How to Deploy the Helperbird Google Docs and Slides Add-on

This guide is for administrators who have already deployed the Helperbird browser extension and now want Helperbird inside Google Docs, Slides and Sheets as well.

If you are wondering whether your subscription key alone turns the add-on on, the short answer is no. They are two separate installs.

The Extension and the Add-on Are Two Different Things

This catches almost everyone, so it is worth being precise about it.

The Helperbird browser extension comes from the Chrome Web Store. It runs on web pages, and it is what you force install through Devices → Chrome → Apps & extensions.

The Helperbird Google Workspace add-on comes from the Google Workspace Marketplace. It runs inside the Docs, Slides and Sheets editors as a sidebar, and it is deployed from a completely different part of the Admin console.

Deploying one does not deploy the other. They are separate products, from separate stores, configured in separate places. Your subscription key does not install the add-on, and force installing the extension does not make the add-on appear under the Extensions menu.

Which One Do Your Users Need?

Most schools deploy both, because they do different jobs.

The two do not share settings. A user who changes their font in the extension will not see that font carried into the Docs sidebar.

Before You Start

Make sure that:

• You are a super administrator in the Google Admin console
• You know which organizational units should get the add-on
• You have your Helperbird subscription key, if you want Pro features inside the sidebar

You do not need the extension deployed first. The two are independent, and you can do them in either order.

Deploy the Add-on to Your Domain

Step 1: Open Marketplace Apps

1. Go to admin.google.com (opens in a new tab)
2. Go to Apps → Google Workspace Marketplace apps → Apps list

This is a different section from Devices → Chrome → Apps & extensions, which is where the browser extension lives. If you are in the Chrome section, you are in the wrong place for this.

Step 2: Add Helperbird

1. Click Add app → Google Workspace Marketplace
2. Search for Helperbird
3. Click the Helperbird listing
4. Click Admin install

Choosing Admin install rather than Individual install is what makes this domain wide. An individual install only covers your own account.

Step 3: Choose Who Gets It

Pick either Everyone at your organization, or Certain organizational units or groups and select the units you want.

If you are piloting Helperbird, select the pilot organizational unit here rather than your whole domain. You can widen it later without reinstalling.

Step 4: Accept and Finish

1. Read the data access notice and tick the agreement box
2. Click Finish, then Done

The add-on now installs for everyone in scope. It usually appears within minutes, though Google allows up to 24 hours.

What Your Users See

Nobody has to install anything. The next time a user in scope opens a Google Doc, Slides presentation or Sheet:

1. They click Extensions in the top menu
2. They choose Helperbird
3. They choose Open Helperbird

The sidebar opens beside their file. There is no account to create and no sign-in step.

What appears inside depends on the file type. See what the Google Docs sidebar does, what the Google Slides sidebar does and what the Google Sheets sidebar does.

Unlocking Pro Inside the Add-on

The add-on is free to install and the core tools work without a subscription.

For the Pro tools inside the sidebar, a subscription key is entered in the sidebar itself:

1. Open the Helperbird sidebar
2. Open the Pro tile
3. Paste your subscription key into the Subscription key box
4. Click Save

The add-on does not read your Chrome managed policy. A subKey pushed through Devices → Chrome → Apps & extensions applies to the browser extension only. The add-on is a Google Workspace app and has no access to that policy, so the key has to be entered in the sidebar.

For a school rollout, the simplest route is to send staff and students a single link that carries your key, so there is nothing for them to type. Contact us and we will set one up for your domain.

Manual route, if you would rather: How to use your subscription key

Troubleshooting

Helperbird is not in the Extensions menu

Check you used Admin install rather than Individual install, and that the user's organizational unit is in scope. Then have the user fully reload the editor tab. Google can take up to 24 hours to propagate a new Marketplace app.

The extension works but the add-on is missing

That is expected if you have only deployed the extension. They are separate installs. Work through the steps above.

Marketplace apps are restricted on our domain

If your domain only allows allowlisted Marketplace apps, Helperbird has to be added to that allowlist before an admin install will stick. That setting is under Apps → Google Workspace Marketplace apps → Settings.

A user is asked to grant permissions

The add-on asks for access to the file the user currently has open, and permission to show its sidebar. It cannot open, read or change any other file in their Google account. An admin install normally grants this centrally, so being prompted usually means the user installed it themselves beforehand.

Settings are not carrying between the extension and the add-on

They never do. The two store their settings separately, by design.

Related Guides

• How to Install the Helperbird Add-on for Google Docs and Slides
• How to Use the Helperbird Add-on for Google Docs
• How to Install and Use the Helperbird Add-on for Google Slides
• How to Use the Helperbird Add-on for Google Sheets
• How to Open PDFs with Helperbird in Google Drive, Classroom or Gmail
• How to Set Helperbird JSON Policy in Google Admin
• Setting Chrome Storage Managed Keys
• How to Verify a Managed Helperbird Deployment

Need Additional Help?

If the add-on is not appearing for your users, or you are unsure which install you need, contact the Helperbird support team. We are happy to walk through your setup with you.