The fastest workflow

What you get

A single structured evidence pack containing your screenshots or recording, reproduction steps, expected vs actual behaviour, and auto-captured context (URL, browser, OS, timestamp). Formatted to paste anywhere or export as a file.

Standard screenshot

Click Screenshot in the Capture tab, or press Alt+S from anywhere. The screenshot captures the current visible viewport and appears in your Evidence list immediately.

Selected area capture

When you only need one part of the page, choose Selected area from the screenshot menu, then drag to crop the exact region you want. Press Esc to cancel if you miss it the first time.

Full-page capture

For dashboards, long forms, or any page that scrolls — click Full Page. TraceBrief scrolls the page automatically and stitches the images together. Scroll to the top first for the cleanest result.

What happens after capture

Your screenshot appears as an Evidence Item in the Capture tab. You can preview it, rename it, open it in the annotation editor, download it, or delete it. All evidence stays local until you export.

Naming your screenshots

Rename evidence items immediately after capture. "Billing — upgrade button disabled" is useful. "Screenshot 1" is not. You'll thank yourself when you're filing the ticket two hours later.

The two paths

Copy path (primary): choose a format on the Export tab, hit Copy, switch to your destination, paste. The side panel remembers your evidence while you switch tabs.

Export path (when you need a file): download a ZIP, CSV, or HTML gallery. Use this when you need an attachment, an archived record, or something to email outside your tools.

Copy formats

Export file formats

The structure that works

Every good bug report has the same three parts. TraceBrief's Step Logger makes all three easy:

Environment context

TraceBrief auto-captures URL, browser, OS, and timestamp. You can add additional context manually — account role, feature flags, environment (staging vs production). This is the context that turns a 3-round ticket into a 1-round fix.

What gets exported

Your steps are included in every output format — plain text, Markdown, CSV, HTML, JSON, and all file exports. They stay attached to your evidence wherever you copy or export it.

Local-first storage

Everything TraceBrief captures — screenshots, recordings, steps, context — is stored in Chrome's local extension storage. It does not leave your machine unless you explicitly copy or export it.

Permissions we request

TraceBrief requests the minimum permissions required to function — nothing more:

Sandboxed HTML previews

HTML gallery exports are rendered inside a sandboxed iframe using srcdoc. This blocks script execution. You can share HTML galleries with anyone — they cannot run code.

Image validation

TraceBrief validates all image payloads against a strict allow-list (PNG, JPEG, WebP only). Unknown or unexpected data URL types are rejected before processing.

Screenshot capture fails

Most likely cause: restricted pages. Chrome blocks capture on internal pages (chrome://), some payment flows, and pages with strict security headers.

Fix: refresh the tab and try again. If it fails on a specific page type, use standard screenshot and capture the area manually. This is a Chrome constraint.

Annotator scroll stuck or unresponsive

Most likely cause: mouse is outside the scrollable editor container.

Fix: ensure your cursor is inside the editor when scrolling. Close and reopen the annotator. In rare cases, reducing Chrome's zoom level (Ctrl/Cmd + -) helps. The annotator scroll stability was a v1 priority fix — if you're seeing persistent issues, check for a newer version.

Recording doesn't save

Most likely cause: the browser share prompt wasn't completed, or Stop Recording wasn't clicked properly.

Fix: ensure you clicked Stop Recording in the panel (not just closed the share prompt). Try again with tab-only recording selected in Chrome's share dialog.

Export buttons are greyed out

This is intentional. TraceBrief disables export actions when they can't complete successfully — and shows you exactly why. Hover the disabled button to see the reason. Common causes: no items selected, no steps logged, export still generating.

Full-page capture misses content

Scroll to the top of the page before triggering full-page capture. Some pages with lazy-loaded content or fixed headers don't scroll cleanly — use standard screenshots for those sections and capture in two passes.

From the Chrome Web Store

Search for TraceBrief in the Chrome Web Store and click Add to Chrome. Chrome will ask you to confirm the permissions. Once installed, pin it to your toolbar for fast access.

Load Unpacked (Developer / Pre-release)

If TraceBrief is provided as a folder or zip before it's on the store:

How to open it

Click the TraceBrief icon in your Chrome toolbar. If you've pinned it, it'll open the side panel directly. If not, click the puzzle piece icon first → find TraceBrief → click it.

You can also open the side panel via Chrome's View menu → Side Panel and then select TraceBrief from the dropdown.

The five tabs

Keyboard shortcuts

Alt+S — capture a screenshot using the current mode (works while the panel is open, even if you're focused on the page).

Alt+R — start or stop a screen recording.

What we request and why

What we explicitly don't do

We don't have a server receiving your screenshots. We don't collect analytics on what pages you visit or what you capture. We don't share data with third parties. The extension does its job locally and stays out of everything else.

See the Privacy & Security guide for the full technical breakdown.

When to record instead of screenshot

Use a recording when the problem is about behaviour over time — a spinner that never stops, an animation that glitches, a multi-step flow that fails on step 4. Screenshots can't show timing. Recordings can.

For static state issues (wrong label, missing field, incorrect value), a screenshot is faster and clearer.

Audio options

Click the ▾ caret next to Screen Record to choose your audio mode before starting:

Recording a clip

Click Screen Record (or press Alt+R). Chrome will ask what to share — choose the tab with the issue. Reproduce the problem, then click Stop Recording (or press Alt+R again). The recording saves as an evidence item automatically.

Opening the editor

In your Evidence list, click any screenshot to open it in the annotation editor. The canvas scrolls for tall screenshots — v1 included a specific stability fix for this.

What you can do

Saving your annotations

Click Save / Done when finished. The evidence item updates in your list — the original is replaced with the annotated version. If you want to keep both, duplicate the item before annotating.

What's captured automatically

Every time you capture evidence, TraceBrief records:

Adding custom context

In the Context tab you can manually add fields like account role, feature flags, environment (staging vs production), or any other relevant info. These get included in all export formats.

What this section does

Your evidence list is the working area for everything you captured in the current pack. It is where you review assets, clean up duplicates, and decide what should be included before export.

What stays in a pack

An Evidence Pack bundles together:

Managing evidence items

Rename immediately after capture. "Checkout — payment error on mobile" is infinitely more useful than "Screenshot 3" when you're filing the ticket an hour later.

Delete noise before exporting — screenshots you took by mistake, duplicates, or captures from the wrong state. A clean pack is a fast fix.

Select items before exporting to send only what's relevant. You don't have to export everything.

History

Past packs are saved in the History tab. Open them when a bug resurfaces later and you need the original evidence without reproducing everything from scratch.

Choosing the right format

ZIP Bundle

The recommended format for most ticket workflows. Contains every screenshot and recording, plus a structured summary file. Attach to Jira, email it, or archive it. Everything travels together.

HTML Gallery

A click-through gallery that renders your screenshots and steps in a clean, readable layout. Designed for stakeholders who just need to see what happened without opening a ticket tool.

CSV

Best when you need a lightweight, text-only attachment — or you want to paste your steps and metadata into a spreadsheet, import them into a tracker, or quickly copy them into a plain text field.

Jira

Best approach: paste the format that reads best in your Jira setup — usually Plain Text or Markdown for the description, plus a ZIP attachment if you want the full evidence pack.

GitHub Issues

Best approach: paste Markdown directly into the issue body. GitHub renders it perfectly — headers, lists, and code blocks all come through. Drag-and-drop any screenshots from the ZIP into the comment.

Linear

Best approach: paste Markdown into the issue description. Linear has excellent Markdown support. Attach images from the ZIP as inline attachments.

Slack

Best approach: paste Plain Text for the most predictable result, or use Markdown if your workspace formatting supports it the way you want. Attach the ZIP or individual screenshots when needed.

Email

Best approach: paste HTML into a rich-text email composer (Gmail, Outlook), or paste Plain Text for plain email. Attach the ZIP or HTML gallery for recipients who need to view everything.

Notion / Confluence / Docs

Best approach: paste Markdown — most modern wikis convert it on paste. Or use HTML in rich-text editors. Attach screenshots inline for visual evidence.

The golden rules

Terms