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Zotero Connector: “Is Zotero Running?”

When you click the Save to Zotero button in your browser or try to use Zotero with Google Docs, you may receive the following message:

“The Zotero Connector was unable to communicate with the Zotero desktop application.”

The Zotero Connector needs to connect to the Zotero desktop app in order to save data or insert citations into Google Docs. (It can also save pages directly to zotero.org, but saving to the Zotero application provides the best experience.)

First, make sure that Zotero is installed and open on your computer. If you don't yet have the Zotero application, you can install it from the downloads page. If you were previously using Zotero for Firefox, note that Zotero now runs only as a standalone application.

If Zotero is open but the Zotero Connector reports that Zotero is unavailable, something on your computer is preventing the Connector from talking to Zotero. You can determine whether the problem is within the browser or a system-wide problem by loading http://127.0.0.1:23119/connector/ping in one or more browsers while Zotero is open. Under normal circumstances, it should display “Zotero Connector Server is Available” (or “Endpoint does not support method” in older versions).

  • If you're able to load that URL but the Connector shows Zotero as unavailable, or if you're able to load the URL in another browser but not the one with the Connector, try these steps:
    1. Uninstall and reinstall the Zotero Connector.
    2. Temporarily disable any browser extensions that may block network requests, such as AdBlock, uBlock Origin, NoScript, EFF Privacy Badger, or Request Policy. If the Connector stops saying that Zotero is offline, reenable each extension one at a time and, if the problem recurs, whitelist 127.0.0.1 port 23119 in the extension's settings.
  • If you can't load that URL and your computer is connecting via a proxy server, ensure that the host 127.0.0.1 (an alias for your computer itself) is excluded from proxying, and then check http://127.0.0.1:23119/connector/ping again.
  • If you still can't load that URL, temporarily disable any security software running on your system. If http://127.0.0.1:23119/connector/ping starts working, reenable each piece of software one at a time and, if the problem recurs, whitelist 127.0.0.1 port 23119 in the software's settings.
kb/connector_zotero_unavailable.1587031803.txt.gz · Last modified: 2020/04/16 06:10 by dstillman