Installing Google Chrome on all the computers in your network using group policies (GPO)
Prepare Google Chrome Files
Download the latest Google Chrome msi file from: https://cloud.google.com/chrome-enterprise/browser/download/
This download includes the msi installers and the ADMX templates for Group Policy deployment.
Customise Google Chrome
Load the ADM files into your Group Policy environment to allow management of user's Google Chrome settings.
Set Google Chrome User Data Path to Roaming User Data
Google Chrome will by default save all the user's data in the local app data folder - which is no good if users use multiple computers on the network. Google have a policy setting to store certain roaming data in a small file in the user's roaming app data. To enable this option:
User Configuration - Google/Google Chrome
- Enable the creation of roaming copies for Google Chrome profile data - Set this to Enabled
- Set disk cache directory - Set this to : ${local_app_data}\GoogleChromeCache
This will create a small file called profile.pb in the \\<path to users roaming profiles>\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default
Note: Setting the Enable the creation of roaming copies for Google Chrome profile data option will disable the ability of users to sync their Chrome settings with an online Google account.
Note: Google Chrome does not use system environment variables. If you try to use standard variables, Chrome will usually crash, or not load pages correctly. To overcome this, you need to uses it's own variables for system paths. E.g:
- %APPDATA% = ${roaming_app_data}
- %LOCALAPPDATA% = ${local_app_data}
- %USERNAME% = ${user_name}
- %COMPUTERNAME% = ${machine_name}
- %USERPROFILE% = ${profile}
- %PROGRAMFILES% = ${program_files}
- %WINDIR% = ${windows}
- ${documents} = The “Documents” folder for the current user. (“C:\Users\Administrator\Documents”)
- ${global_app_data} = The system AppData folder. (“C:\ProgramData”)
Google Chrome Set Default Search Engine
To prevent the search engine selection box form appearing on the user's first launch, and to force the Google search engine use the following group policy settings:
User Configuration - Google/Google Chrome/Default search provider:
- Default search provider name: Google
- Default search provider icon: http://www.google.com.au/favicon.ico
- Default search provider instant URL: "http://www.google.com.au/suggest?q={searchTerms}"
- Default search provider search URL: "http://www.google.com.au/search?q={searchTerms}"
- Default search provider suggest URL: "http://www.google.com.au/suggest?q={searchTerms}"
Google Chrome Set Homepage
User Configuration - Google/Google Chrome/Startup pages
- Action on startup: Open home page
User Configuration - Google/Google Chrome/Home page
- Configure the home page URL: <your homepage> eg http://www.google.com.au
- Use New Tab Page as homepage: Disabled
Other settings that I prefer to configure for end users
User Configuration -Google/Google Chrome
- Prevent app promotions from appearing on the new tab page: Enabled
- Set Chrome as Default Browser: Disabled
- Show Home button on toolbar: Enabled
Deploy Google Chrome
Copy the msi to your deployment share, and add the msi to the software deployment GPO.
Troubleshooting
Deploy Google Chrome Extensions
Obtain the extension CRX file
The first step in deploying an extension to your network deployment of chrome is to obtain the .crx file of your desired extension. I have found a few ways of doing this (some much more difficult than others). The easiest way I have found is to:
1. Find the extension ID of your desired extension. This is the unique ID of the extension in the Chrome webstore. You can see this ID in the URL of the extension ie:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/bgapjbbdaijoijbmhlpjhilaamenipao
or, Open the extensions list in Chrome; tick the Developer Mode tick box and then click the arrow next to the extension you want to deploy - the extension ID will be underneath the extension's heading.
At this point, it is worth making note of the extension's version number too, as you will need this later on in the deployment.
2. Open a browser other than chrome - Firefox will work fine. Paste the following line into the address bar, replacing the ----- with the extension ID
https://clients2.google.com/service/update2/crx?response=redirect&x=id%3D-----%26uc
Press enter to access this URL; you will be prompted to save the .crx file.
Copy this .crx file to your deployment shared folder eg \\Server\SoftwareDeployment\ChromeExtensions\<filename>.crx
Deploy Extension using Windows Registry
Once the crx file is copied to the server, you can start the deployment by adding the following registry keys to the machines you wish to deploy your extension:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Google\Chrome\Extensions
Create a new key (folder) under this key that is named the same as the extension ID, ie bgapjbbdaijoijbmhlpjhilaamenipao
In this key create two Strings (REG_SZ):
- path - value: <UNC path to the extension file> ie: \\Server\SoftwareDeployment\ChromeExtensions\YoutubeDownloader_11_0.crx
- version - value: version number of the extension (as noted above) ie: 11.0
These reg keys can be saved as a .reg file that can be imported using a computer startup script.
For example, the .reg file will look like:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Google\Chrome\Extensions\bgapjbbdaijoijbmhlpjhilaamenipao] "version"="11.0" "path"="\\\\server\\remoteinstall\\GoogleChromeExtensions\\YoutubeDownloader_11_0.crx"
References
http://windowsmasher.wordpress.com/2011/01/28/google-chrome-lab-computers-roaming-profiles/
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Chrome/thread?tid=4c51c0d3e684bcec&hl=en
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Chrome/thread?tid=22afd076da9ed00e&hl=en
http://www.chromeplugins.org/google/chrome-talk/change-directory-bookmarks-file-7474.html
Google Chrome for Business / Enterprise: http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/chromebrowser.html
Google Chrome MSI: http://www.google.com/chrome/intl/en/business/download.html
Google Chrome Group Policy ADM ADMX templates: http://dl.google.com/dl/edgedl/chrome/policy/policy_templates.zip
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Chrome/thread?tid=76ac2782e7f28bd4