docs / install

Install the extension

There are three ways to install the extension, depending on what your machine allows. You can try it without installing Node, Git, or any other development tools.

From your browser's extension store — coming soon

The extension hasn't been submitted to the Chrome Web Store or Firefox Add-ons yet, so there is no store listing to install from today. Until those listings are available, use the release archive described below.

why this matters — and not just for convenience

Store-installed extensions update automatically.

An extension loaded manually from a ZIP stays on that version until you update it yourself. For an individual trial, that may be fine. For a team, it can quickly mean different people running different versions without realizing it. That's why the store installation is listed here even though it isn't available yet: it will be the recommended distribution method for teams.

From a release ZIP — no Node, no Git

This is the simplest option for a locked-down machine where installing a development toolchain isn't possible. Every tagged release includes two ready-to-load archives: one for Chromium-based browsers and one for Firefox.

1Download the archive for your browserGo to the releases list — use the full list rather than /releases/latest, because the latter does not include prereleases. Download either …-chromium.zip or …-firefox.zip.
2Extract it somewhere permanentDon't leave the extracted extension in your Downloads folder. Chromium-based browsers load the extension from that folder whenever they start. If you move or delete it later, the extension will stop working.
3Chrome, Edge, Brave, and other Chromium-based browsersOpen chrome://extensions. Enable Developer mode, choose Load unpacked, then select the extracted folder that directly contains manifest.json.
4FirefoxOpen about:debugging#/runtime/this-firefox. Choose Load Temporary Add-on, then select the manifest.json file itself — not the folder. Firefox removes temporary add-ons when the browser closes.

one important limitation

An extension installed this way does not update automatically.

This method is ideal for trying the extension or for machines where you can't install the build toolchain. It is not intended as a long-term distribution channel. You will remain on the version you installed until you repeat the process manually. For team-wide deployment, use the browser stores once the listings are available.

From source

Use this method if you want to inspect the code you're running or contribute to the project.

git clone https://github.com/reefact/conventional-comments-toolkit
cd conventional-comments-toolkit

npm ci
npm run build:extension     // → packages/extension/dist-ext

Then load dist-ext using the instructions for your browser: step 3 above for Chromium-based browsers, or step 4 for Firefox. The Firefox version is built at the same time in its own subfolder.

Requires Node 20 or later. The repository also includes a step-by-step Windows/PowerShell guide covering everything from installing Node to loading the extension in your browser.

Authorize the domains where you review

A freshly installed extension is active nowhere — github.com included. It holds no permanent access to any site: every domain is granted one at a time, and can be withdrawn the same way. The options page opens by itself the first time to say so, and offers a guided tour you can skip at any point or replay later.

1Open the extension's settingsThe page opens on its own right after installation. You can reopen it at any time from the extension icon in your browser toolbar.
2Activate a domain the extension already knowsgithub.com and Azure DevOps Services each have a card of their own: one click asks your browser for that domain and, once you approve, records which platform serves it — so you never have to classify these yourself.
3Add any other domain, and select its platformA GitHub Enterprise Server instance, an Azure DevOps Server, a visualstudio.com organization, or an internal configuration host is typed in by hand. The extension can't know whether devops.acme.internal is running Azure DevOps or GitHub Enterprise Server. Selecting the platform tells it which adapter to use.
4Approve the browser permissionYour browser asks whether the extension may access that domain. You decide whether to grant it. Every domain you have allowed then carries a “Withdraw” button on the options page, and your browser's own controls still revoke it too.

if you are updating from 1.0.0-beta.10 or earlier

The extension goes quiet on github.com until you allow it.

Earlier versions carried a built-in permission on github.com, active from the moment you installed the extension and revocable from nowhere inside it. That domain now goes through the same one-click authorization as every other, and no update can grant it on your behalf: a browser only gives a site permission after an explicit action from you. The options page opens by itself to say so — but only if the update leaves you with no working domain at all. If you already had another one configured, the extension keeps working there, and nothing announces that github.com has gone silent.

Check that it works

Open any pull request on a domain you have authorized and start writing a review comment. A row of labels should appear above the comment box, with a status indicator below it. Type ?i, then press Tab. It should expand to issue:.

If nothing appears, the troubleshooting page covers the three most common causes.