Extensions not loading when opening links in a new tab

PanPuszek

Hey Guys!

I hope you are all doing well Would you be kind enough to give me a hand with an issue I'm facing with extensions?

I have noticed quite an interesting behaviour with Vivaldi lately. Whenever I open a page in a new tab (and I do it A LOT) extenions are not (fully?) loading. However, after reloading the page, everything works well and I can enjoy all of my installed extensions. What I have also observed is that after this is done and I stay on the same tab navigating to different webpages, the extenstions will stay "loaded" and everything will work just fine.
Another thing that adds to this problem is that when I freshly start Vivaldi, the extensions can take several refreshes before they "load" successfully. When they "settle in", let's say, it only takes one refresh on a new tab.

I have tried this in a different browser (Zen / Firefox) with mirrored extensions configuration and everything behaves as it should there. Additionally, I have tried to isolate this behaviour to one specific extension, though it seems like it's not related to any, as this is consistent throughout all extensions that I have.

I'm using Vivaldi 7.1.3570.50 (Stable channel) (64-bit) with built-in adblock disabled (only trackers are blocked by default). I have also checked this on a new profile, yet the result is still the same.

Do you have any ideas what might be causing this or how can I analyse it further? Any debugging steps or tips on how to analyse what's happening would be welcome

Thanks in advance for any input!

Best regards.

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Hi, comparing with Firefox is not really helpful, a complete different system.
The best test were to compare with Chromium 132, this is Vivaldi based on.
Please open chrome:system, expand Extensions, copy/paste your extensions here.

Something like:

ahfgeienlihckogmohjhadlkjgocpleb : Web Store : version 0_2
ddkjiahejlhfcafbddmgiahcphecmpfh : uBlock Origin Lite : version 2025_1_14_952
edibdbjcniadpccecjdfdjjppcpchdlm : I still don't care about cookies : version 1_1_4
fploionmjgeclbkemipmkogoaohcdbig : Page load time : version 4_0
jffbochibkahlbbmanpmndnhmeliecah : Vivaldi Picture-In-Picture : version 1_0
lglfeioladcfajpjdnghbfgohdihdnfl : Vivaldi Theme Store : version 1_0
mhjfbmdgcfjbbpaeojofohoefgiehjai : Chromium PDF Viewer : version 1
mpognobbkildjkofajifpdfhcoklimli : Vivaldi : version 31954_14544_33864_46562

This is with select the text and mark it as code with the </> icon.

PanPuszek

Hey!

Thanks for prompt reply. The info as requested:

ahfgeienlihckogmohjhadlkjgocpleb : Web Store : version 0_2
bgnkhhnnamicmpeenaelnjfhikgbkllg : AdGuard AdBlocker : version 5_0_188
edibdbjcniadpccecjdfdjjppcpchdlm : I still don't care about cookies : version 1_1_4
enamippconapkdmgfgjchkhakpfinmaj : DeArrow - Better Titles and Thumbnails : version 1_10_3
gebbhagfogifgggkldgodflihgfeippi : Return YouTube Dislike : version 3_0_0_18
hjfkenebldkfgibelglepinlabpjfbll : No YouTube Shorts : version 0_6_6
jffbochibkahlbbmanpmndnhmeliecah : Vivaldi Picture-In-Picture : version 1_0
lglfeioladcfajpjdnghbfgohdihdnfl : Vivaldi Theme Store : version 1_0
mhjfbmdgcfjbbpaeojofohoefgiehjai : Chromium PDF Viewer : version 1
mnjggcdmjocbbbhaepdhchncahnbgone : SponsorBlock for YouTube - Skip Sponsorships : version 5_11_5
mpognobbkildjkofajifpdfhcoklimli : Vivaldi : version 64981_18174_26051_7578
nlkaejimjacpillmajjnopmpbkbnocid : YouTube NonStop : version 0_9_2

I've checked this in Edge, which is based on Chromium too, and extensions work correctly there.

EDIT:

An interesting discovery from moments ago - when I open a new, blank tab and paste an address there, the extensions are working. It only happens when I open a link in a new tab, either by middle-mouse button click or by using "Open Link in New Tab" option from context menu

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Hi, I open always links in a background tab with middle mouse click but never noticed extensions are not loaded.
Please test to disable all Youtube extensions and restart Vivaldi, they are known to make problems in Vivaldi.
Vivaldi use it's own UI layer on top of Chromium, Edge, Brave and other doesn't.
If disable all Youtube extensions doesn't change anything you can start Vivaldi in a command shell.
Use the Windows Key+R, type cmd and hit enter.
The shell open, copy paste start vivaldi --disable-vivaldi > enter.
This open Vivaldi without the Vivaldi UI, looks strange but is pure Chromium then.
If it work there it is a Vivaldi issue and you can make a bug report.
I can install all of your extensions to test this.

PanPuszek

@mib2berlin

Hey!

That was a great tip. Thank you! I tried running pure Chromium with start vivaldi --disable-vivaldi command, but I didn't disable any of the extensions... and it worked!

I think I saw ads (or at least their placeholders, as ads were not displayed anyway) on one site I tested with, but it was only a very brief moment, a blink, when I opened the page in a new tab. I saw that happening only once and it never appeared again during further testing. Also, YouTube works flawlessly without any ads or other annoyances whatsoever when opening videos in a backgroud tabs.

I would lean towards your suggestion that it is due to all of the YouTube extensions, though I have this problem also on different sites which are not affiliated with google or where there are no YouTube embeds. Before I started this whole thread I tried disabling all extensions but Adguard and it still wasn't working.

Everything shows that it might indeed be Vivaldi's bug.

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
OK, this is going to be an interesting bug report.
You can save the developers a lot of work if you can test only the Youtube extensions in a clean Profile.
Extensions can do anything in a browser, a user report a download extension block Vivaldi at start for 30 seconds to a minute.
The user doesn't belive it could be but it does.
Anyway, create a new profile, install all YT extensions and test a while.
If it still happen remove 50% of the extensions, issues resolved, then it is one of the other 50% and so forth.
If you can reduce to 1-3 extensions, I can test that too.
Then you can make a bug report and I can confirm the error in the bug tracker.

DoctorG

I saw this sometimes in the past when i opened in background tab, but i do not remember which Vivaldi version that was.
Removing extensions and re-adding helped me in such case.

PanPuszek

I've just conducted some additional tests and below you can find the results. I've tried:

Disabling all YouTube extensions leaving only Adguard - it still does not work while opening tabs in the background (this led me to focus on Adguard more in the subsequent tests).
Adding only Adguard with default settings in a fresh Vivaldi profile - same behaviour.
Resetting Adguard settings on my current profile - same behaviour.
Removing and readding Adguard with default settings - same behaviour.
Running all of the extensions I have with --disable-vivaldi command (Adguard included) - everything works well.
Disabling every single extension and adding uBlock Origin Lite - everything works well (considering that I don't have my filters from Adguard working, which is a bit of a pain).
Having all the extensions enabled, but with Adguard disabled and uBlock Origin Lite enabled - everything works well.
Testing in other Chromium-based browsers (Edge) with the same extension set (without uBlock) - everything works well.
Exporting my Adguard settings and importing them to Edge - everything works well.

All of that leads me to believe that its either:

Vivaldi bug,
Some dogdy setting I've turned on or disabled in Vivaldi's options,
Adguard issue.

I'm prone to think that the issue is on my end somewhere as I've searched the Internet and I haven't seen anything similar. However, the fact that I've tired that in a fresh profile and it still doesn't work leaves me confused.

As an act of desperation I might create a Windows virtual machine and test everything there, but don't know if I'll find time and determination to do so.

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Do you use the Adguard Manifest V3 extension or the old V2 one?
As V2 extensions get abandoned in June/July from Chromium browsers. so I am not sure if the Vivaldi team spend work in fixing bugs for it.

I test Adguard V2 but I have only 3 other extensions running, all load fine with open new tab from the context menu.
Which way do you use to open a new tab over a link?
I test all 3, Shift+Click, Mouse Gesture and Context menu.

If other users can reproduce it you report it to the bug tracker anyway.

PanPuszek

I use Adguard in mv3 version (via vivaldi:extensions-internals):

   "id": "bgnkhhnnamicmpeenaelnjfhikgbkllg",
   "location": "INTERNAL",
   "manifest_version": 3,
   "name": "AdGuard AdBlocker",

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Ah sorry, had to read back.
Testing this now.
By the way, many users here use this extension but nobody report your issue here.
I hope some steps by here now we know what happen.

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
I tested this with V3 AdGuard and even add Youtube Enhancer for testing, I cant reproduce this.

PanPuszek

I've done multiple more tests and I just can't make Adguard work as it should. However, just out of curiosity, I've installed Adguard mv2 and... it works. There has to be something specific about Adguard mv3 that it doesn't work as intended with my setup.

PanPuszek

I'm back!

After the weekend I finally had some time to do some additional tests and digging. I've found out several interesting things:

Considering that Adblock seems to work flawlessly on my Vivaldi config with its mv2 version (4.4.49 - gfggjaccafhcbfogfkogggoepomehbjl) and only posing problems with mv3 (5.0.190 - bgnkhhnnamicmpeenaelnjfhikgbkllg), I went back to the metaphorical drawing board and double-checked it in other browsers, too. It turns out that in both I have tested with, Edge (Chromium) and Zen / Firefox (Gecko), it has installed 4.4.49 version, meaning mv2. I installed it straight from the respective stores.
I've done more tests with start vivaldi --disable-vivaldi option. I have discovered that during the initial launch of the browser with several tabs opened, the extensions are not loaded immediately, whether that is Adguard or the rest of YouTube ones that I have.
The point above let me to investigate Adguard itself more, and I've found an interesting topic on ther github page. I'm a layman when it comes to browsers, extensions, and their inner workings, yet this issue made me realise that extensions take time to load when a browser first launches, which is expected.
The fact that the extensions take time to load on launch does not explain why they are not loaded while opening links in new tabs... I think. As far as I'm concerned (and I can be completely wrong), opening something in new tab creates a new sub-process that still needs to copy and / or process some data in the background. I would assume that it still takes time and there might be something unoptimised about how Adguard mv3 works or there is something wild in my Vivaldi settings, yet I'm rather reluctant to believe that it's an issue on my end since fresh Vivaldi profiles are also (not) working the same way for me.
The point above would be further confirmed by what happens when I open a page in a new tab (Adguard not working), and opening a blank tab and entering the address manually (Adguard working as intended). This would be explained most probably because on a blank page the extension has time to load (I guess?).

Taking into account all of the above, my only concern comes from a fact that @mib2berlin did the tests and regadless of Adguard version (mv2 / mv3) it worked correctly for them. I'm reluctant to believe that my PC is the issue as I keep my system (Windows 11) close to stock with some WinAero tweaks done to disable telemetry and some other stuff. Additionally, I am running fairly high spec machine with 13th gen Intel processor, RTX 4080 and 32GB of RAM.

PanPuszek

Okay, at this point I'm 100% positive that the issue has to be either Vivaldi (less probable) or Adguard mv3 (more probable). Why?

I had a chance to lay my hands on a completely new laptop, where I installed a fresh version of Windows 11. The first thing I did was to install Vivaldi and Adguard in mv3 version and the behaviour was exactly the same as I have on my main machine. Opening new tabs in background = ads unless refreshed.

I think that right now the only option left for me is to wait for further Adguard and Vivaldi updates...

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Hi again, I can test later on my Ryzen 7 system on Windows 11, may I can reproduce it there.
If I cant reproduce this on Chromium we can make a bug report.
Did you sync the other extensions or only AdGuard?

PanPuszek

@mib2berlin Hey! I've installed only Adguard and nothing else. Straight from the store.

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
Hm, I still cant reproduce it, AdGuard is loaded even before I can switch to the background tab or the content of the page is fully loaded.
A Youtube video for exmaple.
I test middle mouse button and Ctrl+Click to open a background tab from a speed dial.
Hardware specs in my signature, I added a very fast m.2 NVME SSD lately.
Vivaldi 7.1.3570.54, Windows 11 Pro.

PanPuszek

Thanks for all the tests and your input @mib2berlin! Much appreciated.

I also have an NVMe SSD drive, so I don't think that is a showstopper. I have a 1Gb fiber internet, connected directly via cable to my PC, so that shouldn't pose problems, too.

I've finally amounted to creating a virtual machine in Hyper-V. Again, fresh Windows 11, no extra software or anything. Just as it comes out of the box. First thing I did was to download and install Vivaldi (configuring all settings to default by clicking "Next", nothing extra), and adding Adguard with no additional configuration - just as it was installed, I left it be without adjusting any sliders or anything. No change...

The pages opened in the background are still not cleaned from ads unless refreshed. I've tested that on an example site - CNN. When I opened a random news in the background it looks like this:

After refresh:

Since I've already created the Virtual Machine I'll do some more tests when I'll have time and keep you posted, if only to document my findings

mib2berlin

@PanPuszek
You are welcome.
If we had at least one other user with the same issue it would make sense to make a bug report.
We have many AdGuard users here, no idea why nobody else report it.
But ...
I only looked at the AdGuard icon, if it is active, not if it work to block ad's, will look later again.
The profile for testing is still there.