UiPath Chrome Manifest V3 Extension Released with 2022.4 Update

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UiPath Chrome Manifest V3 Extension Released with 22.4 Update

Context

The adoption of Manifest V3 represents one of the biggest shifts in the Google Chrome extensions platform since it launched a decade ago. Extensions using Manifest V3 will enjoy enhancements in security, privacy, and performance.

The new UiPath Chrome MV3 extension

We’ve implemented a completely new extension following the Manifest V3 standard released by Google. This new extension can be installed from both Studio ->Tools->UiPath Extensions panel as well as Command Line as described in the documentation.

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After the initial release of the UiPath Chrome Manifest V3 Extension with Studio version 2022.4, we recently released patches containing MV3 Extensions for both Chrome and Edge to all UiPath Studio LTS versions: 2022.4.4, 2021.10.8, 2020.10.14, and 2019.10.9.

All these UiPath Studio patches are using the 22.10.5 version of the extensions.

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More information is available in the online documentation on Extensions for Chrome and Edge.
For further guidance regarding the UiPath MV3 transition you can also check the FAQ section at the end of this forum post.

What about previously released UiPath MV2 extensions?

Chrome Manifest V2 official support from Google ends in January 2023 . After this point in time, all MV2 extensions will cease to function in Chrome ( limited enterprise exceptions ).

June 2023 will be the deadline for when MV2 extensions will no longer function in Chrome even with the use of enterprise policy.

We highly recommend that you upgrade and start using the new MV3 extensions with your automation processes before the deadline.

The migration options for this change:
• If you are on a supported version, apply the corresponding UiPath Studio patch or upgrade to the latest Studio release.
• If you are on an unsupported version, upgrade to the latest patch of a supported version of UiPath Studio.
• If you are already using the 2022.4 release that include the MV3 extension for Chrome, apply the latest 2022.4 patch to be able to use the MV3 extension for Edge as well.

Noticeable differences between UiPath MV2 vs MV3 Extensions

The only notable difference from a user perspective is the presence of the following popup in Chrome, when the UiPath MV3 extension was not installed by policy.
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This is normal behavior as the UIPath MV3 extension is using DebuggerAPi .

UiPath Chrome MV3 Extension Known Issues

1) Simulate Click on certain/some webpage buttons that have handlers in “javascript: ” format to no longer work.

Example of a button with a “javascript:” handler

<form action="javascript: window.location.href='FormHandler.html';" method="get" novalidate="true">

Root cause

This was reported as a Chromium bug here: Chrome Issue.

Proposed Solutions & Mitigation options

  • For UiAutomation 21.10 & newer, use of Chromium API input method instead of Simulate is required.
  • For UiAutomation older than 21.10, use of Hardware Events input method instead of Simulate is required.

The DeveloperToolsAvailability Group Policy value must be set to 1

The DeveloperToolsAvailability Group Policy value should be set to 1 (Allow usage of the Developer Tools) to enable the full functionality of the extension.
This value is automatically set correctly when the extension is installed using Group Policy, but it will be overwritten if your system administrator has set another value for this policy.

The other values for DeveloperToolsAvailability cause the problems listed below.

If DeveloperToolsAvailability=0 (Disallow usage of the Developer Tools on extensions installed by enterprise policy) then:

  • The 22.4 MV3 extension will be completely broken because it cannot load the Driver code
  • The 22.10 MV3 extension will be limited to working with the embedded LTS driver packages (19.10, 20.10, 21.10, etc).
  • The InjectJS activity will not work.

If DeveloperToolsAvailability=2 (Disallow usage of the Developer Tools) then:

  • All the limitations from DeveloperToolsAvailability=0 apply
  • The ChromiumAPI input method will not work.

Chrome and Edge Extension MV3 migration – FAQ

What happens if I do not upgrade to the UiPath MV3 extensions before the January 2023 deadline for the MV2 sunset? According to the timelines published by Chrome and Edge all existing MV2 extensions will stop working in January 2023. This deadline can be extended to June 2023 by installing the MV2 extensions using the ExtensionInstallForceList Group Policy.

This means that the automation processes that rely on the UiPath MV2 extensions will stop working after the deadline for MV2 sunset.

We strongly recommend that you upgrade to the UiPath MV3 extensions before the deadline.

Do I need to make any changes to my automation processes after upgrading to the UiPath MV3 extensions?

No changes are required to your existing automation processes.

Which UiPath.UIAutomation.Activities packages are compatible with the UiPath MV3 extensions?

The UiPath MV3 extensions are backwards compatible with all existing UiPath.UIAutomation.Activities packages.

Will the “Inject JS” activity continue to work with UiPath MV3 extensions?

Yes, the “Inject JS” activity will continue to work with the UiPath MV3 extensions.

Do I need to upgrade UiPath Orchestrator after installing the UiPathStudio.msi with MV3 extensions?

No, the UiPath Orchestrator does not need to be upgraded.

Are there any known issues for the UiPath MV3 extensions?

Yes, there is a known issue that is specific to MV3 extensions.

The Click activity with the “Simulate” input method no longer works on HTML buttons that have a click handler with “javascript:” URI.

In this case, the simulated click will not take effect and no errors will be reported.

This issue is quite rare as very few buttons have click handlers in this form.

If you encounter this issue, then you must update your workflow and change the input method for the failing Click activity from “Simulate” to “ChromiumAPI”, “Hardware Events” or “Window Messages”.

What version of Chrome do I need to be able to use the UiPath MV3 extension?

The UiPath MV3 extension for Chrome can only be installed if the Chrome version is 98 or greater. You can check the Chrome version by opening chrome://settings/help in Chrome.

UiPathStudio.msi will also check the Chrome version and automatically install the appropriate UiPath extension (MV2 or MV3).

What version of Edge do I need to be able to use the UiPath MV3 extension?

The UiPath MV3 extension for Edge can only be installed if the Edge version is 98 or greater.

You can check the Edge version by opening edge://settings/help in Edge.

UiPathStudio.msi will also check the Edge version and automatically install the appropriate UiPath extension (MV2 or MV3).

If I’m using 2022.4 version, do I need to take any action?

UiPathStudio.msi 2022.4.1 includes the MV3 extension for Chrome. UiPathStudio.msi version 2022.4.4 added the MV3 extension for Edge. This means that if you are using the Edge extension in your automation processes you will need to apply the latest UiPathStudio.msi patch.

What happens if I’m using UiPath in an air gapped environment?

If you are using UiPath in an air gapped environment and continue to use Chrome versions released prior to January 2023, the MV3 restriction will not be enforced and there will be no impact.

Once you update Chrome to a version released after January 2023, the MV3 restriction will apply and UiPath Chrome extension update is needed.

Please share your feedback, as well as any questions that might arise!

Thank you,
Iulian M.

9 Likes
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Hello @Iulian_Marin,

These mitigation options are great to know as we are planning to upgrade our instances.

Out ot curiosity
Does the new extension provide additional benefits ( other than the official support period from Google) ?

For others wondering how to get around this behaviour:

@Werve and @Mike_Campbell have proposed a working workaround in this thread :
Chrome extension malfunction after auto-update to 22.4 - Help / Studio - UiPath Community Forum

2 Likes
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Hello @jeevith ,

I am glad to hear that the mitigation options will be of help in upgrading your instances.

The new UiPath Chrome MV3 extension does not provide any additional benefits .

Kind regards,
Iulian M.

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Does this issue also apply to pages running in IE Mode? Or maybe it’s just Edge that doesn’t affect IExplorer.exe? Since the engine is different, I don’t understand why it would have the same effect.

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Hello @_Chuki,
You are right. This issue does not apply to pages running in Edge IE Mode.

1 Like
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Hello @Iulian_Marin

How about the latest 2022.10.x version. Does the Studio 2022.10.3 (LTS version) support MV3 ?

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Hello,

We are thinking of avoiding updating the studio/robot version and the Chrome browser and continuing to use the old V2 extension. We understand that is not at all recommended to do but, due to some reasons, we are unable to proceed with the update.

Question: Will this plan work? Does the older version of the chrome browser does allow us to work with the V2 extensions?

Currently using versions,
Chrome: 100.0.4896.60 (Official Build) (64-bit)
Studio/Robot: 2020.10.3

Thank you.

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@Iulian_Marin
Chrome has postponed the deadline and paused Manifest V2 phase-out changes (https://groups.google.com/u/1/a/chromium.org/g/chromium-extensions/c/zQ77HkGmK9E?pli=1). Do we still have any hard date from UiPath to migrate to MV3 ? Considering it’s paused by Chrome, should we hold this for now?

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Hello @sishiramishra !

Indeed, Chrome has pushed back the deadline for the MV2 cutoff.
What this means for you is that you are no longer forced by Chrome to upgrade to an UiPath version that has MV3 extensions for Chrome/Edge.

But eventually Chrome/Edge will force the transition to MV3.
And UiPath is prepared for that - all existing and future versions of UiPath will install MV3 extensions for Chrome/Edge.

3 Likes