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Downloads

Kernel browsers run in fully sandboxed environments with writable filesystems. When your automation downloads a file, it’s saved inside the browser’s filesystem and can be retrieved using Kernel’s File I/O APIs.
Files can only be retrieved while the browser session is still active. Once the browser session is destroyed or times out, all files from that session are permanently deleted and no longer accessible.

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Playwright

Playwright performs downloads via the browser itself, so there are a few steps:
  • Create a browser session
  • Configure browser download behavior using CDP
  • Perform the download
  • Retrieve the file from the browser’s filesystem
With behavior: 'default', user-initiated downloads (e.g., clicking a download link) are saved to the browser’s default download directory. The CDP downloadProgress event includes a filePath field when the download completes, indicating exactly where the file was saved. This path can then be used with Kernel’s File I/O APIs to retrieve the file.
If the download is programmatically initiated (e.g., triggered via JavaScript rather than a user click), behavior must be set to "allow" with a specified downloadPath. Downloads triggered programmatically are blocked by default in Chromium, so "default" won’t work.
await client.send("Page.setDownloadBehavior", {
  behavior: "allow",
  downloadPath: "/tmp/downloads",
});

import Kernel from '@onkernel/sdk';
import { chromium } from 'playwright';
import fs from 'fs';
import path from 'path';
import pTimeout from 'p-timeout';

const kernel = new Kernel();

// Poll listFiles until the expected file appears in the directory
async function waitForFile(
  sessionId: string,
  filePath: string,
  timeoutMs = 30_000
) {
  const dir = path.dirname(filePath);
  const filename = path.basename(filePath);
  const start = Date.now();
  while (Date.now() - start < timeoutMs) {
    const files = await kernel.browsers.fs.listFiles(sessionId, { path: dir });
    if (files.some((f) => f.name === filename)) {
      return;
    }
    await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 500));
  }
  throw new Error(`File ${filePath} not found after ${timeoutMs}ms`);
}

async function main() {
  const kernelBrowser = await kernel.browsers.create();
  console.log('live view:', kernelBrowser.browser_live_view_url);

  const browser = await chromium.connectOverCDP(kernelBrowser.cdp_ws_url);
  const context = browser.contexts()[0] || (await browser.newContext());
  const page = context.pages()[0] || (await context.newPage());

  const client = await context.newCDPSession(page);
  await client.send('Browser.setDownloadBehavior', {
    behavior: 'default',
    eventsEnabled: true,
  });

  // Set up CDP listeners to capture download path and completion
  let downloadFilePath: string | undefined;
  let downloadState: string | undefined;
  let downloadCompletedResolve!: () => void;
  const downloadCompleted = new Promise<void>((resolve) => {
    downloadCompletedResolve = resolve;
  });

  client.on('Browser.downloadWillBegin', (event) => {
    console.log('Download started:', event.suggestedFilename);
  });

  client.on('Browser.downloadProgress', (event) => {
    if (event.state === 'completed' || event.state === 'canceled') {
      downloadState = event.state;
      downloadFilePath = event.filePath;
      downloadCompletedResolve();
    }
  });

  console.log('Navigating to download test page');
  await page.goto('https://browser-tests-alpha.vercel.app/api/download-test');
  await page.getByRole('link', { name: 'Download File' }).click();

  try {
    await pTimeout(downloadCompleted, {
      milliseconds: 10_000,
      message: new Error('Download timed out after 10 seconds'),
    });
    console.log('Download completed');
  } catch (err) {
    console.error(err);
    throw err;
  }

  if (downloadState === 'canceled') {
    throw new Error('Download was canceled');
  }

  if (!downloadFilePath) {
    throw new Error('Unable to determine download file path');
  }

  // Wait for the file to be available via Kernel's File I/O APIs
  console.log(`Waiting for file: ${downloadFilePath}`);
  await waitForFile(kernelBrowser.session_id, downloadFilePath);

  console.log(`Reading file: ${downloadFilePath}`);

  const resp = await kernel.browsers.fs.readFile(kernelBrowser.session_id, {
    path: downloadFilePath,
  });

  const bytes = await resp.bytes();
  fs.mkdirSync('downloads', { recursive: true });
  const localPath = `downloads/${path.basename(downloadFilePath)}`;
  fs.writeFileSync(localPath, bytes);
  console.log(`Saved to ${localPath}`);

  await kernel.browsers.deleteByID(kernelBrowser.session_id);
  console.log('Kernel browser deleted successfully.');
}

main();

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Stagehand v3

When using Stagehand with Kernel browsers, you need to configure the download behavior in the localBrowserLaunchOptions: 
const stagehand = new Stagehand({
  env: "LOCAL",
  verbose: 1,
  localBrowserLaunchOptions: {
    cdpUrl: kernelBrowser.cdp_ws_url,
    downloadsPath: DOWNLOAD_DIR, // Specify where downloads should be saved
    acceptDownloads: true, // Enable downloads
  },
});
Here’s a complete example: 
import { Stagehand } from "@browserbasehq/stagehand";
import Kernel from "@onkernel/sdk";
import fs from "fs";

const DOWNLOAD_DIR = "/tmp/downloads";

// Poll listFiles until any file appears in the directory
async function waitForFile(
    kernel: Kernel,
    sessionId: string,
    dir: string,
    timeoutMs = 30_000
) {
    const start = Date.now();
    while (Date.now() - start < timeoutMs) {
        const files = await kernel.browsers.fs.listFiles(sessionId, { path: dir });
        if (files.length > 0) {
            return files[0];
        }
        await new Promise((r) => setTimeout(r, 500));
    }
    throw new Error(`No files found in ${dir} after ${timeoutMs}ms`);
}

async function main() {
    const kernel = new Kernel();

    console.log("Creating browser via Kernel...");
    const kernelBrowser = await kernel.browsers.create({
        stealth: true,
    });

    console.log(`Kernel Browser Session Started`);
    console.log(`Session ID: ${kernelBrowser.session_id}`);
    console.log(`Watch live: ${kernelBrowser.browser_live_view_url}`);

    // Initialize Stagehand with Kernel's CDP URL and download configuration
    const stagehand = new Stagehand({
        env: "LOCAL",
        verbose: 1,
        localBrowserLaunchOptions: {
            cdpUrl: kernelBrowser.cdp_ws_url,
            downloadsPath: DOWNLOAD_DIR,
            acceptDownloads: true,
        },
    });

    await stagehand.init();

    const page = stagehand.context.pages()[0];

    await page.goto("https://browser-tests-alpha.vercel.app/api/download-test");

    // Use Stagehand to click the download button
    await stagehand.act("Click the download file link");
    console.log("Download triggered");

    // Wait for the file to be fully available via Kernel's File I/O APIs
    console.log("Waiting for file to appear...");
    const downloadedFile = await waitForFile(
        kernel,
        kernelBrowser.session_id,
        DOWNLOAD_DIR
    );
    console.log(`File found: ${downloadedFile.name}`);

    const remotePath = `${DOWNLOAD_DIR}/${downloadedFile.name}`;
    console.log(`Reading file from: ${remotePath}`);

    // Read the file from Kernel browser's filesystem
    const resp = await kernel.browsers.fs.readFile(kernelBrowser.session_id, {
        path: remotePath,
    });

    // Save to local filesystem
    const bytes = await resp.bytes();
    fs.mkdirSync("downloads", { recursive: true });
    const localPath = `downloads/${downloadedFile.name}`;
    fs.writeFileSync(localPath, bytes);
    console.log(`Saved to ${localPath}`);

    // Clean up
    await stagehand.close();
    await kernel.browsers.deleteByID(kernelBrowser.session_id);
    console.log("Browser session closed");
}

main().catch((err) => {
    console.error(err);
    process.exit(1);
});

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Browser Use

Browser Use handles downloads automatically when configured properly.

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Uploads

Playwright’s setInputFiles() method allows you to upload files directly to file input elements. You can fetch a file from a URL and pass the buffer directly to setInputFiles(). 
import Kernel from '@onkernel/sdk';
import { chromium } from 'playwright';

const IMAGE_URL = 'https://www.kernel.sh/brand_assets/Kernel-Logo_Accent.png';
const kernel = new Kernel();

async function main() {
    // Create Kernel browser session
    const kernelBrowser = await kernel.browsers.create();
    console.log('Live view:', kernelBrowser.browser_live_view_url);

    // Connect Playwright
    const browser = await chromium.connectOverCDP(kernelBrowser.cdp_ws_url);
    const context = browser.contexts()[0] || (await browser.newContext());
    const page = context.pages()[0] || (await context.newPage());

    // Navigate to a page with a file input
    await page.goto('https://browser-tests-alpha.vercel.app/api/upload-test');

    // Fetch file and pass buffer directly to setInputFiles
    const response = await fetch(IMAGE_URL);
    const buffer = Buffer.from(await response.arrayBuffer());

    await page.locator('input[type="file"]').setInputFiles([{
        name: 'Kernel-Logo_Accent.png',
        mimeType: 'image/png',
        buffer: buffer,
    }]);
    console.log('File uploaded');

    await kernel.browsers.deleteByID(kernelBrowser.session_id);
    console.log('Browser deleted');
}

main();

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Considerations

  • The CDP downloadProgress event signals when the browser finishes writing a file, but there may be a brief delay before the file becomes available through Kernel’s File I/O APIs. This is especially true for larger downloads. We recommend polling listFiles to confirm the file exists before attempting to read it.