Writer automatically adds http:// to links, breaking custom protocol browser behaviour

User Support Writer
1

Hello,

I am trying to add hyperlinks with custom protocol to my document, but it keeps automatically adding http:// in front. There seems to be no way to disable this behaviour or manually edit the link to be functional. This “feature” breaks common web functionality.

Specifically I want to add links such as “zotero://select/groups/0000/collections/123” which are valid custom protocols and prompt the browser to open a desktop app. If at all the http:// should only be automatically added if there is no protocol:// string at the beginning of the pasted text.

  1. Can I somehow disable this? Is there a workaround?
  2. Where can I file for a bug report?
2

This issue is caused by Collabora Online (or LibreOffice) automatically assuming “http://” for links that do not have a standard web protocol. Unfortunately, there is no built-in option to disable this behavior via the UI.

You can report this issue in the Collabora Online GitHub repository:
GitHub · Where software is built

Or, if this is also an issue in LibreOffice, file it here:
https://bugs.documentfoundation.org/