mcp-chrome shows "Connected, but service is not started" on Windows — how do I start it?
On Windows, hangwin/mcp-chrome (latest npm package) shows 已连接，但服务未启动 ("Connected, but the service is not started") and no log files are generated. I followed the README install steps, but I can't figure out how to actually start the service. The discussion mentions both a server-side component and a plugin — is there a separate server to configure, and where should I look for logs to diagnose the startup failure?
Originally asked on GitHub: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/issues/62
5 answers
Status: still open. As of 2025-06-30 no root cause or working fix had been confirmed in this issue. The maintainer stated that mcp-chrome has no separate server component: you install it (steps are in the README) and click Connect. If it connects but startup fails, the maintainer's guidance is to check for permission problems and look for logs, pointing to the troubleshooting doc: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/blob/master/docs/TROUBLESHOOTING_zh.md (opens external site) (an earlier link posted in the thread returned 404; this is the corrected one).
What the thread established:
- No logs were generated by default in the reporter's environment. After manually creating a
logsfolder, files namednative_host_wrapper_windows_*.logandnative_host_stderr_windows_*.logwere produced and attached to the issue for the maintainer to inspect. - The maintainer asked the reporter to install the latest npm package and retry; the reporter replied that they were already on the latest version.
- Reading the earlier discussion (issue #29) did not solve it, and the reporter's own AI-assisted system checks did not help either.
As general advice: until a fix is confirmed, check the troubleshooting doc for permission issues and collect the
native_host_*logs (create alogsfolder if needed) when reporting the problem, since those logs were what the maintainer asked for in this thread.Did this work for you?- No logs were generated by default in the reporter's environment. After manually creating a
What @zhl111 tried on GitHub (Outcome unclear)
The reporter manually created a logs folder; after various AI-assisted checks, files named native_host_wrapper_windows_.log and native_host_stderr_windows_.log appeared and were attached for the maintainer to inspect. No diagnosis was stated in the thread.
Source: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/issues/62#issuecomment-3018362967 (opens external site)
Did this work for you?What @hangwin tried on GitHub (Outcome unclear)
The maintainer asked the reporter to install the latest npm package and retry. The reporter replied that they already had the latest version, so no fix resulted from this suggestion.
Source: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/issues/62#issuecomment-3018995688 (opens external site)
Did this work for you?What @zhl111 tried on GitHub (Didn't work)
The reporter referenced an earlier discussion (issue #29 comment) and said the problem was still unsolved; the troubleshooting link posted earlier in the thread at that point returned 404.
Source: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/issues/62#issuecomment-3017899019 (opens external site)
Did this work for you?What @zhl111 tried on GitHub (Didn't work)
The reporter ran various AI-assisted checks and system inspections, but the 'Connected, but service is not started' state persisted and no logs were generated at that time.
Source: https://github.com/hangwin/mcp-chrome/issues/62#issuecomment-3017317415 (opens external site)
Did this work for you?