A friendly, practical guide to what Trezor Bridge is, why it matters, and how to keep the connection between your device and computer safe and reliable.
```Trezor Bridge is a lightweight helper application that creates a secure, local connection between your Trezor hardware wallet and the web-based wallet interfaces or desktop apps running in your browser. When a Trezor device is plugged into a computer, the browser alone cannot communicate directly with it for security reasons — Trezor Bridge bridges that gap safely, without exposing your private keys to the internet.
Hardware wallets are valuable because they keep private keys offline. But to sign transactions and manage accounts you need a trusted communication channel. Bridge provides that channel while keeping the cryptographic operations on-device. It translates browser requests into messages your Trezor understands and vice versa, minimizing attack surface and ensuring predictable, audited behavior.
At a high level, Trezor Bridge runs as a local program that listens for requests from the browser and forwards them to the connected Trezor via USB. The device displays confirmations which you must approve physically — a crucial defense against remote tampering.
Download the installer for your operating system from the official Bridge page. The installation is straightforward — run the installer and follow the prompts. If you already have Bridge installed, the page will typically show a version check and offer updates. Updating Bridge promptly helps ensure compatibility with the latest browsers and fixes for security or stability issues.
If your browser doesn’t detect the device after installing Bridge, try the following:
wallet.trezor.io or the official web wallet for device setup and recovery — those pages work with Bridge and are built to minimize risk.
Trezor Bridge is designed to reduce the risk of exposing keys by keeping cryptographic operations on the device and requiring physical confirmation for sensitive actions. However, security is layered: ensure your host computer is free from malware, keep Bridge and firmware updated, and never share your seed phrase.
Bridge does not store private keys, it does not transmit seeds, and it does not bypass on-device confirmations. If a webpage asks for your seed, it is malicious — never enter it.
To avoid connection problems and increase reliability:
If Bridge repeatedly fails after troubleshooting, contact official Trezor support and provide logs if asked. Do not post private logs publicly.