# Electron

> Automate Electron desktop apps (VS Code, Slack, Discord, Figma, Notion, Spotify, etc.) using agent-browser via Chrome DevTools Protocol. Use when the user needs to interact with an Electron app, automate a desktop app, connect to a running app, control a native app, or test an Electron application. Triggers include "automate Slack app", "control VS Code", "interact with Discord app", "test this E…

- **Type:** Skill
- **Install:** `agentstack add skill-secondorderai-ouroboros-electron`
- **Verified:** Yes — security-reviewed for prompt injection and unsafe behavior
- **Seller:** [secondorderai](https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/secondorderai)
- **Installs:** 0
- **Category:** [AI & ML](https://agentstack.voostack.com/c/ai-and-ml)
- **Latest version:** 0.1.0
- **License:** MIT
- **Upstream author:** [secondorderai](https://github.com/secondorderai)
- **Source:** https://github.com/secondorderai/ouroboros/tree/main/packages/desktop/resources/agent-browser/skill-data/electron
- **Website:** https://secondorderai.github.io/ouroboros/

## Install

```sh
agentstack add skill-secondorderai-ouroboros-electron
```

Requires the [AgentStack CLI](https://agentstack.voostack.com/docs/cli). Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible agent.

## About

# Electron App Automation

Automate any Electron desktop app using agent-browser. Electron apps are built on Chromium and expose a Chrome DevTools Protocol (CDP) port that agent-browser can connect to, enabling the same snapshot-interact workflow used for web pages.

## Core Workflow

1. **Launch** the Electron app with remote debugging enabled
2. **Connect** agent-browser to the CDP port
3. **Snapshot** to discover interactive elements
4. **Interact** using element refs
5. **Re-snapshot** after navigation or state changes

```bash
# Launch an Electron app with remote debugging
open -a "Slack" --args --remote-debugging-port=9222

# Connect agent-browser to the app
agent-browser connect 9222

# Standard workflow from here
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser click @e5
agent-browser screenshot slack-desktop.png
```

## Launching Electron Apps with CDP

Every Electron app supports the `--remote-debugging-port` flag since it's built into Chromium.

### macOS

```bash
# Slack
open -a "Slack" --args --remote-debugging-port=9222

# VS Code
open -a "Visual Studio Code" --args --remote-debugging-port=9223

# Discord
open -a "Discord" --args --remote-debugging-port=9224

# Figma
open -a "Figma" --args --remote-debugging-port=9225

# Notion
open -a "Notion" --args --remote-debugging-port=9226

# Spotify
open -a "Spotify" --args --remote-debugging-port=9227
```

### Linux

```bash
slack --remote-debugging-port=9222
code --remote-debugging-port=9223
discord --remote-debugging-port=9224
```

### Windows

```bash
"C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\slack\slack.exe" --remote-debugging-port=9222
"C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\Programs\Microsoft VS Code\Code.exe" --remote-debugging-port=9223
```

**Important:** If the app is already running, quit it first, then relaunch with the flag. The `--remote-debugging-port` flag must be present at launch time.

## Connecting

```bash
# Connect to a specific port
agent-browser connect 9222

# Or use --cdp on each command
agent-browser --cdp 9222 snapshot -i

# Auto-discover a running Chromium-based app
agent-browser --auto-connect snapshot -i
```

After `connect`, all subsequent commands target the connected app without needing `--cdp`.

## Tab Management

Electron apps often have multiple windows or webviews. Use tab commands to list and switch between them:

```bash
# List all available targets (windows, webviews, etc.)
agent-browser tab

# Switch to a specific tab by index
agent-browser tab 2

# Switch by URL pattern
agent-browser tab --url "*settings*"
```

## Webview Support

Electron `` elements are automatically discovered and can be controlled like regular pages. Webviews appear as separate targets in the tab list with `type: "webview"`:

```bash
# Connect to running Electron app
agent-browser connect 9222

# List targets -- webviews appear alongside pages
agent-browser tab
# Example output:
#   0: [page]    Slack - Main Window     https://app.slack.com/
#   1: [webview] Embedded Content        https://example.com/widget

# Switch to a webview
agent-browser tab 1

# Interact with the webview normally
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser click @e3
agent-browser screenshot webview.png
```

**Note:** Webview support works via raw CDP connection.

## Common Patterns

### Inspect and Navigate an App

```bash
open -a "Slack" --args --remote-debugging-port=9222
sleep 3  # Wait for app to start
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser snapshot -i
# Read the snapshot output to identify UI elements
agent-browser click @e10  # Navigate to a section
agent-browser snapshot -i  # Re-snapshot after navigation
```

### Take Screenshots of Desktop Apps

```bash
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser screenshot app-state.png
agent-browser screenshot --full full-app.png
agent-browser screenshot --annotate annotated-app.png
```

### Extract Data from a Desktop App

```bash
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser get text @e5
agent-browser snapshot --json > app-state.json
```

### Fill Forms in Desktop Apps

```bash
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser snapshot -i
agent-browser fill @e3 "search query"
agent-browser press Enter
agent-browser wait 1000
agent-browser snapshot -i
```

### Run Multiple Apps Simultaneously

Use named sessions to control multiple Electron apps at the same time:

```bash
# Connect to Slack
agent-browser --session slack connect 9222

# Connect to VS Code
agent-browser --session vscode connect 9223

# Interact with each independently
agent-browser --session slack snapshot -i
agent-browser --session vscode snapshot -i
```

## Color Scheme

The default color scheme when connecting via CDP may be `light`. To preserve dark mode:

```bash
agent-browser connect 9222
agent-browser --color-scheme dark snapshot -i
```

Or set it globally:

```bash
AGENT_BROWSER_COLOR_SCHEME=dark agent-browser connect 9222
```

## Troubleshooting

### "Connection refused" or "Cannot connect"

- Make sure the app was launched with `--remote-debugging-port=NNNN`
- If the app was already running, quit and relaunch with the flag
- Check that the port isn't in use by another process: `lsof -i :9222`

### App launches but connect fails

- Wait a few seconds after launch before connecting (`sleep 3`)
- Some apps take time to initialize their webview

### Elements not appearing in snapshot

- The app may use multiple webviews. Use `agent-browser tab` to list targets and switch to the right one

### Cannot type in input fields

- Try `agent-browser keyboard type "text"` to type at the current focus without a selector
- Some Electron apps use custom input components; use `agent-browser keyboard inserttext "text"` to bypass key events

## Supported Apps

Any app built on Electron works, including:

- **Communication:** Slack, Discord, Microsoft Teams, Signal, Telegram Desktop
- **Development:** VS Code, GitHub Desktop, Postman, Insomnia
- **Design:** Figma, Notion, Obsidian
- **Media:** Spotify, Tidal
- **Productivity:** Todoist, Linear, 1Password

If an app is built with Electron, it supports `--remote-debugging-port` and can be automated with agent-browser.

## Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

- **Author:** [secondorderai](https://github.com/secondorderai)
- **Source:** [secondorderai/ouroboros](https://github.com/secondorderai/ouroboros)
- **License:** MIT
- **Homepage:** https://secondorderai.github.io/ouroboros/

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.

## Pricing

- **Free** — Free

## Security capabilities

Automated source analysis of v0.1.0 — what this tool can access:

- **Network access:** no
- **Filesystem access:** no
- **Shell / process execution:** no
- **Environment & secrets:** no
- **Dynamic code execution:** no

*"Yes" means the capability is present in the source — more access means more to trust, not that it is unsafe.*


## Versions

- **0.1.0** — security scan: passed — Imported from the upstream source.

## Links

- Listing page: https://agentstack.voostack.com/l/skill-secondorderai-ouroboros-electron
- Seller: https://agentstack.voostack.com/s/secondorderai
- Browse the marketplace: https://agentstack.voostack.com/browse

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