chrome.webNavigation

Description
Use the chrome.webNavigation API to receive notifications about the status of navigation requests in-flight.
Permissions
webNavigation
Availability
Pending

Manifest

All chrome.webNavigation methods and events require you to declare the "webNavigation" permission in the extension manifest. For example:

{
  "name": "My extension",
  ...
  "permissions": [
    "webNavigation"
  ],
  ...
}

Examples

You can find simple examples of using the tabs module in the examples/api/webNavigation directory. For other examples and for help in viewing the source code, see Samples.

Event order

For a navigation that is successfully completed, events are fired in the following order:

onBeforeNavigate -> onCommitted -> [onDOMContentLoaded] -> onCompleted

Any error that occurs during the process results in an onErrorOccurred event. For a specific navigation, there are no further events fired after onErrorOccurred.

If a navigating frame contains subframes, its onCommitted is fired before any of its children's onBeforeNavigate; while onCompleted is fired after all of its children's onCompleted.

If the reference fragment of a frame is changed, a onReferenceFragmentUpdated event is fired. This event can fire any time after onDOMContentLoaded, even after onCompleted.

If the history API is used to modify the state of a frame (e.g. using history.pushState(), a onHistoryStateUpdated event is fired. This event can fire any time after onDOMContentLoaded.

If a navigation restored a page from the Back Forward Cache, the onDOMContentLoaded event will not fire. The event is not fired because the content has already completed load when the page was first visited.

If a navigation was triggered via Chrome Instant or Instant Pages, a completely loaded page is swapped into the current tab. In that case, an onTabReplaced event is fired.

Relation to webRequest events

There is no defined ordering between events of the webRequest API and the events of the webNavigation API. It is possible that webRequest events are still received for frames that already started a new navigation, or that a navigation only proceeds after the network resources are already fully loaded.

In general, the webNavigation events are closely related to the navigation state that is displayed in the UI, while the webRequest events correspond to the state of the network stack which is generally opaque to the user.

A note about tab IDs

Not all navigating tabs correspond to actual tabs in Chrome's UI, e.g., a tab that is being pre-rendered. Such tabs are not accessible via the tabs API nor can you request information about them via webNavigation.getFrame or webNavigation.getAllFrames. Once such a tab is swapped in, an onTabReplaced event is fired and they become accessible via these APIs.

A note about timestamps

It's important to note that some technical oddities in the OS's handling of distinct Chrome processes can cause the clock to be skewed between the browser itself and extension processes. That means that WebNavigation's events' timeStamp property is only guaranteed to be internally consistent. Comparing one event to another event will give you the correct offset between them, but comparing them to the current time inside the extension (via (new Date()).getTime(), for instance) might give unexpected results.

A note about frame IDs

Frames within a tab can be identified by a frame ID. The frame ID of the main frame is always 0, the ID of child frames is a positive number. Once a document is constructed in a frame, its frame ID remains constant during the lifetime of the document. As of Chrome 49, this ID is also constant for the lifetime of the frame (across multiple navigations).

Due to the multi-process nature of Chrome, a tab might use different processes to render the source and destination of a web page. Therefore, if a navigation takes place in a new process, you might receive events both from the new and the old page until the new navigation is committed (i.e. the onCommitted event is send for the new main frame). In other words, it is possible to have more than one pending sequence of webNavigation events with the same frameId. The sequences can be distinguished by the processId key.

Also note that during a provisional load the process might be switched several times. This happens when the load is redirected to a different site. In this case, you will receive repeated onBeforeNavigate and onErrorOccurred events, until you receive the final onCommitted event.

Transition types and qualifiers

The webNavigation API's onCommitted event has a transitionType and a transitionQualifiers property. The transition type is the same as used in the history API describing how the browser navigated to this particular URL. In addition, several transition qualifiers can be returned that further define the navigation.

The following transition qualifiers exist:

Transition qualifier	Description
"client_redirect"	One or more redirects caused by JavaScript or meta refresh tags on the page happened during the navigation.
"server_redirect"	One or more redirects caused by HTTP headers sent from the server happened during the navigation.
"forward_back"	The user used the Forward or Back button to initiate the navigation.
"from_address_bar"	The user initiated the navigation from the address bar (aka Omnibox).

Summary

Types
TransitionQualifier
TransitionType
Methods
getAllFrames
getFrame
Events
onBeforeNavigate
onCommitted
onCompleted
onCreatedNavigationTarget
onDOMContentLoaded
onErrorOccurred
onHistoryStateUpdated
onReferenceFragmentUpdated
onTabReplaced

Types

TransitionQualifier

Chrome 44+

Type

"client_redirect", "server_redirect", "forward_back", or "from_address_bar"

TransitionType

Chrome 44+

Cause of the navigation. The same transition types as defined in the history API are used. These are the same transition types as defined in the history API except with "start_page" in place of "auto_toplevel" (for backwards compatibility).

Type

"link", "typed", "auto_bookmark", "auto_subframe", "manual_subframe", "generated", "start_page", "form_submit", "reload", "keyword", or "keyword_generated"

Methods

getAllFrames

chrome.webNavigation.getAllFrames(
  details: object,
  callback?: function,
)

Promise

Retrieves information about all frames of a given tab.

Parameters

details
object
Information about the tab to retrieve all frames from.
- tabId
  number
  The ID of the tab.
callback
function optional
The callback parameter looks like: (details?: object[]) => void
- details
  object[] optional
  A list of frames in the given tab, null if the specified tab ID is invalid.
  - errorOccurred
    boolean
    True if the last navigation in this frame was interrupted by an error, i.e. the onErrorOccurred event fired.
  - frameId
    number
    The ID of the frame. 0 indicates that this is the main frame; a positive value indicates the ID of a subframe.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - url
    string
    The URL currently associated with this frame.

Returns

Promise<object[] | undefined>
Pending
This only returns a Promise when the callback parameter is not specified, and with MV3+. The type inside the Promise is the same as the 1st argument to callback.

getFrame

chrome.webNavigation.getFrame(
  details: object,
  callback?: function,
)

Promise

Retrieves information about the given frame. A frame refers to an <iframe> or a <frame> of a web page and is identified by a tab ID and a frame ID.

Parameters

details
object
Information about the frame to retrieve information about.
- frameId
  number
  The ID of the frame in the given tab.
- processId
  number optional
  Deprecated since Chrome 49
  Frames are now uniquely identified by their tab ID and frame ID; the process ID is no longer needed and therefore ignored.
  The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this tab.
- tabId
  number
  The ID of the tab in which the frame is.
callback
function optional
The callback parameter looks like: (details?: object) => void
- details
  object optional
  Information about the requested frame, null if the specified frame ID and/or tab ID are invalid.
  - errorOccurred
    boolean
    True if the last navigation in this frame was interrupted by an error, i.e. the onErrorOccurred event fired.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - url
    string
    The URL currently associated with this frame, if the frame identified by the frameId existed at one point in the given tab. The fact that an URL is associated with a given frameId does not imply that the corresponding frame still exists.

Returns

Promise<object | undefined>
Pending
This only returns a Promise when the callback parameter is not specified, and with MV3+. The type inside the Promise is the same as the 1st argument to callback.

Events

onBeforeNavigate

chrome.webNavigation.onBeforeNavigate.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when a navigation is about to occur.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique for a given tab and process.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    Deprecated since Chrome 50
    The processId is no longer set for this event, since the process which will render the resulting document is not known until onCommit.
    The value of -1.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation is about to occur.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the browser was about to start the navigation, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onCommitted

chrome.webNavigation.onCommitted.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when a navigation is committed. The document (and the resources it refers to, such as images and subframes) might still be downloading, but at least part of the document has been received from the server and the browser has decided to switch to the new document.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the navigation was committed, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - transitionQualifiers
    TransitionQualifier[]
    A list of transition qualifiers.
  - transitionType
    TransitionType
    Cause of the navigation.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onCompleted

chrome.webNavigation.onCompleted.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when a document, including the resources it refers to, is completely loaded and initialized.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the document finished loading, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onCreatedNavigationTarget

chrome.webNavigation.onCreatedNavigationTarget.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when a new window, or a new tab in an existing window, is created to host a navigation.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - sourceFrameId
    number
    The ID of the frame with sourceTabId in which the navigation is triggered. 0 indicates the main frame.
  - sourceProcessId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for the source frame.
  - sourceTabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation is triggered.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the url is opened
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the browser was about to create a new view, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - url
    string
    The URL to be opened in the new window.
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onDOMContentLoaded

chrome.webNavigation.onDOMContentLoaded.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when the page's DOM is fully constructed, but the referenced resources may not finish loading.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the page's DOM was fully constructed, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onErrorOccurred

chrome.webNavigation.onErrorOccurred.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when an error occurs and the navigation is aborted. This can happen if either a network error occurred, or the user aborted the navigation.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - error
    string
    The error description.
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    Deprecated since Chrome 50
    The processId is no longer set for this event.
    The value of -1.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the error occurred, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onHistoryStateUpdated

chrome.webNavigation.onHistoryStateUpdated.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when the frame's history was updated to a new URL. All future events for that frame will use the updated URL.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the navigation was committed, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - transitionQualifiers
    TransitionQualifier[]
    A list of transition qualifiers.
  - transitionType
    TransitionType
    Cause of the navigation.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onReferenceFragmentUpdated

chrome.webNavigation.onReferenceFragmentUpdated.addListener(
  callback: function,
  filters?: object,
)

Fired when the reference fragment of a frame was updated. All future events for that frame will use the updated URL.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - frameId
    number
    0 indicates the navigation happens in the tab content window; a positive value indicates navigation in a subframe. Frame IDs are unique within a tab.
  - parentFrameId
    number
    Chrome 74+
    The ID of the parent frame, or -1 if this is the main frame.
  - processId
    number
    The ID of the process that runs the renderer for this frame.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab in which the navigation occurs.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the navigation was committed, in milliseconds since the epoch.
  - transitionQualifiers
    TransitionQualifier[]
    A list of transition qualifiers.
  - transitionType
    TransitionType
    Cause of the navigation.
  - url
    string
filters
object optional
- url
  events.UrlFilter[]
  Conditions that the URL being navigated to must satisfy. The 'schemes' and 'ports' fields of UrlFilter are ignored for this event.

onTabReplaced

chrome.webNavigation.onTabReplaced.addListener(
  callback: function,
)

Fired when the contents of the tab is replaced by a different (usually previously pre-rendered) tab.

Parameters

callback
function
The callback parameter looks like: (details: object) => void
- details
  object
  - replacedTabId
    number
    The ID of the tab that was replaced.
  - tabId
    number
    The ID of the tab that replaced the old tab.
  - timeStamp
    number
    The time when the replacement happened, in milliseconds since the epoch.

chrome.webNavigation

# Manifest

# Examples

# Event order

# Relation to webRequest events

# A note about tab IDs

# A note about timestamps

# A note about frame IDs

# Transition types and qualifiers

Summary

Types

TransitionQualifier

Type

TransitionType

Type

Methods

getAllFrames

Parameters

Returns

getFrame

Parameters

Returns

Events

onBeforeNavigate

Parameters

onCommitted

Parameters

onCompleted

Parameters

onCreatedNavigationTarget

Parameters

onDOMContentLoaded

Parameters

onErrorOccurred

Parameters

onHistoryStateUpdated

Parameters

onReferenceFragmentUpdated

Parameters

onTabReplaced

Parameters

Manifest

Examples

Event order

Relation to webRequest events

A note about tab IDs

A note about timestamps

A note about frame IDs

Transition types and qualifiers