chrome.runtime.onMessage sendResponse async not working

Question

My background script is listening for chrome.runtime.onMessage and it needs to do run an async function before sending the response i.e.

chrome.runtime.onMessage.addListener(function (
  message,
  sender,
  sendResponse
) {
  setTimeout(() => {
    sendResponse("response")
  }, 100);

  return true;
})

The MDN docs for this say that returning true should allow sendResponse to happen asynchronously, and it works in our chrome extension. But in safari the content script is never getting the response.

Sending the response without async works fine.

My safari version is Version 16.1 (17614.2.9.1.13, 17614) This is a V3 manifest chrome extension that we are using xcrun safari-web-extension-converter to convert to safari

Is there a workaround for this?

Safari Extensions

2.2k

Posted by

jhulme-ut

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Answer 1

According to Chrome's own documentation, "DOM-based timers, such as window.setTimeout() or window.setInterval(), are not honored in non-persistent background scripts if they trigger when the event page is dormant. Instead, use the alarms API."

https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/mv2/background_migration/#timers

Posted by

jeffjohnson

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Answer 2

Ah sorry, that was just a simple example to try help reproduce, I'm not doing a timer in our actual code.

chrome.runtime.onMessage.addListener(function (
  message,
  sender,
  sendResponse
) {
  chrome.storage.local.set({"foo": 1})
    .then(() => {
      sendResponse('response');
    })

  return true;
});

has the same issue

Posted by

jhulme-ut

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Answer 3

This has always worked for me in Safari. Are you using Manifest V2 or V3?

Posted by

jeffjohnson

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Answer 4

V3

Posted by

jhulme-ut

Hmm, I'm still using V2. I wonder if that makes a difference.

—
jeffjohnson

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Answer 5

Hey, are you still running into this issue? I have been running into the same bug. However, manifest v2 and v3 both do not work for me :(

Posted by

travelarrow

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chrome.runtime.onMessage sendResponse async not working

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