Check whether a browser policy blocks the Sidepanel extension

This article covers confirming, from your browser's own policy page, whether an IT policy is what stops the Sidepanel browser extension from installing or staying switched on in Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge. If you have not yet ruled out a policy restriction, or you use the Sidepanel as an Outlook add-in, see When IT policy blocks the Sidepanel first. It describes what a restriction looks like for both versions of the Sidepanel and what to ask your IT team for. This article gives you the evidence to attach to that request.

If the extension is installed and switched on but the panel does not open or does not recognize the page, that is a different problem. See The browser extension does not open or detect the page.

The extension ID to look for

Extension policies refer to extensions by ID, never by name. The ID of the Tekst Sidepanel extension is:

kjbmmdfcfgnpfigjjdfecngjffilpabo

It is the string of letters at the end of the extension's address in the Chrome Web Store, where the extension is listed as "Tekst". Wherever a policy value below mentions an extension, this is the string you look for.

Open the policy page

1. In the address bar, type chrome://policy in Chrome or edge://policy in Edge, and press Enter.
2. Select Reload policies so you are looking at the current set rather than a cached one.
3. Type Extension in the Filter policies by name box. The list shrinks to the policies that control extensions.

In this example the organization blocks every extension by default and allows the Tekst extension by its ID, which is the setup to ask for. Each row is one policy. The columns that matter are Policy name, Policy value, and Status. The page looks the same in Edge, apart from the heading.

The page is read-only. It shows what your organization has set, but nothing on it can be changed from the browser, so if a policy turns out to be in the way, your IT team has to lift it. A few things to know before you read it:

• Only policies that are set appear. If a policy from the list below is missing, it is not applied to your browser. Most organizations set only one or two of them.
• Long values are cut off in the table. Select Show more at the end of the row to see the whole value. Values are written in a machine-readable format with braces and quotation marks, but you only need to find the extension ID and a few keywords in them.
• A Status other than OK means the browser could not apply that policy as written. Mention it to your IT team, because the policy may not be doing what they intended.

If the page says No policies set, or nothing is left after you filter, your browser is not what is blocking the extension. Look at the network instead: The Sidepanel does not load on your network covers the addresses the extension needs. Some device security software also removes extensions on its own, which no browser policy will show.

Check the policies that decide whether the extension can install

Look for the extension ID, and for a lone *, which stands for "every extension", in the values of these policies. Chrome and Edge use the same names.

ExtensionInstallBlocklist

The list of extensions users may not install. A value of * blocks every extension unless another policy allows it. The Tekst extension ID in this list means your organization blocks the Tekst extension specifically.

A blocked extension that was already installed is switched off with no way to switch it back on, which is the "it installed and then went dark" symptom.

ExtensionInstallAllowlist

Exceptions to the blocklist. When the blocklist contains *, the Tekst extension ID has to appear here, or in the forcelist below, for the install to work. If it appears in neither, that is the block.

ExtensionInstallForcelist

Extensions your organization installs automatically. They cannot be removed or switched off, and this list wins over the blocklist. If the Tekst extension ID is here, policy is not what stops you. The extension should already be in your toolbar, and a panel that still does not load is a network or sign-in problem. See The browser extension does not open or detect the page.

If a colleague has the extension pushed to them and this row is missing for you, you are not in the group the policy targets. Ask your IT team to add you.

ExtensionSettings

The detailed policy, and the one to read most carefully. When it is set, it overrides the three lists above wherever they disagree. Its value is a block of text with one entry per extension ID, plus a * entry that sets the default for every extension without an entry of its own. Select Show more and look for:

• The * entry. "installation_mode": "blocked" means every extension is blocked unless it has its own entry. "allowed" means extensions install normally.
• An entry for kjbmmdfcfgnpfigjjdfecngjffilpabo. "allowed", "force_installed" and "normal_installed" all mean the Tekst extension is permitted. "blocked" or "removed" means it is not.
• An entry that starts with update_url: followed by https://clients2.google.com/service/update2/crx. That address is the Chrome Web Store itself, and "blocked" on it blocks every extension from the store. This is the usual way an organization blocks the Chrome Web Store in Edge. Even with it in place, your IT team can still allow the Tekst extension by ID in the allowlist or the forcelist.
• "blocked_install_message". Any text here is the message your organization shows when an install is refused, so it often tells you who to contact.

ExtensionAllowedTypes

Rarely set. If it is, and the list does not contain extension, no extension of any kind can install, whatever the other policies say.

URLBlocklist

Not an extension policy, but worth a look if the store page itself never opens. If the value contains chromewebstore.google.com, or the older chrome.google.com/webstore, your organization blocks the Chrome Web Store as a website. The extension can still be pushed out to you through the forcelist, without anyone opening the store.

Check the settings that let it install but stop it working

Two settings inside ExtensionSettings do not stop the install, but leave you with an extension that is there and does nothing.

• "runtime_blocked_hosts" lists websites that extensions may not read or change. If the * entry or the Tekst entry covers the site you work in, such as Outlook on the web, Salesforce, or SAP Service Cloud, the extension installs but never detects the page. Your IT team can make an exception for the Tekst extension alone.
• "blocked_permissions" lists permissions extensions may not use. An extension that needs one of them installs but stays disabled.

If neither is set and the extension still does not recognize the page, The browser extension does not open or detect the page covers the other causes.

Edge only: the "Allow extensions from other stores" setting

Edge installs the Tekst extension from the Chrome Web Store, which requires the Allow extensions from other stores setting on the edge://extensions page to be switched on. Organizations can set its default through the policy ControlDefaultStateOfAllowExtensionFromOtherStoresSettingEnabled.

If you find that policy on edge://policy, do not read too much into it. According to Microsoft, it only sets the default state of the setting, you can still change the setting yourself, and it cannot be used to block installs. If you switched the setting on and the install is still refused, one of the policies above is the cause, most often a blocked update_url: entry in ExtensionSettings or a * in the blocklist. The Edge-specific installation steps are in Install the Sidepanel browser extension on Microsoft Edge.

What to send your IT team

Once you know which policy is in the way, your request can be short and specific:

• The policy name and the value you found, for example "ExtensionInstallBlocklist is set to * and the Tekst extension ID is not in ExtensionInstallAllowlist".
• The extension ID kjbmmdfcfgnpfigjjdfecngjffilpabo, with a note that both Chrome and Edge let an administrator allow one extension by ID while keeping the store restricted for everything else.
• A copy of the whole page. Select Export to JSON to save it as a file, or Copy as JSON to paste it into an email. In recent versions of Chrome both sit behind the More actions button. The export contains every policy and value exactly as the browser applies them, so your IT team can check it without a call.

For the wording of the request itself, and for what you can do in the meantime, see When IT policy blocks the Sidepanel.

Still stuck?

Contact support@tekst.com. Mention that you are using the browser extension and which browser, attach the JSON export of the policy page, and describe exactly what happens when you try to install. We will tell you which policy is in the way, and we are happy to talk it through with your IT team directly.