to a website with my script on it. The website detects that my extension is installed and updates the page accordingly.
Is this possible?
Chrome now has the ability to send messages from the website to the extension.
So in the extension background.js (content.js will not work) add something like:
chrome.runtime.onMessageExternal.addListener(
function(request, sender, sendResponse) {
if (request) {
if (request.message) {
if (request.message == "version") {
sendResponse({version: 1.0});
}
}
}
return true;
});
This will then let you make a call from the website:
var hasExtension = false;
chrome.runtime.sendMessage(extensionId, { message: "version" },
function (reply) {
if (reply) {
if (reply.version) {
if (reply.version >= requiredVersion) {
hasExtension = true;
}
}
}
else {
hasExtension = false;
}
});
You can then check the hasExtension variable. The only drawback is the call is asynchronous, so you have to work around that somehow.
Edit:
As mentioned below, you'll need to add an entry to the manifest.json listing the domains that can message your addon. Eg:
"externally_connectable": {
"matches": ["*://localhost/*", "*://your.domain.com/*"]
},
2021 Update:
chrome.runtime.sendMessage will throw the following exception in console if the extension isn't installed or it's disabled.
Unchecked runtime.lastError: Could not establish connection. Receiving end does not exist
To fix this, add this validation inside the sendMessage callback
if (chrome.runtime.lastError) {
// handle error
}
I am sure there is a direct way (calling functions on your extension directly, or by using the JS classes for extensions), but an indirect method (until something better comes along):
Have your Chrome extension look for a specific DIV or other element on your page, with a very specific ID.
For example:
<div id="ExtensionCheck_JamesEggersAwesomeExtension"></div>
Do a getElementById and set the innerHTML to the version number of your extension or something. You can then read the contents of that client-side.
Again though, you should use a direct method if there is one available.
EDIT: Direct method found!!
Use the connection methods found here: https://developer.chrome.com/extensions/extension#global-events
Untested, but you should be able to do...
var myPort=chrome.extension.connect('yourextensionid_qwerqweroijwefoijwef', some_object_to_send_on_connect);
Another method is to expose a web-accessible resource, though this will allow any website to test if your extension is installed.
Suppose your extension's ID is aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, and you add a file (say, a transparent pixel image) as test.png in your extension's files.
Then, you expose this file to the web pages with web_accessible_resources manifest key:
"web_accessible_resources": [
"test.png"
],
In your web page, you can try to load this file by its full URL (in an <img> tag, via XHR, or in any other way):
chrome-extension://aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa/test.png
If the file loads, then the extension is installed. If there's an error while loading this file, then the extension is not installed.
// Code from https://groups.google.com/a/chromium.org/d/msg/chromium-extensions/8ArcsWMBaM4/2GKwVOZm1qMJ
function detectExtension(extensionId, callback) {
var img;
img = new Image();
img.src = "chrome-extension://" + extensionId + "/test.png";
img.onload = function() {
callback(true);
};
img.onerror = function() {
callback(false);
};
}
Of note: if there is an error while loading this file, said network stack error will appear in the console with no possibility to silence it. When Chromecast used this method, it caused quite a bit of controversy because of this; with the eventual very ugly solution of simply blacklisting very specific errors from Dev Tools altogether by the Chrome team.
Important note: this method will not work in Firefox WebExtensions. Web-accessible resources inherently expose the extension to fingerprinting, since the URL is predictable by knowing the ID. Firefox decided to close that hole by assigning an instance-specific random URL to web accessible resources:
The files will then be available using a URL like:
moz-extension://<random-UUID>/<path/to/resource>
This UUID is randomly generated for every browser instance and is not your extension's ID. This prevents websites from fingerprinting the extensions a user has installed.
However, while the extension can use runtime.getURL() to obtain this address, you can't hard-code it in your website.
I thought I would share my research on this.
I needed to be able to detect if a specific extension was installed for some file:/// links to work.
I came across this article here
This explained a method of getting the manifest.json of an extension.
I adjusted the code a bit and came up with:
function Ext_Detect_NotInstalled(ExtName, ExtID) {
console.log(ExtName + ' Not Installed');
if (divAnnounce.innerHTML != '')
divAnnounce.innerHTML = divAnnounce.innerHTML + "<BR>"
divAnnounce.innerHTML = divAnnounce.innerHTML + 'Page needs ' + ExtName + ' Extension -- to intall the LocalLinks extension click here';
}
function Ext_Detect_Installed(ExtName, ExtID) {
console.log(ExtName + ' Installed');
}
var Ext_Detect = function (ExtName, ExtID) {
var s = document.createElement('script');
s.onload = function () { Ext_Detect_Installed(ExtName, ExtID); };
s.onerror = function () { Ext_Detect_NotInstalled(ExtName, ExtID); };
s.src = 'chrome-extension://' + ExtID + '/manifest.json';
document.body.appendChild(s);
}
var is_chrome = navigator.userAgent.toLowerCase().indexOf('chrome') > -1;
if (is_chrome == true) {
window.onload = function () { Ext_Detect('LocalLinks', 'jllpkdkcdjndhggodimiphkghogcpida'); };
}
With this you should be able to use Ext_Detect(ExtensionName,ExtensionID) to detect the installation of any number of extensions.
Another possible solution if you own the website is to use inline installation.
if (chrome.app.isInstalled) {
// extension is installed.
}
I know this an old question but this way was introduced in Chrome 15 and so I thought Id list it for anyone only now looking for an answer.
Here is an other modern approach:
const checkExtension = (id, src, callback) => {
let e = new Image()
e.src = 'chrome-extension://'+ id +'/'+ src
e.onload = () => callback(1), e.onerror = () => callback(0)
}
// "src" must be included to "web_accessible_resources" in manifest.json
checkExtension('gighmmpiobklfepjocnamgkkbiglidom', 'icons/icon24.png', (ok) => {
console.log('AdBlock: %s', ok ? 'installed' : 'not installed')
})
checkExtension('bhlhnicpbhignbdhedgjhgdocnmhomnp', 'images/checkmark-icon.png', (ok) => {
console.log('ColorZilla: %s', ok ? 'installed' : 'not installed')
})
I used the cookie method:
In my manifest.js file I included a content script that only runs on my site:
"content_scripts": [
{
"matches": [
"*://*.mysite.co/*"
],
"js": ["js/mysite.js"],
"run_at": "document_idle"
}
],
in my js/mysite.js I have one line:
document.cookie = "extension_downloaded=True";
and in my index.html page I look for that cookie.
if (document.cookie.indexOf('extension_downloaded') != -1){
document.getElementById('install-btn').style.display = 'none';
}
You could have the extension set a cookie and have your websites JavaScript check if that cookie is present and update accordingly. This and probably most other methods mentioned here could of course be cirvumvented by the user, unless you try and have the extension create custom cookies depending on timestamps etc, and have your application analyze them server side to see if it really is a user with the extension or someone pretending to have it by modifying his cookies.
There's another method shown at this Google Groups post. In short, you could try detecting whether the extension icon loads successfully. This may be helpful if the extension you're checking for isn't your own.
Webpage interacts with extension through background script.
manifest.json:
"background": {
"scripts": ["background.js"],
"persistent": true
},
"externally_connectable": {
"matches": ["*://(domain.ext)/*"]
},
background.js:
chrome.runtime.onMessageExternal.addListener(function(msg, sender, sendResponse) {
if ((msg.action == "id") && (msg.value == id))
{
sendResponse({id : id});
}
});
page.html:
<script>
var id = "some_ext_id";
chrome.runtime.sendMessage(id, {action: "id", value : id}, function(response) {
if(response && (response.id == id)) //extension installed
{
console.log(response);
}
else //extension not installed
{
console.log("Please consider installig extension");
}
});
</script>
Your extension could interact with the website (e.g. changing variables) and your website could detect this.
But there should be a better way to do this. I wonder how Google is doing it on their extension gallery (already installed applications are marked).
Edit:
The gallery use the chrome.management.get function. Example:
chrome.management.get("mblbciejcodpealifnhfjbdlkedplodp", function(a){console.log(a);});
But you can only access the method from pages with the right permissions.
A lot of the answers here so far are Chrome only or incur an HTTP overhead penalty. The solution that we are using is a little different:
1. Add a new object to the manifest content_scripts list like so:
{
"matches": ["https://www.yoursite.com/*"],
"js": [
"install_notifier.js"
],
"run_at": "document_idle"
}
This will allow the code in install_notifier.js to run on that site (if you didn't already have permissions there).
2. Send a message to every site in the manifest key above.
Add something like this to install_notifier.js (note that this is using a closure to keep the variables from being global, but that's not strictly necessary):
// Dispatch a message to every URL that's in the manifest to say that the extension is
// installed. This allows webpages to take action based on the presence of the
// extension and its version. This is only allowed for a small whitelist of
// domains defined in the manifest.
(function () {
let currentVersion = chrome.runtime.getManifest().version;
window.postMessage({
sender: "my-extension",
message_name: "version",
message: currentVersion
}, "*");
})();
Your message could say anything, but it's useful to send the version so you know what you're dealing with. Then...
3. On your website, listen for that message.
Add this to your website somewhere:
window.addEventListener("message", function (event) {
if (event.source == window &&
event.data.sender &&
event.data.sender === "my-extension" &&
event.data.message_name &&
event.data.message_name === "version") {
console.log("Got the message");
}
});
This works in Firefox and Chrome, and doesn't incur HTTP overhead or manipulate the page.
You could also use a cross-browser method what I have used.
Uses the concept of adding a div.
in your content script (whenever the script loads, it should do this)
if ((window.location.href).includes('*myurl/urlregex*')) {
$('html').addClass('ifextension');
}
in your website you assert something like,
if (!($('html').hasClass('ifextension')){}
And throw appropriate message.
If you have control over the Chrome extension, you can try what I did:
// Inside Chrome extension
var div = document.createElement('div');
div.setAttribute('id', 'myapp-extension-installed-div');
document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0].appendChild(div);
And then:
// On web page that needs to detect extension
if ($('#myapp-extension-installed-div').length) {
}
It feels a little hacky, but I couldn't get the other methods to work, and I worry about Chrome changing its API here. It's doubtful this method will stop working any time soon.
If you're trying to detect any extension from any website,
This post helped: https://ide.hey.network/post/5c3b6c7aa7af38479accc0c7
Basically, the solution would be to simply try to get a specific file (manifest.json or an image) from the extension by specifying its path. Here's what I used. Definitely working:
const imgExists = function(_f, _cb) {
const __i = new Image();
__i.onload = function() {
if (typeof _cb === 'function') {
_cb(true);
}
}
__i.onerror = function() {
if (typeof _cb === 'function') {
_cb(false);
}
}
__i.src = _f;
__i = null;
});
try {
imgExists("chrome-extension://${CHROME_XT_ID}/xt_content/assets/logo.png", function(_test) {
console.log(_test ? 'chrome extension installed !' : 'chrome extension not installed..');
ifrm.xt_chrome = _test;
// use that information
});
} catch (e) {
console.log('ERROR', e)
}
Here is how you can detect a specific Extension installed and show a warning message.
First you need to open the manifest file of the extension by going to chrome-extension://extension_id_here_hkdppipefbchgpohn/manifest.json and look for any file name within "web_accessible_resources" section.
<div class="chromewarning" style="display:none">
<script type="text/javascript">
$.get("chrome-extension://extension_id_here_hkdppipefbchgpohn/filename_found_in_ web_accessible_resources.png").done(function () {
$(".chromewarning").show();
}).fail(function () {
// alert("failed.");
});
</script>
<p>We have detected a browser extension that conflicts with learning modules in this course.</p>
</div>
Chrome Extension Manifest v3:
const isFirefox = chrome.runtime.OnInstalledReason.CHROME_UPDATE != "chrome_update";
For FireFox, I believe chrome.runtime.OnInstalledReason.BROWSER_UPDATE will be "browser_update": https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Mozilla/Add-ons/WebExtensions/API/runtime/OnInstalledReason
I am currently looking to find a best way to store a incoming webrtc video streams. I am joining the videocall using webrtc (via chrome) and I would like to record every incoming video stream to from each participant to the browser.
The solutions I am researching are:
Intercept network packets coming to the browsers e.g. using Whireshark and then decode. Following this article: https://webrtchacks.com/video_replay/
Modifying a browser to store recording as a file e.g. by modifying Chromium itself
Any screen-recorders or using solutions like xvfb & ffmpeg is not an options due the resources constrains. Is there any other way that could let me capture packets or encoded video as a file? The solution must be working on Linux.
if the media stream is what you want a method is to override the browser's PeerConnection. Here is an example:
In an extension manifest add the following content script:
content_scripts": [
{
"matches": ["http://*/*", "https://*/*"],
"js": ["payload/inject.js"],
"all_frames": true,
"match_about_blank": true,
"run_at": "document_start"
}
]
inject.js
var inject = '('+function() {
//overide the browser's default RTCPeerConnection.
var origPeerConnection = window.RTCPeerConnection || window.webkitRTCPeerConnection || window.mozRTCPeerConnection;
//make sure it is supported
if (origPeerConnection) {
//our own RTCPeerConnection
var newPeerConnection = function(config, constraints) {
console.log('PeerConnection created with config', config);
//proxy the orginal peer connection
var pc = new origPeerConnection(config, constraints);
//store the old addStream
var oldAddStream = pc.addStream;
//addStream is called when a local stream is added.
//arguments[0] is a local media stream
pc.addStream = function() {
console.log("our add stream called!")
//our mediaStream object
console.dir(arguments[0])
return oldAddStream.apply(this, arguments);
}
//ontrack is called when a remote track is added.
//the media stream(s) are located in event.streams
pc.ontrack = function(event) {
console.log("ontrack got a track")
console.dir(event);
}
window.ourPC = pc;
return pc;
};
['RTCPeerConnection', 'webkitRTCPeerConnection', 'mozRTCPeerConnection'].forEach(function(obj) {
// Override objects if they exist in the window object
if (window.hasOwnProperty(obj)) {
window[obj] = newPeerConnection;
// Copy the static methods
Object.keys(origPeerConnection).forEach(function(x){
window[obj][x] = origPeerConnection[x];
})
window[obj].prototype = origPeerConnection.prototype;
}
});
}
}+')();';
var script = document.createElement('script');
script.textContent = inject;
(document.head||document.documentElement).appendChild(script);
script.parentNode.removeChild(script);
I tested this with a voice call in google hangouts and saw that two mediaStreams where added via pc.addStream and one track was added via pc.ontrack. addStream would seem to be local media streams and the event object in ontrack is a RTCTrackEvent which has a streams object. which I assume are what you are looking for.
To access these streams from your extenion's content script you will need to create audio elements and set the "srcObject" property to the media stream: e.g.
pc.ontrack = function(event) {
//check if our element exists
var elm = document.getElementById("remoteStream");
if(elm == null) {
//create an audio element
elm = document.createElement("audio");
elm.id = "remoteStream";
}
//set the srcObject to our stream. not sure if you need to clone it
elm.srcObject = event.streams[0].clone();
//write the elment to the body
document.body.appendChild(elm);
//fire a custom event so our content script knows the stream is available.
// you could pass the id in the "detail" object. for example:
//CustomEvent("remoteStreamAdded", {"detail":{"id":"audio_element_id"}})
//then access if via e.detail.id in your event listener.
var e = CustomEvent("remoteStreamAdded");
window.dispatchEvent(e);
}
Then in your content script you can listen for that event/access the mediastream like so:
window.addEventListener("remoteStreamAdded", function(e) {
elm = document.getElementById("remoteStream");
var stream = elm.captureStream();
})
With the capture stream available to your content script you can do pretty much anything you want with it. For example, MediaRecorder works really well for recording the stream(s) or you could use something like peer.js or maybe binary.js to stream to another source.
I haven't tested this but it should also be possible to override the local streams. For example, in the inject.js you could establish some blank mediastream, override navigator.mediaDevices.getUserMedia and instead of returning the local mediastream return your own mediastream.
This method should work in firefox and maybe others as well assuming you use an extenion/app to load the inject.js script at the start of the document. It being loaded before any of the target's libs is key to making this work.
edited for more detail
edited for even more detail
Capturing packets will only give you the network packets which you would then need to turn into frames and put into a container. A server such as Janus can record videos.
Running headless chrome and using the javascript MediaRecorder API is another option but much more heavy on resources.
My goal is to highlight a room by adding new geometry to the viewer based on lines I have created in revit like they do here Link
but i can not figure out how to access those lines ids.
I know what they are in revit (element_id) but not how they are mapped as dbid.
Following this Blog Post
I want to access the objectTree in my extension to find out, but it always comes back as undefined.
var tree;
//old way - viewer is your viewer object - undefined
viewer.getObjectTree(function (objTree) {
tree = objTree;
});
//2.5 - undefined
var instanceTree = viewer.model.getData().instanceTree;
var rootId = this.rootId = instanceTree.getRootId();
//- undefined
var objectTree = viewer.getObjectTree();
Can anyone tell me if its still works for them I am using the v2 of the API for the rvt conversion to svf and 2.9 of the viewer3D.js
note I can see a list of dbid if I call this
var model = viewer.impl.model;
var data = model.getData();
var fragId2dbIdArray = data.fragments.fragId2dbId ;
but have no way of mapping back to the Revit element_id
As of version 2.9 this is still working. Here's my console:
Here's a couple of things you can try:
Is viewer undefined? Are you in the correct scope when grabbing the viewer?
The document have to be loaded before you can grab the instance tree. When the document is loaded, an event called Autodesk.Viewing.GEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT will be fired, then you can start manipulating the instance tree.
Simply do this:
viewer.addEventListener(Autodesk.Viewing.GEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT, function () {
var instanceTree = viewer.model.getData().instanceTree;
});
For more structured code, follow this guide to add an extension.
There's a more detailed blog post on which event to listen for. It's still using the old way to get instance tree, though.
Shiya Luo was correct the viewer had not yet finished loading the geometry
in my extentions Load function I added two event listeners and made sure they both fired before trying to access the instanceTree
viewer.addEventListener(Autodesk.Viewing.GEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT, function () {
finishedGEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT = true;
if(finishedGEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT && finishedOBJECT_TREE_CREATED_EVENT ){
afterModelLoadEvents(viewer);
}
});
viewer.addEventListener(Autodesk.Viewing.OBJECT_TREE_CREATED_EVENT, function () {
finishedOBJECT_TREE_CREATED_EVENT = true;
if(finishedGEOMETRY_LOADED_EVENT && finishedOBJECT_TREE_CREATED_EVENT ){
afterModelLoadEvents(viewer);
}
});
I am trying to include subtitles on a Chromecast application I'm building.
I am using the default receiver application.
I am writing a chrome sender application using v1 of the chrome sender api.
According to the Chromecast Sender Api documentation, I should be passing in an array of track objects into the chrome.cast.media.MediaInfo object. My issue is, whenever I call chrome.cast.media.Track(trackId, trackType), it returns undefined. When I look through the public methods in chrome.cast.media, through console, I don't see anything related to Track. Link to documentation here.
Below is my loadMedia method where I try to include an array of track objects along with my LoadRequest as specified by the cast api. The commented out code is how I've seen closed-captioning handled in one of the cast Github repositories, but unfortunately I believe you have to handle that customData in your own custom receiver application.
Are subtitles through the chrome sender SDK possible yet, or does one have to build their own receiver application and specifically handle text tracking through passed in customData? Am I potentially using the wrong sender api?
function loadMedia() {
mediaUrl = decodeURIComponent(_player.sources.mp4);
var mediaInfo = new chrome.cast.media.MediaInfo(mediaUrl);
mediaInfo.contentType = 'video/mp4';
var track1 = new chrome.cast.media.Track(1, chrome.cast.media.TrackType.TEXT);
track1.trackContentId = "https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/35106650/test.vtt";
mediaInfo.tracks = [track1];
var request = new chrome.cast.media.LoadRequest(mediaInfo);
// var json = {
// cc: {
// tracks: [{
// src: "https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/35106650/test.vtt"
// }],
// active: 0
// }
// };
// request.customData = json;
session.loadMedia(request, onMediaDiscovered.bind(this, 'loadMedia'), onMediaError);
}
Currently, neither the Default nor the Styled Receivers support Closed Caption; you need to create your own. We have a sample in our GitHub repo that can be used for doing exactly that.
Update: Styled and Default receivers now support Tracks, see our documentations.
I have the latest versions of Firefox and IE, but the example in html5rocks.com is not working in these two browsers. I tested with Chrome and it works fine.
I have noted that these browsers does not fire any event ('onsuccess' or 'onerror') on attempting to open the indexedDB as follows.
var request = indexedDB.open("todos");
Please share any ideas/solution for this issue.
to make html5rocks demo work on Firefox you need to attach onupgradeneeded event on database open instead of setversion method for creating the database.
here is the code sample that works both on Firefox and Chrome:
myStorage.indexedDB.open = function() {
var v = 1;
var request = indexedDB.open("todos", v);
//Firefox code for db init
request.onupgradeneeded = function (e) {
myStorage.indexedDB.db = e.target.result;
var db = myStorage.indexedDB.db;
// We can only create Object stores in a setVersion transaction;
if(db.objectStoreNames.contains("todo")) {
var storeReq = db.deleteObjectStore("todo");
}
var store = db.createObjectStore("todo",
{keyPath: "timeStamp"});
}
request.onsuccess = function(e) {
myStorage.indexedDB.db = e.target.result;
var db = myStorage.indexedDB.db;
//Chrome code for db init
if (v!= db.version && db.setVersion) {
var setVrequest = db.setVersion(v);
// onsuccess is the only place we can create Object Stores
setVrequest.onerror = myStorage.indexedDB.onerror;
setVrequest.onsuccess = function(e) {
if(db.objectStoreNames.contains("todo")) {
db.deleteObjectStore("todo");
}
var store = db.createObjectStore("todo",
{keyPath: "timeStamp"});
myStorage.indexedDB.getAllTodoItems();
};
}
else
myStorage.indexedDB.getAllTodoItems();
};
request.onerror = myStorage.indexedDB.onerror;
}
Edit: Here is a link to working version of the html5roks ToDo demo, which I maintain on github, expanded with two new features for viewing details data and updating values.
Chrome is behind on the IndexedDB standard.
There was a new revision introduced in December and Firefox and IE have upgraded. Chrome has not yet.
I believe it's mostly folks from the Chrome crew who run HTML5Rocks.com so it makes sense why these examples would be behind.
The big change between the pre and post-December 2010 API are the change in setVersion requests and the new onupgradeneeded callback.
Todo list example is outdated IndexedDB specification implemented on chrome. Now you got to use onupgardedneeded method, and well setVersion too for now.
IndexedDB is not supported on IE. Visit html5test.com for verification
Edit 2015: IndexedDB API is available in IE as of version 10