# WebExtensions browser.tabs.create(privileged url)
**URL:** https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/webextensions-browser-tabs-create-privileged-url/22236
**Category:** Development
**Created:** [November 21, 2017, 4:17pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/webextensions-browser-tabs-create-privileged-url/22236 "2017-11-21T16:17:29Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@sjah07](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/sjah07)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 4:17pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/webextensions-browser-tabs-create-privileged-url/22236/1 "2017-11-21T16:17:29Z")
I’m trying to write an extension that adds a button to the toolbar that, when clicked, opens the about:downloads page in a new tab. This should, in my opinion, be an eminently trivial task, but as far as I can figure, it is simply not possible with the WebExtensions API.
I had hoped to use [browser.tabs.create](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/Add-ons/WebExtensions/API/tabs/create)(“about:downloads”) to open the download manager, but “about:downloads” is a privileged URL and therefore, apparently, cannot be opened by the API. Is there any alternative to tabs.create() that _is_ capable of opening privileged pages?
If not, then I’ll consider raising a bug, because I do not really see the security issue with merely allowing an extension to open a privileged URL. I’m not interested in gaining control over a privileged page – just in opening it (which is something that a user can do…).
Cheers,
Stephen
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### Author:  [@freaktechnik](https://discourse.mozilla.org/u/freaktechnik)
#### Post date: [November 21, 2017, 10:15pm UTC](https://discourse.mozilla.org/t/webextensions-browser-tabs-create-privileged-url/22236/2 "2017-11-21T22:15:25Z")
This is a know limitation, see [https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show\_bug.cgi?id=1269456](https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1269456)