Browser Tool

Use this skill after the compact browser tool prompt points you here. It is the progressive-disclosure workflow guide for rendered pages, multi-step browser work, logins, downloads, JavaScript-heavy sites, screenshots, host/container browser mode, and visual inspection. Prefer search_engine or document_query for plain text research.

For fragile forms, load browser-form-workflows with skills_tool:load before acting when selects, checkboxes, radios, file uploads, contenteditable fields, validation, or final submission state are central to the task.

Core Workflow

1. open creates a browser tab and returns a browser_id.
2. content returns readable markdown plus typed refs like [link 3], [button 6], [input text 8].
3. Interact with refs using click, type, submit, scroll, etc.; iframe/shadow targets may return frame-chain metadata in action results.
4. Use navigate on an existing browser_id for serial browsing.
5. Keep only a small working tab set; close pages when finished.
6. If the user asks for an existing tab, page title, or already-open URL, call list first, match by title or currentUrl, then use set_active or navigate on that browser_id instead of opening a new tab.

Modes

The same tool may run in Docker container mode or A0 CLI host-browser mode, depending on project/plugin settings.

• Container mode: browser and upload paths resolve inside the Agent Zero container.
• Host mode: browser and upload paths resolve on the connected A0 CLI host machine.

In host mode, page content and screenshots may be blocked by host-content policy when remote models are active.

Screenshots And Vision

Screenshots are explicit only; the browser does not automatically load images into model context.

1. Call browser with action: "screenshot".
2. Call vision_load with the returned vision_load.tool_args.paths value.
3. Reason from the latest loaded screenshot.

Screenshot args include quality, full_page, and optional path. Without path, the screenshot is saved as a chat-scoped artifact and returned through vision_load.tool_args.paths; with path, PNG is used when path ends with .png, otherwise JPEG is used.

Forms And Files

• select_option works for native selects and detectable ARIA listbox/combobox controls.
• set_checked works for checkbox, radio, switch, and toggle-like refs.
• upload_file works for file input refs or associated labels; verify the file exists in the active browser environment.
• For fragile forms, call skills_tool with action: "load" and skill_name: "browser-form-workflows", then follow that form-specific workflow before filling or submitting.

Pointer And Keyboard

• Prefer refs/selectors and DOM/CDP actions over viewport coordinates.
• hover, double_click, right_click, and drag accept refs or viewport coordinates when no reliable ref exists.
• Coordinates are Chromium viewport CSS pixels and match screenshots; treat them as visual fallback, not the default interaction path.
• key_chord presses keys in order and releases in reverse.
• clipboard actions are copy, cut, or paste.
• set_viewport resizes the page viewport.

Tabs And Popups

• Popups and target-blank tabs are auto-registered.
• list shows open tabs; pass include_content: true sparingly.
• set_active deliberately changes focus.
• Operations on a non-active tab do not steal focus unless browser rules require it.

Browser Action Multi

multi is only a browser action, never a top-level tool. Use:

{
  "tool_name": "browser",
  "tool_args": {
    "action": "multi",
    "calls": [
      {"action": "content", "browser_id": 1},
      {"action": "screenshot", "browser_id": 2}
    ]
  }
}

Use browser action multi for parallel reads across tabs. Avoid mutating the same tab twice in one batch unless serial order is intended.