Google has announced more details about disabling support for the Google Chrome extension Manifest V2, as the company pushes more developers to move to Manifest V3.
See also: Chrome extensions Manifest V2 will not work from 2023
According to an update, it will proceed in careful, experimental steps, ensuring a smooth end- user during the phase-out of Manifest V2 in June 2023.
During this time, Google will support extension developers with guidance and information about the new protocol and how they can best release versions that support it without causing issues.
Google announced Manifest V3 in 2019, as a new permissions and capabilities framework for Chrome that will introduce stricter rules to upgrade the security and privacy of user data.
In short, Manifest V3 hopes to achieve the following:
- Restricting access to user network requests.
- Pushing developers to include all functionality in the extension, ending the practice of remote code hosting.
- Move network request modifications from extensions to the browser.
- Replacing background pages with dedicated service workers to improve browser performance.
See also: Zero-day flaw in Google Chrome: Update immediately
While this is positive, it inevitably introduces technical challenges for extension developers, as they often have to change the way they implement features in tools .
This is especially evident for extensions that take a more active role in the browser, such as ad blockers, which are currently struggling to find ways to offer their users the same level of functionality in Manifest V3.
The update provides more detailed information about the release of Manifest V3 (and the phasing out of Manifest V2), adding the following milestones:
- In January 2023, with the release of Chrome 112, tests may be conducted to disable support for Manifest V2 extensions in Canary, Dev, and Beta.
- In June 2023, with the release of Chrome 115, there may be tests to disable support for Manifest V2 extensions in all channels, including Stable Channel.
See also: Chrome extensions with 1.4 million downloads steal browsing data
Based on this update, the deadline for removing support for Manifest V2 has been pushed back by five months, from January to June 2023.
For businesses, Manifest V2 support will be extended until January 2024, giving more rigid entities time to adapt to the change.
