claude-in-chrome-troubleshooting

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Summary

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SKILL.md

Claude in Chrome MCP Troubleshooting

Use this skill when Claude in Chrome MCP tools fail to connect or work unreliably.

When to Use

mcp__claude-in-chrome__* tools fail with "Browser extension is not connected"
Browser automation works erratically or times out
After updating Claude Code or Claude.app
When switching between Claude Code CLI and Claude.app (Cowork)
Native host process is running but MCP tools still fail

When NOT to Use

Linux or Windows users - This skill covers macOS-specific paths and tools (~/Library/Application Support/, osascript)
General Chrome automation issues unrelated to the Claude extension
Claude.app desktop issues (not browser-related)
Network connectivity problems
Chrome extension installation issues (use Chrome Web Store support)

The Claude.app vs Claude Code Conflict (Primary Issue)

Background: When Claude.app added Cowork support (browser automation from the desktop app), it introduced a competing native messaging host that conflicts with Claude Code CLI.

Two Native Hosts, Two Socket Formats

Component	Native Host Binary	Socket Location
Claude.app (Cowork)	`/Applications/Claude.app/Contents/Helpers/chrome-native-host`	`/tmp/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER/<PID>.sock`
Claude Code CLI	`~/.local/share/claude/versions/<version> --chrome-native-host`	`$TMPDIR/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER` (single file)

Why They Conflict

Both register native messaging configs in Chrome:

# Disable the Claude.app native messaging config
mv ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json \
   ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json.disabled

# Ensure the Claude Code config exists and points to the wrapper
cat ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_code_browser_extension.json

# Disable the Claude Code native messaging config
mv ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_code_browser_extension.json \
   ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_code_browser_extension.json.disabled

chrome-mcp-toggle() {
    local CONFIG_DIR=~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts
    local CLAUDE_APP="$CONFIG_DIR/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json"
    local CLAUDE_CODE="$CONFIG_DIR/com.anthropic.claude_code_browser_extension.json"

    if [[ -f "$CLAUDE_APP" && ! -f "$CLAUDE_APP.disabled" ]]; then
        # Currently using Claude.app, switch to Claude Code
        mv "$CLAUDE_APP" "$CLAUDE_APP.disabled"
        [[ -f "$CLAUDE_CODE.disabled" ]] && mv "$CLAUDE_CODE.disabled" "$CLAUDE_CODE"
        echo "Switched to Claude Code CLI"
        echo "Restart Chrome and Claude Code to apply"
    elif [[ -f "$CLAUDE_CODE" && ! -f "$CLAUDE_CODE.disabled" ]]; then
        # Currently using Claude Code, switch to Claude.app
        mv "$CLAUDE_CODE" "$CLAUDE_CODE.disabled"
        [[ -f "$CLAUDE_APP.disabled" ]] && mv "$CLAUDE_APP.disabled" "$CLAUDE_APP"
        echo "Switched to Claude.app (Cowork)"
        echo "Restart Chrome to apply"
    else
        echo "Current state unclear. Check configs:"
        ls -la "$CONFIG_DIR"/com.anthropic*.json* 2>/dev/null
    fi
}

# 1. Which native host binary is running?
ps aux | grep chrome-native-host | grep -v grep
# Claude.app: /Applications/Claude.app/Contents/Helpers/chrome-native-host
# Claude Code: ~/.local/share/claude/versions/X.X.X --chrome-native-host

# 2. Where is the socket?
# For Claude Code (single file in TMPDIR):
ls -la "$(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER" 2>&1

# For Claude.app (directory with PID files):
ls -la /tmp/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER/ 2>&1

# 3. What's the native host connected to?
lsof -U 2>&1 | grep claude-mcp-browser-bridge

# 4. Which configs are active?
ls ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic*.json

# 1. Ensure correct config is active
mv ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json \
   ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json.disabled 2>/dev/null

# 2. Update the wrapper to use latest Claude Code version
cat > ~/.claude/chrome/chrome-native-host << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
LATEST=$(ls -t ~/.local/share/claude/versions/ 2>/dev/null | head -1)
exec "$HOME/.local/share/claude/versions/$LATEST" --chrome-native-host
EOF
chmod +x ~/.claude/chrome/chrome-native-host

# 3. Kill existing native host and clean sockets
pkill -f chrome-native-host
rm -rf /tmp/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER/
rm -f "$(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER"

# 4. Restart Chrome
osascript -e 'quit app "Google Chrome"' && sleep 2 && open -a "Google Chrome"

# 5. Wait for Chrome, click Claude extension icon

# 6. Verify correct native host is running
ps aux | grep chrome-native-host | grep -v grep
# Should show: ~/.local/share/claude/versions/X.X.X --chrome-native-host

# 7. Verify socket exists
ls -la "$(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER"

# 8. Restart Claude Code

cat ~/.claude/chrome/chrome-native-host
# Bad: exec "/Users/.../.local/share/claude/versions/2.0.76" --chrome-native-host
# Good: Uses $(ls -t ...) to find latest

# Check
echo $TMPDIR
# Should show: /var/folders/XX/.../T/

# Fix: Add to ~/.zshrc
export TMPDIR="${TMPDIR:-$(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)}"

echo "=== Native Host Binary ==="
ps aux | grep chrome-native-host | grep -v grep

echo -e "\n=== Socket (Claude Code location) ==="
ls -la "$(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER" 2>&1

echo -e "\n=== Socket (Claude.app location) ==="
ls -la /tmp/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER/ 2>&1

echo -e "\n=== Native Host Open Files ==="
pgrep -f chrome-native-host | xargs -I {} lsof -p {} 2>/dev/null | grep -E "(sock|claude-mcp)"

echo -e "\n=== Active Native Messaging Configs ==="
ls ~/Library/Application\ Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic*.json 2>/dev/null

echo -e "\n=== Custom Wrapper Contents ==="
cat ~/.claude/chrome/chrome-native-host 2>/dev/null || echo "No custom wrapper"

echo -e "\n=== TMPDIR ==="
echo "TMPDIR=$TMPDIR"
echo "Expected: $(getconf DARWIN_USER_TEMP_DIR)"

File	Purpose
`~/.claude/chrome/chrome-native-host`	Custom wrapper script for Claude Code
`/Applications/Claude.app/Contents/Helpers/chrome-native-host`	Claude.app (Cowork) native host
`~/.local/share/claude/versions/<version>`	Claude Code binary (run with `--chrome-native-host`)
`~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_browser_extension.json`	Config for Claude.app native host
`~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/NativeMessagingHosts/com.anthropic.claude_code_browser_extension.json`	Config for Claude Code native host
`$TMPDIR/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER`	Socket file (Claude Code)
`/tmp/claude-mcp-browser-bridge-$USER/<PID>.sock`	Socket files (Claude.app)

claude-in-chrome-troubleshooting

Summary

SKILL.md

Claude in Chrome MCP Troubleshooting

When to Use

When NOT to Use

The Claude.app vs Claude Code Conflict (Primary Issue)

Two Native Hosts, Two Socket Formats

Why They Conflict

The Fix: Disable Claude.app's Native Host

Toggle Script

Quick Diagnosis

Critical Insight

Full Reset Procedure (Claude Code CLI)

Other Common Causes

Multiple Chrome Profiles

Multiple Claude Code Sessions

Hardcoded Version in Wrapper

TMPDIR Not Set

Diagnostic Deep Dive

File Reference

Summary

Limitations

Related skills