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quyanhfex/messenger-recall-tool

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

34JavaScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 3/5LicenseSetup · moderate

TLDR

A personal Chrome extension side panel that lets you search, export, and bulk delete your own Facebook Messenger messages beyond the normal 100 message cache limit.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((messenger recall tool))
    What it does
      Read own messages
      Search history
      Bulk recall
      Export PDF or JSON
    Tech stack
      JavaScript
      Chrome Extension
      Manifest V3
      Protobuf
    Use cases
      Personal archiving
      Bulk message cleanup
      AI auto reply
    Requirements
      Chrome browser
      Developer mode
      Own Messenger account

Code map

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filefunction / class

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Search and filter your own Messenger conversation history beyond what the app normally caches locally.

USE CASE 2

Bulk delete a large number of your own messages instead of recalling them one at a time.

USE CASE 3

Export a Messenger conversation as a styled PDF or raw JSON for personal record keeping.

USE CASE 4

Set up an automatic AI reply to incoming Messenger messages using an OpenAI compatible API.

What is it built with?

JavaScriptChrome ExtensionManifest V3Protobuf

How does it compare?

quyanhfex/messenger-recall-toolrotejin/tomari-guruguruspanky96/glm-coding-grabber
Stars343434
LanguageJavaScriptJavaScriptJavaScript
Setup difficultymoderateeasymoderate
Complexity3/52/53/5
Audiencedevelopergeneraldeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Not on the Chrome Web Store, must be loaded manually as an unpacked extension with developer mode enabled.

MIT license, use freely for any purpose including commercial use, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

In plain English

Messenger Recall Tool is a Chrome browser extension that adds a side panel to Facebook Messenger, letting a person read, search, export, and bulk delete their own direct messages, including older messages that go beyond the 100 message limit that Messenger normally keeps cached locally. The author describes it as a personal research project meant only for use on your own account, not affiliated with Meta or Facebook. The extension works by reaching into Messenger's internal data rather than clicking through the normal chat interface. It captures the React component tree that Messenger's web app builds internally, reads the message database that Messenger stores in the browser, and decodes the underlying data format without an official schema, since Meta does not publish one. To bulk delete messages, it calls the same internal function Messenger's own recall button uses, but does so automatically across many messages with a random delay between each one to avoid triggering rate limits. Inside the side panel there are several tabs. A Load tab fetches older message history in pages. A View tab supports full text search and filtering by date, sender, or status, with the ability to select a range of messages at once. A Recall tab bulk deletes the selected messages. An Export tab saves the conversation as a PDF that looks like the original chat, complete with avatars and images, or as raw JSON data with statistics such as messages per hour or call durations. A Chat tab lets you send messages straight from the panel. An AI tab can auto reply to incoming messages using an OpenAI compatible API, with a configurable prompt and reply delay. Other features include viewing and downloading images sent in chats, including encrypted images the tool decrypts locally, and detecting missed or completed calls from the underlying data. To install it, a person clones the repository, opens Chrome's extensions page, turns on developer mode, and loads the folder as an unpacked extension, since it is not on the Chrome Web Store. The README is honest that this approach is unofficial: some message types are not yet decoded properly, recalling call related messages does not work because Facebook silently ignores those requests, and while the author has not been banned for using it, that is based on limited personal experience. The project is released under the MIT license and credits an earlier similar project as inspiration.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Walk me through installing messenger-recall-tool as an unpacked Chrome extension and opening its side panel.
Prompt 2
Explain how messenger-recall-tool reads Messenger's internal message data without an official API.
Prompt 3
How do I configure the AI auto reply tab in messenger-recall-tool with my own API key and system prompt?
Prompt 4
What precautions does messenger-recall-tool take to avoid rate limiting when bulk recalling messages?

Frequently asked questions

What is messenger-recall-tool?

A personal Chrome extension side panel that lets you search, export, and bulk delete your own Facebook Messenger messages beyond the normal 100 message cache limit.

What language is messenger-recall-tool written in?

Mainly JavaScript. The stack also includes JavaScript, Chrome Extension, Manifest V3.

What license does messenger-recall-tool use?

MIT license, use freely for any purpose including commercial use, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

How hard is messenger-recall-tool to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated moderate, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is messenger-recall-tool for?

Mainly developer.

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