v0.1.8

microsoft/playwright-cliv0.1.8Apr 14, 2026by pavelfeldman

AI Summary

Adds remote debugging support to connect to local Chrome instances and fixes issues with heavy CPU/memory usage and orphaned Chrome processes.

Key Highlights

  • Remote debugging mode against local Chrome, Edge, and Canary via `--cdp`.
  • Automatic cleanup of orphaned Chrome processes after sessions.
  • Fix for `browserToken` defaults and server registry cleanup.

New Features

  • Remote debugging mode (`--cdp=chrome`)

Full Release Notes

## Highlights

- **Remote debugging mode against your local Chrome** ([#358](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-cli/issues/358)) — you can now drive the Chrome you already have open, with its existing logins, instead of a sandboxed copy. `playwright-cli attach --cdp=chrome` (also `msedge`, `chrome-canary`, etc.) resolves the channel and connects via `chrome://inspect/#remote-debugging`. Supports Chrome / Chrome Beta / Dev / Canary and Edge / Edge Beta / Dev / Canary on Linux, macOS, and Windows. ([microsoft/playwright#40177](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright/pull/40177))
- **Heavy CPU/memory and orphaned Chrome processes** ([#360](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright-cli/issues/360)) — no more manually killing leftover Chrome processes after long CLI/agent sessions. ([microsoft/playwright#40190](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright/pull/40190))

## Fixes

- `fix(mcp): no tombstones on the server registry level` — defaults `browserToken` to `'chrome'` when none is specified (no more `undefined` in userDataDir paths); simplifies stale-entry cleanup in the server registry; passes `force` to session stop during `delete-data`. ([#40179](https://github.com/microsoft/playwright/pull/40179))

## Upgrading

```bash
npm install -g @playwright/cli@0.1.8
```