Developer Tools

devtools

Low RiskCategory: Developer ToolsView Official Docs↗

Technical Context

Enables the extension to create panels, sidebars, and other UI elements within Chrome's Developer Tools. This is the foundation permission for all DevTools extensions.

What This Means For You

The extension can add new panels and features to Chrome's developer tools. This is only useful for web developers who use the inspector.

Related APIs

This permission enables access to these Chrome APIs:

chrome.devtools.panelschrome.devtools.inspectedWindow

Common Use Cases

✓React DevTools
✓Vue DevTools
✓Performance tools

How to Declare in manifest.json

Add the "devtools" permission to your extension manifest:

{
  "manifest_version": 3,
  "name": "My Extension",
  "permissions": [
    "devtools"
  ]
}

Related Permissions

User Scripts

userScripts

The extension can run custom scripts that you or others create on websites. This is powerful for customization but means third-party code runs in your browser.

medium

Debugger

debugger

The extension can control web pages at a very deep level, including pausing code and changing how pages run. This is extremely powerful and typically only needed by developer tools.

high

Scripting

scripting

The extension can run code on web pages to modify how they look or behave. The actual pages it can access depend on other permissions it has.

medium

Active Tab

activeTab

This is a "privacy-first" permission that only lets the tool see the website you are currently looking at when you specifically ask for help. It ensures the extension remains dormant and unable to read your data on any other open tabs or websites.

low

Storage

storage

This acts as a digital filing cabinet where the extension saves your personal settings and preferences. It ensures your custom configurations stay the same every time you open Chrome without slowing down your computer.

low