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index.d.ts | ||
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license | ||
package.json | ||
readme.md | ||
xdg-open |
open
Open stuff like URLs, files, executables. Cross-platform.
If need this for Electron, use shell.openItem()
instead.
Note: The original open
package was recently deprecated in favor of this package, and we got the name, so this package is now named open
instead of opn
. If you're upgrading from the original open
package (open@0.0.5
or lower), keep in mind that the API is different.
Why?
- Actively maintained.
- Supports app arguments.
- Safer as it uses
spawn
instead ofexec
. - Fixes most of the open original
node-open
issues. - Includes the latest
xdg-open
script for Linux. - Supports WSL paths to Windows apps under
/mnt/*
.
Install
$ npm install open
Usage
const open = require('open');
(async () => {
// Opens the image in the default image viewer and waits for the opened app to quit
await open('unicorn.png', {wait: true});
console.log('The image viewer app quit');
// Opens the URL in the default browser
await open('https://sindresorhus.com');
// Opens the URL in a specified browser
await open('https://sindresorhus.com', {app: 'firefox'});
// Specify app arguments
await open('https://sindresorhus.com', {app: ['google chrome', '--incognito']});
})();
API
It uses the command open
on macOS, start
on Windows and xdg-open
on other platforms.
open(target, options?)
Returns a promise for the spawned child process. You would normally not need to use this for anything, but it can be useful if you'd like to attach custom event listeners or perform other operations directly on the spawned process.
target
Type: string
The thing you want to open. Can be a URL, file, or executable.
Opens in the default app for the file type. For example, URLs opens in your default browser.
options
Type: object
wait
Type: boolean
Default: false
Wait for the opened app to exit before fulfilling the promise. If false
it's fulfilled immediately when opening the app.
Note that it waits for the app to exit, not just for the window to close.
On Windows, you have to explicitly specify an app for it to be able to wait.
background (macOS only)
Type: boolean
Default: false
Do not bring the app to the foreground.
app
Type: string | string[]
Specify the app to open the target
with, or an array with the app and app arguments.
The app name is platform dependent. Don't hard code it in reusable modules. For example, Chrome is google chrome
on macOS, google-chrome
on Linux and chrome
on Windows.
You may also pass in the app's full path. For example on WSL, this can be /mnt/c/Program Files (x86)/Google/Chrome/Application/chrome.exe
for the Windows installation of Chrome.
Related
- open-cli - CLI for this module
- open-editor - Open files in your editor at a specific line and column
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