fix: make navigation no-focus by default

- Change nav open and open-wait to avoid activating newly created tabs unless
  --focus is explicitly requested.
- Send background=true for default opens so older or remote extensions also
  avoid stealing focus even if they ignore the new focus flag.
- Remove the redundant --bg flag from navigation and search CLI commands now
  that no-focus/background behavior is the default.
- Thread focus support through the sync SDK, async SDK, tab helpers, and
  workflow decorators.
- Update README and demo usage to document the new default and --focus opt-in.
- Bump package and extension metadata to 0.12.3.
- Add regression coverage for CLI help, wire payloads, and extension behavior.

README.md

@@ -138,9 +138,9 @@ Important: profile aliases are browser-instance aliases, not window aliases. Win
 ### Navigation (`nav`)
 
 ```sh
-# Open a URL
+# Open a URL (no focus stealing by default)
 browser-cli nav open https://example.com
-browser-cli nav open https://example.com --bg               # background, no focus
+browser-cli nav open https://example.com --focus            # bring opened tab/window forward
 browser-cli nav open https://example.com --window work      # into a named window
 browser-cli nav open https://example.com --group research   # into a tab group (name or ID)
 
@@ -163,7 +163,7 @@ Each search command opens the search results in your browser using the same flag
 
 ```sh
 browser-cli search google openai api
-browser-cli search brave rust iterators --bg
+browser-cli search brave rust iterators
 browser-cli search ddg tab groups --window work
 browser-cli search youtube browser automation
 browser-cli search yt lo fi

browser_cli/async_sdk.py

@@ -84,6 +84,7 @@ class AsyncDecoratorsNS(WorkflowDecoratorsMixin):
     wait: bool = False,
     timeout: float = 30.0,
     background: bool = False,
+    focus: bool = False,
     window: str | None = None,
     group: str | None = None,
     close: bool = False,
@@ -95,6 +96,7 @@ class AsyncDecoratorsNS(WorkflowDecoratorsMixin):
         wait=wait,
         timeout=timeout,
         background=background,
+        focus=focus,
         window=window,
         group=group,
       )

browser_cli/commands/navigate.py

@@ -10,13 +10,13 @@ def nav_group():
 
 @nav_group.command("open")
 @click.argument("url")
-@click.option("--bg", is_flag=True, help="Open in background (no focus)")
+@click.option("--focus", is_flag=True, help="Bring the opened tab/window to the front")
 @click.option("--window", "window_name", default=None, help="Open in named window")
 @click.option("--group", "group_name", default=None, help="Open directly into a tab group (name or ID)")
 @handle_errors
-def cmd_open(url, bg, window_name, group_name):
-    """Open URL in a new tab."""
-    client_from_ctx().nav.open(url, background=bg, window=window_name, group=group_name)
+def cmd_open(url, focus, window_name, group_name):
+    """Open URL in a new tab without stealing focus by default."""
+    client_from_ctx().nav.open(url, focus=focus, window=window_name, group=group_name)
     suffix = ""
     if group_name:
         suffix = f" in group '{group_name}'"
@@ -70,13 +70,13 @@ def cmd_focus(pattern):
 @nav_group.command("open-wait")
 @click.argument("url")
 @click.option("--timeout", type=float, default=30.0, show_default=True, help="Max seconds to wait for load")
-@click.option("--bg", is_flag=True, help="Open in background (no focus)")
+@click.option("--focus", is_flag=True, help="Bring the opened tab/window to the front")
 @click.option("--window", "window_name", default=None, help="Open in named window")
 @click.option("--group", "group_name", default=None, help="Open in tab group")
 @handle_errors
-def cmd_open_wait(url, timeout, bg, window_name, group_name):
+def cmd_open_wait(url, timeout, focus, window_name, group_name):
     """Open URL in a new tab and wait until fully loaded."""
-    tab = client_from_ctx().nav.open_wait(url, timeout=timeout, background=bg, window=window_name, group=group_name)
+    tab = client_from_ctx().nav.open_wait(url, timeout=timeout, focus=focus, window=window_name, group=group_name)
     console.print(f"[green]Loaded:[/green] {url}" + (f" — {tab.title}" if tab.title else ""))
 
 @nav_group.command("wait")

browser_cli/commands/search.py

@@ -63,13 +63,12 @@ def search_group():
 def _build_command(engine_key: str, help_text: str) -> click.Command:
     @click.command(engine_key, help=help_text)
     @click.argument("query", nargs=-1, required=True)
-    @click.option("--bg", is_flag=True, help="Open in background (no focus)")
     @click.option("--window", "window", default=None, help="Open in named window")
     @click.option("--group", "group", default=None, help="Open in tab group (name or ID)")
     @handle_errors
-    def _cmd(query, bg, window, group):
+    def _cmd(query, window, group):
         terms = " ".join(query)
-        client_from_ctx().nav.search(engine_key, terms, background=bg, window=window, group=group)
+        client_from_ctx().nav.search(engine_key, terms, window=window, group=group)
         suffix = f" in group '{group}'" if group else (f" in window '{window}'" if window else "")
         display = _DISPLAY_NAMES.get(engine_key, engine_key.capitalize())
         console.print(f"[green]Searching[/green] [cyan]{display}[/cyan]: {terms}{suffix}")

browser_cli/sdk/navigation.py

@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@ from __future__ import annotations
 from browser_cli.models import Tab
 from browser_cli.sdk.base import Namespace, sdk_command
 
-def _open_args(self, url, *, background=False, window=None, group=None):
-  return {"url": url, "background": background, "window": window, "group": group}
+def _open_args(self, url, *, background=False, focus=False, window=None, group=None):
+  return {"url": url, "background": background or not focus, "focus": focus, "window": window, "group": group}
 
 def _tab_args(self, tab_id=None):
   return {"tabId": tab_id}
@@ -14,8 +14,16 @@ class NavigationNS(Namespace):
   """Open URLs, navigate history, and focus tabs."""
 
   @sdk_command("navigate.open", _open_args)
-  def open(self, url: str, *, background: bool = False, window: str | None = None, group: str | None = None) -> None:
-    """Open *url* in a new tab."""
+  def open(
+    self,
+    url: str,
+    *,
+    background: bool = False,
+    focus: bool = False,
+    window: str | None = None,
+    group: str | None = None,
+  ) -> None:
+    """Open *url* in a new tab without stealing OS focus by default."""
 
   def open_wait(
     self,
@@ -23,6 +31,7 @@ class NavigationNS(Namespace):
     *,
     timeout: float = 30.0,
     background: bool = False,
+    focus: bool = False,
     window: str | None = None,
     group: str | None = None,
   ) -> Tab:
@@ -30,7 +39,7 @@ class NavigationNS(Namespace):
     return self.require_tab(
       self.command("navigate.open_wait", {
         "url": url, "timeout": int(timeout * 1000),
-        "background": background, "window": window, "group": group,
+        "background": background or not focus, "focus": focus, "window": window, "group": group,
       }),
       "navigate.open_wait returned unexpected data",
     )
@@ -61,7 +70,7 @@ class NavigationNS(Namespace):
 
   def search(
     self, engine: str, query: str, *,
-    background: bool = False, window: str | None = None, group: str | None = None,
+    background: bool = False, focus: bool = False, window: str | None = None, group: str | None = None,
   ) -> None:
     """Open a search query in the given engine (e.g. 'google', 'youtube', 'ddg')."""
     from urllib.parse import quote_plus
@@ -70,4 +79,4 @@ class NavigationNS(Namespace):
     if template is None:
       raise ValueError(f"Unknown search engine '{engine}'. Available: {', '.join(ENGINES)}")
     url = template.format(query=quote_plus(query))
-    self.command("navigate.open", {"url": url, "background": background, "window": window, "group": group})
+    self.command("navigate.open", {"url": url, "background": background or not focus, "focus": focus, "window": window, "group": group})

browser_cli/sdk/tabs.py

@@ -24,17 +24,19 @@ class TabsNS(Namespace):
     wait: bool = False,
     timeout: float = 30.0,
     background: bool = False,
+    focus: bool = False,
     window: str | None = None,
     group: str | None = None,
   ) -> Tab:
     """Open *url* in a new tab and return a bound :class:`Tab`.
 
     Set ``wait=True`` to block until the page reaches ``readyState=complete``.
+    Pass ``focus=True`` to explicitly bring the created tab/window forward.
     """
     if wait:
-      return self._c.nav.open_wait(url, timeout=timeout, background=background, window=window, group=group)
+      return self._c.nav.open_wait(url, timeout=timeout, background=background, focus=focus, window=window, group=group)
     return self.require_tab(
-      self.command("navigate.open", {"url": url, "background": background, "window": window, "group": group}),
+      self.command("navigate.open", {"url": url, "background": background or not focus, "focus": focus, "window": window, "group": group}),
       "navigate.open returned unexpected data",
     )
 

browser_cli/sdk/workflow_decorators.py

@@ -81,6 +81,7 @@ class WorkflowDecoratorsMixin:
     wait: bool = False,
     timeout: float = 30.0,
     background: bool = False,
+    focus: bool = False,
     window: str | None = None,
     group: str | None = None,
     close: bool = False,
@@ -97,6 +98,7 @@ class WorkflowDecoratorsMixin:
         wait=wait,
         timeout=timeout,
         background=background,
+        focus=focus,
         window=window,
         group=group,
       )

examples/demo.sh

@@ -43,8 +43,8 @@ pause
 header "3/8 · Create 'research' group and open URLs into it"
 $CLI groups create research
 echo ""
-$CLI nav open https://example.com   --group research --bg
-$CLI nav open https://wikipedia.org --group research --bg
+$CLI nav open https://example.com   --group research
+$CLI nav open https://wikipedia.org --group research
 echo ""
 echo "  Tabs are now open inside the 'research' group in your browser."
 pause

extension/manifest.json

@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "manifest_version": 3,
   "name": "browser-cli",
-  "version": "0.12.2",
+  "version": "0.12.3",
   "description": "Control your browser from the terminal or Python SDK",
   "permissions": [
     "tabs",

extension/src/commands/navigation.ts

@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ export class NavigationCommands extends CommandGroup {
     "navigate.open_wait":   (a: NavOpenWaitArgs) => this.navOpenWait(a),
   };
 
-  private async navOpen({ url, background, window: windowName, windowId: explicitWindowId, group: groupNameOrId }: NavOpenArgs) {
+  private async navOpen({ url, background, focus, window: windowName, windowId: explicitWindowId, group: groupNameOrId }: NavOpenArgs) {
     let windowId: number | undefined;
     if (explicitWindowId != null) {
       windowId = explicitWindowId;
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ export class NavigationCommands extends CommandGroup {
       const entry = Object.entries(aliases).find(([, v]) => v === windowName);
       if (entry) windowId = parseInt(entry[0]);
     }
-    const tab = await chrome.tabs.create({ url, active: !background, windowId });
+    const tab = await chrome.tabs.create({ url, active: Boolean(focus) && !background, windowId });
     if (groupNameOrId != null) {
       let groupId;
       try {
@@ -115,8 +115,8 @@ export class NavigationCommands extends CommandGroup {
     throw new Error(`Tab ${tab.id} did not reach status '${readyState}' within ${timeout}ms`);
   }
 
-  private async navOpenWait({ url, timeout = 30000, background, window: windowName, group }: NavOpenWaitArgs = {}) {
-    const opened = await this.navOpen({ url, background, window: windowName, group });
+  private async navOpenWait({ url, timeout = 30000, background, focus, window: windowName, group }: NavOpenWaitArgs = {}) {
+    const opened = await this.navOpen({ url, background, focus, window: windowName, group });
     return await this.navWait({ tabId: opened.id, timeout });
   }
 }

extension/src/types/command-args.ts

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import type { Job } from './jobs';
 export interface NavOpenArgs {
   url?: string;
   background?: boolean;
+  focus?: boolean;
   window?: string;
   windowId?: number;
   group?: string | number;
@@ -18,6 +19,7 @@ export interface NavOpenWaitArgs {
   url?: string;
   timeout?: number;
   background?: boolean;
+  focus?: boolean;
   window?: string;
   group?: string | number;
 }

pyproject.toml

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 [project]
 name = "browser-cli"
-version = "0.12.2"
+version = "0.12.3"
 description = "Control your real running browser from the terminal or Python SDK"
 requires-python = ">=3.10"
 dependencies = [

tests/test_api.py

@@ -160,7 +160,7 @@ class TestNavigation:
     b.nav.open("https://example.com")
     mock_send.assert_called_once_with(
       "navigate.open",
-      {"url": "https://example.com", "background": False, "window": None, "group": None},
+      {"url": "https://example.com", "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
       profile=None, remote=None, key=None,
     )
 
@@ -173,6 +173,10 @@ class TestNavigation:
     b.nav.open("https://x.com", group="Work")
     assert mock_send.call_args[0][1]["group"] == "Work"
 
+  def test_open_focus_is_explicit(self, b, mock_send):
+    b.nav.open("https://example.com", focus=True)
+    assert mock_send.call_args[0][1]["focus"] is True
+
   def test_tabs_open_returns_bound_tab(self, b, mock_send):
     mock_send.return_value = {"id": 123, "url": "https://example.com"}
 
@@ -183,7 +187,7 @@ class TestNavigation:
     assert tab._browser is b
     mock_send.assert_called_once_with(
       "navigate.open",
-      {"url": "https://example.com", "background": True, "window": None, "group": None},
+      {"url": "https://example.com", "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
       profile=None,
       remote=None,
       key=None,
@@ -197,7 +201,7 @@ class TestNavigation:
     assert tab.id == 10
     mock_send.assert_called_once_with(
       "navigate.open_wait",
-      {"url": "https://example.com", "timeout": 1500, "background": False, "window": None, "group": None},
+      {"url": "https://example.com", "timeout": 1500, "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
       profile=None,
       remote=None,
       key=None,
@@ -1031,7 +1035,7 @@ class TestSDKDecorators:
     assert mock_send.mock_calls == [
       call(
         "navigate.open_wait",
-        {"url": "https://example.com", "timeout": 1500, "background": False, "window": None, "group": None},
+        {"url": "https://example.com", "timeout": 1500, "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
         profile=None,
         remote=None,
         key=None,
@@ -1190,7 +1194,7 @@ class TestAsyncBrowserCLI:
       assert mock_send_async.mock_calls == [
         call(
           "navigate.open",
-          {"url": "https://example.com", "background": False, "window": None, "group": None},
+          {"url": "https://example.com", "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
           profile=None,
           remote=None,
           key=None,

tests/test_commands_cli.py

@@ -346,14 +346,43 @@ def test_cli_perf_profile_ultra():
 from browser_cli.commands.navigate import nav_group
 
 def test_cli_nav_open():
-    result = _run(nav_group, ["open", "https://example.com"], {"id": 42, "url": "https://example.com"})
-    assert result.exit_code == 0
-    assert "Opened" in result.output
+    with patch("browser_cli.send_command", return_value={"id": 42, "url": "https://example.com"}) as send_command:
+        result = CliRunner().invoke(nav_group, ["open", "https://example.com"])
 
-def test_cli_nav_open_bg():
-    result = _run(nav_group, ["open", "https://example.com", "--bg"], {"id": 42})
     assert result.exit_code == 0
     assert "Opened" in result.output
+    send_command.assert_called_once_with(
+        "navigate.open",
+        {"url": "https://example.com", "background": True, "focus": False, "window": None, "group": None},
+        profile=None,
+        remote=None,
+        key=None,
+    )
+
+def test_cli_nav_open_has_no_bg_option():
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(nav_group, ["open", "--help"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "--bg" not in result.output
+
+def test_cli_nav_open_wait_has_no_bg_option():
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(nav_group, ["open-wait", "--help"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "--bg" not in result.output
+
+def test_cli_nav_open_focus_is_explicit():
+    with patch("browser_cli.send_command", return_value={"id": 42}) as send_command:
+        result = CliRunner().invoke(nav_group, ["open", "https://example.com", "--focus"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    send_command.assert_called_once_with(
+        "navigate.open",
+        {"url": "https://example.com", "background": False, "focus": True, "window": None, "group": None},
+        profile=None,
+        remote=None,
+        key=None,
+    )
 
 def test_cli_nav_open_with_group():
     result = _run(nav_group, ["open", "https://example.com", "--group", "work"], {"id": 42})
@@ -412,6 +441,18 @@ def test_cli_nav_wait():
     assert result.exit_code == 0
     assert "Ready" in result.output
 
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+# search commands
+# ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+from browser_cli.commands.search import search_group
+
+def test_cli_search_has_no_bg_option():
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(search_group, ["google", "--help"])
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "--bg" not in result.output
+
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 # navigate commands — with tab_id argument
 # ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

tests/test_extension_error_page_handling.py

@@ -111,10 +111,12 @@ def test_large_extension_operations_yield_between_batches():
     assert "perf.set_profile" in perf
     assert "__background" in connection
 
-def test_tab_activation_and_merge_do_not_steal_audible_video_window():
+def test_tab_activation_open_and_merge_do_not_steal_audible_video_window():
     tabs = (ROOT / "extension" / "src" / "commands" / "tabs.ts").read_text()
+    navigation = (ROOT / "extension" / "src" / "commands" / "navigation.ts").read_text()
 
     assert "await chrome.windows.update(tab.windowId, { focused: true });" not in tabs
+    assert "active: Boolean(focus) && !background" in navigation
     assert "windowHasAudibleTabs" in tabs
     assert "!this.windowHasAudibleTabs(w)" in tabs
     assert "skippedAudibleWindows" in tabs

uv.lock

@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ wheels = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "browser-cli"
-version = "0.12.2"
+version = "0.12.3"
 source = { editable = "." }
 dependencies = [
     { name = "click" },