How can I retrieve the bound variable ID for the characters property on an instance?

Hi everyone,

I'm working on a Figma plugin using variables, and I've encountered an issue with variable binding information on instances. Here's my situation:

1. For a component (the main/original component) that has its characters property bound to a string variable, I can successfully retrieve the binding details. For example, using:

   • node.boundVariables['characters'] returns an object with binding information (including the variable alias).
   • Then, using await figma.variables.getVariableByIdAsync(variableId), I can get the variable details (and see a variableDetails structure, including the variable ID and mode-specific values).

2. However, when I create an instance of that component and bind its characters property to a variable, the resulting instance's characters property resolves to the overridden string value (e.g., "Share Link Open") and the boundVariables object does not include a key for "characters". In other words, I cannot see the variable binding details (or the variable ID) for the instance's characters.

My questions are:

• Is my understanding correct that, while the original component exposes its variable binding details (via boundVariables["characters"] and its variableDetails), an instance does not expose this information?
• If so, is there any method or workaround available to retrieve the bound variable ID (and its mode-specific values) for the characters property on an instance? I need to know which variable from the local variables collection is bound to the instance's characters, since I can't simply refer to the mainComponent's binding (they can differ).

Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance.