Open Illustrator From Browser (macOS)

Small macOS helper that lets you open Adobe Illustrator from browser links via a custom URL protocol.

Open Illustrator From Browser

Use links like:

illustrator-open://open?path=/absolute/path/to/file.ai

to open local Illustrator-supported files directly in Adobe Illustrator.

What It Does

• Registers illustrator-open:// URL scheme.
• Accepts URLs in the form:
  • illustrator-open://open?path=/absolute/path/to/file.ai
• Opens the file in Illustrator and brings Illustrator to the foreground.

Security Guards

• Only paths ending in .svg, .pdf, .ai, or .eps are accepted.
• Only paths under your configured base directory are accepted.

Setup

1. Copy env template:

cp .env.example .env.local

2. Edit .env.local:

• ILLUSTRATOR_APP_NAME - usually Adobe Illustrator
• ILLUSTRATOR_ALLOWED_BASE_PATH - absolute allowlisted folder for your artwork files
• ILLUSTRATOR_URL_SCHEME - default illustrator-open

Build and Register

Run:

./scripts/build-handler.sh

This will:

• Generate AppleScript from template + env values
• Compile IllustratorUrlHandler.app
• Register URL scheme with LaunchServices

Example Page

Open:

open example/index.html

Then click the icon. It triggers the URL handler and opens the file in Illustrator.

Source-of-truth handler logic is in scripts/handler.applescript.template.

License

MIT.