connect-chrome

name	connect-chrome
description	Launch real Chrome controlled by the agent with a Side Panel extension. Watch every action in real time in a visible browser window. Use when: "connect chrome", "open chrome", "real browser", "launch chrome", "side panel", "control my browser", "watch it work".

Connect Chrome — Real Browser with Side Panel

Launch a visible Chrome window controlled by the agent. You see every click, every navigation, every action in real time.

Requirements

• Bun v1.0+ and the browse binary built (see browse skill)
• Desktop environment or X11 forwarding (can't run headed Chrome on a headless server without display)

Step 0: Pre-flight Cleanup

Kill any stale browse servers and clean Chromium profile locks:

# Kill existing browse server
pkill -f "browse.*server" 2>/dev/null || true
sleep 1

# Clean Chromium profile locks
PROFILE_DIR="$HOME/.founderclaw/chromium-profile"
mkdir -p "$PROFILE_DIR"
for LF in SingletonLock SingletonSocket SingletonCookie; do
  rm -f "$PROFILE_DIR/$LF" 2>/dev/null || true
done
echo "Pre-flight cleanup done"

Step 1: Connect

Set the browse binary path, then connect:

BROWSE="founderclaw/browse/dist/browse"
$BROWSE connect

This launches Chromium in headed mode with:

• A visible window you can watch (not your regular Chrome)
• A golden shimmer line at the top of every page (shows which window is controlled)
• Side Panel extension auto-loaded
• Port 34567 for extension communication

After connecting, verify:

$BROWSE status

Confirm output shows Mode: headed.

Step 2: Guide to Side Panel

Tell the user:

Chrome is launched. You should see Playwright's Chromium (not your regular Chrome) with a golden shimmer line at the top.

To open the Side Panel:

1. Look for the puzzle piece icon (Extensions) in the toolbar
2. Click it, find founderclaw browse, click the pin icon
3. Click the pinned icon — the Side Panel opens on the right
4. You should see a live activity feed

If the extension isn't visible:

1. Go to chrome://extensions
2. Look for "founderclaw browse" — it should be listed
3. If not, click "Load unpacked" and point to founderclaw/browse/extension/
4. Pin it from the puzzle piece menu

Step 3: Demo

$BROWSE goto https://news.ycombinator.com

Wait 2 seconds, then:

$BROWSE snapshot -i

Tell the user: "Check the Side Panel — every command appears in the activity feed in real time."

Commands

Command	What it does
$BROWSE connect	Launch headed Chrome with extension
$BROWSE disconnect	Close headed Chrome, return to headless
$BROWSE focus	Bring Chrome to foreground
$BROWSE status	Check connection status

What You Can Do

• Run any skill (qa, design-review, benchmark) and watch it work in real time
• Use the sidebar chat to control the browser with natural language
• All browse commands work in headed mode — same API, visible execution

Troubleshooting

"No display" — Headed mode needs a display. On a remote server, set up X11 forwarding or VNC.

"Already connected" — Run the cleanup step first, then reconnect.

Extension not loading — Check chrome://extensions, load manually from the extension directory.