The open() function of the downloads API opens the downloaded file with its associated application.
A downloads.onChanged event will fire when the item is opened for the first time.
Note: To use this function in your WebExtension you must ask for the "downloads.open" manifest permission, as well as the "downloads" permission.
Syntax
chrome.downloads.open(
downloadId, // integer
function() {...} // optional function
)
This API is also available as browser.downloads.open() in a version that returns a promise.
Parameters
downloadId- An
integerrepresenting theidof thedownloads.DownloadItemyou want to open. function() {}Optional- An optional callback function that gets invoked, with no parameters, when the
open()call has completed.
Browser compatibility
The compatibility table in this page is generated from structured data. If you'd like to contribute to the data, please check out https://github.com/mdn/browser-compat-data and send us a pull request.
| Chrome | Edge | Firefox | Firefox for Android | Opera | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic support | Yes | No | 48.0 | 48.0 | 33 |
Examples
The following snippet shows two buttons, "download" and "open". The first button when clicked initiates a download using downloads.download(). Once the download has started, the second button can be pressed to open the file with its associated application.
var downloadBtn = document.querySelector('.download');
var openBtn = document.querySelector('.open');
downloadBtn.onclick = function() {
chrome.downloads.download({ url : 'https://www.example.com/myBigVideo.mp4'},
callback);
function callback(downloadId) {
if(chrome.runtime.lastError) {
console.log(chrome.runtime.lastError);
} else {
openBtn.onclick = function() {
chrome.downloads.open(downloadId, function() {
console.log('File opened');
});
}
}
}
}
Example add-ons
This API is based on Chromium's chrome.downloads API.
Microsoft Edge compatibility data is supplied by Microsoft Corporation and is included here under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.
// Copyright 2015 The Chromium Authors. All rights reserved. // // Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without // modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are // met: // // * Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright // notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer. // * Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above // copyright notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer // in the documentation and/or other materials provided with the // distribution. // * Neither the name of Google Inc. nor the names of its // contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from // this software without specific prior written permission. // // THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS // "AS IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT // LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR // A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT // OWNER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, // SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT // LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, // DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY // THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT // (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE // OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.