Go Links

A Chrome extension for creating and sharing memorable go/ links with your team. Similar to GoLinks.io but without the monthly SaaS cost.

Disclaimer: This software was written in one day and is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind. Use at your own risk. The default Firebase configuration uses open read/write access—see Security Notes before deploying. I made this decision since the RTDB URL is never see beyond your browser (or your team and their browsers).

Features

• Short memorable links: Create links like go/standup, go/roadmap, go/hr
• Team sharing: All links sync via Firebase in real-time
• View tracking: See how many times each link has been used
• Creator attribution: Know who created each link
• Omnibox integration: Type go + Tab in Chrome's address bar
• Auto-fill URLs: Current page URL is auto-filled when creating links
• Template URLs: Support for dynamic segments like go/issue/123

Setup

1. Create a Firebase Project

1. Go to the Firebase Console
2. Click Add project and follow the steps
3. Once created, go to Build → Realtime Database
4. Click Create Database
5. Select a location and click Next
6. Choose Start in test mode and click Enable
7. Copy your database URL (looks like https://your-project-default-rtdb.firebaseio.com)

2. Configure the Extension

1. Clone or download this repository
2. Open background.js and replace the Firebase URL on line 3:

   const FIREBASE_URL = 'https://your-project-default-rtdb.firebaseio.com';

3. Save the file

3. Install in Chrome

1. Open Chrome and go to chrome://extensions
2. Enable Developer mode (toggle in top right)
3. Click Load unpacked
4. Select this folder
5. Pin the extension to your toolbar (click puzzle icon → pin)

Usage

Creating Links

From the popup:

1. Navigate to the page you want to create a link for
2. Click the Go Links extension icon
3. Click the + button
4. Enter a shortcut name (the URL is auto-filled)
5. Click Save

From the omnibox:

1. Type go in the address bar and press Tab
2. Type a new shortcut name and press Enter
3. You'll be taken to the create page

Using Links

Method	How
Omnibox	Type go + Tab + shortcut + Enter
Direct URL	Type go/shortcut + Enter (requires setup in step 4)
Popup	Click extension → click a link
Directory	Type go + Tab + Enter to browse all links

Template URLs

Create dynamic links with placeholders:

Shortcut: issue
URL: https://github.com/myorg/myrepo/issues/{1}

Usage: go/issue/123 → opens issue #123

Placeholders:

• {1}, {2}, etc. — Individual path segments
• {*} — All remaining segments joined

Team Setup

1. Share Firebase: Give team members the same Firebase database URL
2. Share Extension: Have everyone clone the repo and follow setup steps
3. Done: All links automatically sync between team members!

When anyone creates, edits, or deletes a link, it's immediately saved to Firebase. Other team members see the changes next time they open the extension.

File Structure

go-links-extension/
├── manifest.json       # Extension configuration
├── background.js       # Service worker - handles link resolution & Firebase
├── popup.html/js       # Toolbar popup UI
├── directory.html/js   # Full directory page with search & filters
├── redirect.html       # Handles go/ URL redirects
├── options.html        # Redirects to directory settings
└── icons/              # Extension icons (16, 48, 128px)

Security Notes

Important: By default, this extension uses Firebase in "test mode" with open read/write access.

What this means:

• Anyone with your Firebase database URL can read, write, and delete links
• Your database URL is visible in the extension's source code
• This is designed for internal team use where the URL acts as a shared secret

Risks:

• If someone discovers your database URL, they could read all your links or add malicious redirects
• Do not store sensitive URLs (passwords, tokens, private documents) as go links

For better security:

• Enable Firebase Authentication and update security rules
• Restrict access to authenticated users from your domain

Built-in protections:

• URLs are validated to only allow http: and https: schemes (blocks javascript: XSS attacks)
• User input is HTML-escaped to prevent XSS

Troubleshooting

Links not syncing?

• Check your Firebase URL in background.js
• Make sure Firebase Realtime Database is enabled
• Check the browser console for errors

go/shortcut not working in address bar?

• Make sure you completed step 4 (custom search engine)
• Try go + Tab + shortcut instead

Extension not loading?

• Check for errors in chrome://extensions
• Make sure all files are present

License

MIT License