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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallCrashes, No Sound, or Screen Glitches?
Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteThe message means the Playwright MCP Bridge extension has not completed its handshake with the Playwright MCP server. The quickest repair is to use the Chrome profile that contains the extension, start the server with --extension, copy that profile’s current PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_EXTENSION_TOKEN into your MCP client configuration, restart the client and server, and then run a browser tool such as browser_navigate.
If the status remains disconnected, the cause is usually a profile mismatch, stale process, token mismatch, version drift or a browser launch that selects a different profile than the one checked during preflight.
What “No MCP Clients Are Currently Connected” means
The status page belongs to the Playwright MCP Bridge extension. It reports whether a Playwright MCP server has connected to that extension. A disconnected status does not, by itself, prove that the server process failed. In a reported case, the server was running and had the expected token, but the extension stayed disconnected and browser calls timed out. The same symptom appeared in a reproducible setup where browser_navigate failed with an extension connection timeout.
The bridge has three pieces that must agree:
- The Playwright MCP extension must be installed and running in the Chrome profile you actually launch.
- The MCP server must be started in extension mode with
--extension. - The server environment must contain the current token generated by that same browser profile.
A failure in any one of these links can leave the extension showing “No MCP clients are currently connected.”
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Fastest repair checklist
- Open the correct Chrome profile. In Chrome, switch to the profile where the Playwright MCP Bridge extension is installed. Do not copy a token from a different personal, work or test profile; the token is profile-specific.
- Confirm the extension is enabled. Open Chrome’s extensions manager, locate Playwright MCP Bridge and make sure it is enabled. Open its status page so you can watch for an active client.
- Start Playwright in extension mode. Your MCP server command must include
--extension. Without that argument, the server does not use the extension-token handshake. - Copy a fresh token. Use the token currently displayed by the extension. Reinstalling, resetting or changing the profile can invalidate the value you previously saved.
- Replace the client environment value. Put the token in the MCP client’s
PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_EXTENSION_TOKENenvironment entry. Avoid surrounding whitespace or accidental quotation marks inside the token value. - Restart cleanly. Quit and reopen the MCP client. Stop duplicate or orphaned Playwright MCP processes first, then let the client start one new server with the updated configuration.
- Invoke a browser tool. Run a simple navigation after restart. The extension should show an active client; if it does not, continue with the symptom-specific checks below.
Use a known-good MCP configuration
A minimal configuration has the following shape. Adapt the outer file format to your MCP client, but preserve the command, argument and environment variable names:
{
"mcpServers": {
"playwright": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@playwright/mcp@latest", "--extension"],
"env": {
"PLAYWRIGHT_MCP_EXTENSION_TOKEN": "<token from extension>"
}
}
}
}Save the file before restarting the client. If your client displays the server command or environment separately, verify that the same three settings are present there. A common mistake is editing one configuration file while the client is loading another workspace, user profile or project-level file.
Troubleshoot by symptom
The extension stays disconnected immediately after restart
- Return to the Chrome profile that owns the extension and copy its token again.
- Check that the server command contains
--extension, not just@playwright/mcp@latest. - Close every MCP client window and terminate duplicate Playwright MCP processes. A stale process may still be listening while the newly edited configuration is never used.
- Open the extension status page before invoking a browser tool. The connection normally becomes visible only after the server starts and a browser action is requested.
browser_navigate times out with an extension connection error
The reproduction error is typically phrased as Error: Extension connection timeout. Make sure the "Playwright MCP Bridge" extension is installed.. First verify installation in the active profile, then repeat the token and restart steps. If the extension is visibly installed but there is no runtime activity, inspect the extension’s service-worker console and network view while making the tool call. A listening MCP process with no extension activity points to the bridge, profile or token path rather than a general server crash.
The token matches, but the connection still fails
Matching text is not enough if the token came from another profile. Tokens are tied to the profile that generated them. Re-copy the value from the exact profile used for the launch, replace the environment entry and restart both sides. Also check for hidden line breaks introduced when copying from a browser panel or password manager.
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Extension and server versions can drift. Update both components together, or pin a compatible @playwright/mcp version while you diagnose the issue. If the latest package changed behavior for your client, temporarily returning to the previously working version can confirm that version compatibility is involved; keep the version choice documented rather than relying on an untracked global install.
Preflight finds the extension, but Chrome launches another profile
A documented Playwright issue describes preflight detecting the extension in one profile while the actual browser launch selected another. The preflight result did not retain the matching profile, and launch supplied no explicit profile selection. The result is a silent disconnected state even though installation and token checks appear correct.
To test for this condition, close all Chrome windows, launch the intended profile explicitly, and repeat the tool call. If your client or launch configuration supports a user-data directory or profile name, set it deliberately instead of allowing automatic selection. Then verify the extension status page in the newly launched window, not in a previously open window.
The server is running but no extension activity appears
Check three independent signals during a hanging call:
- The extension status page: does it change at all when the tool call starts?
- The extension service-worker console or network view: are messages or requests generated?
- The MCP process socket and logs: is the expected server listening, and is it the process started from your current configuration?
A server socket with no extension runtime activity usually narrows the problem to profile selection, extension installation, token pairing or the --extension argument.
What to do when local extension mode remains unreliable
Choose the execution model based on the data and browser state your workflow needs:
| Requirement | Local extension mode | Hosted browser execution |
|---|---|---|
| Use an existing logged-in Chrome session | Best fit, because the extension attaches to that profile | Usually requires a separate login or session setup |
| Repeatable runs in a clean context | Requires careful profile and token maintenance | Often simpler because the browser context is managed for you |
| Keep sensitive pages on your machine | Preferable when policy requires local processing | Confirm the provider’s data handling before sending private URLs |
| Avoid extension and token maintenance | Not ideal | More convenient, subject to service availability and policy |
The available issue evidence does not establish one universal root cause or a failure rate. A macOS report reproduced the matching-token, running-server and timeout pattern but was closed without a confirmed root cause. Treat the disconnected message as a symptom and use the checks above to isolate your environment.
Or skip the browser setup:
If your actual goal is a dependable screenshot or PDF rather than interactive control of an already logged-in browser, ScreenshotNeo provides a direct HTTP API and an MCP server. One request captures a URL as PNG, JPEG, WebP or PDF without configuring a local Playwright extension.
ScreenshotNeo accepts consent banners before capture and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups and chat widgets. Each cleanup step can be disabled. Bot checks and CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads and cache hits are not billed, and response headers report the page verdict and billing result. Its MCP server exposes take_screenshot, get_page_info and capture_pdf for Claude, Cursor and other MCP clients.
For the complete parameter list, see the ScreenshotNeo API documentation. A one-call cURL capture is:
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webpThe equivalent Python request is:
import requests
r = requests.get("https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot", params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"}, timeout=90)
open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)And in Node.js:
const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);Every plan includes the available features, including full-page lazy-image loading, CSS-selector element capture, dark mode, device presets, custom viewports, retina scale, PDF paper and page-range controls, custom CSS and JavaScript, pre-capture clicks, hidden selectors, selector or network-idle waits, request and resource blocking, custom headers and cookies, user-agent, authorization, timezone and geolocation, transparent backgrounds, resizing, selectable cache TTLs, signed image links, asynchronous webhooks, bulk capture for up to 100 URLs per call, usage reporting and an OpenAPI specification. Parameter names used by other screenshot APIs are also accepted to ease migration.
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FAQ
Is this message limited to macOS?
No platform-wide limitation is established. One macOS issue reproduced the symptom, but the documented causes—profile selection, token pairing, extension mode and version drift—can occur on any supported desktop setup.
Is there a published failure rate for the disconnected status?
No independent benchmark quantifies it. The available evidence consists of issue reports and a reproducible repository, so you should diagnose your own client, profile and versions rather than apply a population-wide probability.
Can I keep using a local profile for sensitive authenticated pages?
Yes, if your policy requires the page to remain in your own browser. Local extension mode is the better fit for existing logged-in state; hosted execution should be considered only after reviewing its data-handling requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know whether my MCP client loaded the edited configuration?
Quit the client completely, stop old Playwright MCP processes, reopen the client and inspect its server details or startup log for the --extension argument. If the old command is still shown, you edited a configuration file that this client is not using.
Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsWhat should I record before reporting the problem?
Record the client name and version, the @playwright/mcp version, Chrome profile used, whether --extension is present, and the exact timeout text. Do not include the extension token itself.
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