1. Find Chrome Extensions On Computer

Advertisement Google recently decided to disable the installation of Chrome extensions from third-party websites. This was an expected and arguably necessary change, as such extensions could prove a serious security risk that’s entirely outside of Google’s hands, but some users still want to install extensions from sources other than the Chrome Web Store. Here’s how to do it. An Introductory Note Before we get into these instructions, I want to remind you why Google disabled this feature in the first place.

Download the CRX file to your computer for the Chrome extension you want to install. Go to chrome://extensions/ and check the box for Developer mode in the top right. Try to install an extension from outside the Chrome Web Store and Chrome will tell you that extensions “can only be added from the Chrome Web Store.” However, this message is incorrect – you can still install extensions from elsewhere. In some cases, it can be necessary to install a Chrome extension without using the Chrome Web Store, for example to test an unpublished version of an extension. Also, some users living in China asked us if there was a way to install our extension as they can’t access the Chrome Web Store.

Browser extensions, like other programs and extensions, can be a security threat if they behave badly. At the least they can be annoying, serving up extra advertisements that wouldn’t normally appear. At the worst, well — imagine whatever your personal worst-case scenario might be. What You Need To Do First Google’s policy is aggressive enough that simply trying to install a.crx file manually to a regular version of Chrome doesn’t work. The browser will notice it’s not in the Chrome Web Store and disable it automatically. This doesn’t happen, however, if you download the.

You need to grab Chrome from the “dev channel” on the page just linked. Installation is just as normal, but once installed open the menu and go to “About.” The up to date message should now show a version number that ends with “ dev-m.” Now once again open the menu, and go to Tools- Extensions and in the extensions page check “ If you've been following my jQuery tutorials so far, you may have already run into some code problems and not known how to fix them. When faced with a non-functional bit of code, it's very.” And that’s it – you’re now ready to install the extensions. Installing The Extension Once you’ve set up the installation, actually adding the extension is easy. All you need to do is drag-and-drop the.crx file from a folder into the page.

You will receive a permissions pop-up which looks like the one below. Pay attention to that, since it tells you what the third-party extension can access.

There could be some information in there that you don’t want a third party to have, like browsing history (shown above). You’ll need to perform some self-interested risk analysis to decide if the usefulness of the extension outweighs the security risk presented by its permissions. And that’s it.

The extension should start working immediately; in some cases you may need to go to the page and click on the “ Options” area of the extension to perform final setup. With this said, my experience installing third-party extensions hasn’t been the most fruitful. Many third-partydo not install correctly or don’t do what they should once they’re installed. Of the extensions I hunted down to test, I experienced a 40% rate of success.

In other words, be prepared for some frustration; many third-party extensions have been abandoned by their developers or never worked properly in the first place. Where To Find Extensions As you can see, actually installing a third party extension is still simple. The hard part is finding extensions.

Here are four sources where I found a variety of.crx extensions.: A somewhat unreliable site that has some working extensions on it. The selection is broad, and many of the extensions useful, but the site doesn’t do much to let you know which are up-to-date and still working. : Searching Github for Chrome Extensions turns up a large number of results.

Most of the extensions here are “unpacked” meaning they’re not in.crx format. You’ll have to use the “ Load unpacked extension” option to add them.: Reddit’s /r/chromeextensions forum is not particularly popular, but it does include some extensions on it that may be of interest. As with Github, some of the extensions found here will be unpacked.: The majority of the extensions here are official, so CNET simply re-directs you to the The Chrome Web Store contains thousands of games - we've dug through them for you and unearthed some gems. Whether you're looking for casual fun, Zen puzzles, rich 3D graphics, arcade-style multiplayer action or interesting. A few third-party options do exist; you’ll know them because they’ll have a download link instead of a “visit site” button. You can also try visiting any Chrome extension developer forum, where folks share their works in progress. Of course, these are even more likely than normal to be unstable, so use them at your own risk.

Tell Us About Great Third-Party Extensions To be frank, Google’s move to make the Chrome Web Store the only source for extensions has been an effective way of killing off third-party extensions. My sense of the third-party scene is that it’s scattered and unreliable, at best; many developers have simply taken the path of least resistance and signed up with the official store. Still, if you want to install a third-party extension, this is how you do it. Good luck, and if you find any alternative methods, or any sites that have a great selection of third-party apps, be sure to leave a comment!

Find Chrome Extensions On Computer

What has your experience been of third-party extensions? Any horror stories? Explore more about:.