Add chrome.runtime message API to allow sharing URLs with other extensions

[pirate]

Summary

This adds an opt-in external messaging API so other browser extensions can import saved session URLs from Tab Manager Plus. ArchiveBox would like to use this to let users import their saved Tab Manager Plus sessions into their local ArchiveBox URL list.

The new API is intentionally small:

chrome.runtime.sendMessage(tabManagerPlusExtensionId, {
  method: "tabManagerPlus.getSavedSessions",
  displayName: "ArchiveBox"
})

On first request, Tab Manager Plus opens its options page and records the requesting extension as pending. The user can approve or deny the request. Approved extensions are stored with both extension ID and display name, and can be removed later from the same options section.

When approved, the API returns normalized saved sessions:

{
  ok: true,
  sessions: [{
    id: string,
    name: string,
    date: number,
    tabs: [{ title: string, url: string, favIconUrl?: string }]
  }]
}

Only http:// and https:// tab URLs are exported.

Screenshots

Seeded Tab Manager Plus saved sessions:

ArchiveBox configured with the unpacked Tab Manager Plus extension ID:

First request opens the Tab Manager Plus approval UI:

Approved extension is persisted with name and ID:

ArchiveBox imports the approved saved-session URLs:

Imported URLs are tagged by source and session:

How to test with ArchiveBox

1. Clone both repos:

git clone https://github.com/ArchiveBox/archivebox-browser-extension
git clone https://github.com/pirate/Tab-Manager-Plus
cd Tab-Manager-Plus
git checkout archivebox-session-export-api
pnpm install
pnpm build
cd ../archivebox-browser-extension
pnpm install
pnpm build

2. Load both unpacked extensions into Chrome or Chrome Canary:

• Tab Manager Plus: load the Tab-Manager-Plus repo root.
• ArchiveBox: load archivebox-browser-extension/.output/chrome-mv3.

3. In ArchiveBox Options -> Configuration, set "Tab Manager Plus extension ID" to the loaded Tab Manager Plus extension ID. If using the published Web Store build, the default ID is cnkdjjdmfiffagllbiiilooaoofcoeff.

4. Save at least one window/session in Tab Manager Plus.

5. In ArchiveBox Options -> Bulk Import URLs, click "Import from Tab Manager Plus".

6. The first request should open Tab Manager Plus options with a red "External Session Access" approval box. Approve ArchiveBox.

7. Return to ArchiveBox and click "Import from Tab Manager Plus" again. The saved session URLs should appear in the import review table.

8. Click "Import Selected". Imported URLs should be tagged with tab-manager-plus plus the saved session name, or a date fallback like tab-manager-plus-YYYYMMDDHHMM for unnamed sessions.

Validation

• pnpm build in Tab Manager Plus.
• pnpm exec tsc --noEmit in ArchiveBox.
• pnpm build in ArchiveBox.
• pnpm test in ArchiveBox.
• End-to-end local Chrome Canary run using Extensions.loadUnpacked for both unpacked extensions, covering first-request approval, persisted allowlist, import review, and final saved URL tags.