Addonova

Addonova is a framework that allows developers to build extensions for multiple browsers. Developers can easily build, test, and manage extensions.

Quick Start

npx addonova init my-extension
cd my-extension
npm run release

Supported Browsers

• Chrome (MV3)
• Firefox
• Microsoft Edge
• Opera
• Naver Whale
• Thunderbird

CLI Commands

Command	Description
addonova init <name>	Scaffold a new extension project
addonova build [options]	Build the current extension project
addonova zip	Create release zip bundles
addonova tool	Open the i18n tools UI in a browser
addonova --help	Show help

Build Scripts

Generated projects include these npm scripts:

npm run release
npm run release:chrome
npm run release:edge
npm run release:opera
npm run release:firefox
npm run release:thunderbird
npm run release:naver

npm run debug
npm run debug:chrome
npm run debug:edge
npm run debug:opera
npm run debug:firefox
npm run debug:thunderbird
npm run debug:naver

npm run dev
npm run zip
npm test

You can also call the CLI directly:

npx addonova build --all --release
npx addonova build --chrome --debug
npx addonova build --all --debug --watch
npx addonova zip
npx addonova tool

Build Options

Option	Description
--all	Build all configured browsers
--chrome	Build Chrome target
--edge	Build Microsoft Edge target
--firefox	Build Firefox target
--opera	Build Opera target
--naver	Build Naver Whale target
--thunderbird	Build Thunderbird target
--release	Create release build
--debug	Create debug build
--watch	Rebuild when files change and reload opened extensions
--open	Open a browser with the debug extension loaded
--test	Build test version
--version=x.x.x	Append version to output zip names

Dev Mode

npm run dev

Dev mode runs:

addonova build --all --debug --watch

Addonova opens an isolated browser profile, loads the unpacked debug extension from .output/debug/<browser>, watches source files, rebuilds changed assets, and reloads the extension when the built files change.

Generated Extension Structure

my-extension/
|-- config/
|-- platform/
|-- src/
|   |-- _locales/
|   |-- assets/
|   |-- css/
|   |-- html/
|   |-- js/
|   `-- manifest/
|-- .output/
`-- package.json

Locales / i18n

Locale files use the .i18n format:

@extensionName
My Extension

@extensionDescription
This is my extension description.

Run the interactive message manager from a generated project:

npm run tool

Or use the i18n tools UI:

npx addonova tool

This opens a full UI at http://localhost:9876 with:

• Translate tab — view all locale messages, add new messages with auto-translation, delete messages
• JSON → i18n tab — drag-and-drop a messages.json file to convert to .i18n format

Development

Run the test suite:

npm test

Check what will be published:

npm pack --dry-run

Requirements

• Addonova package: Node.js >= 20.19
• Generated extension template: Node.js >= 22 and npm >= 11