chrome: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Place to exchange experience about rolling out Adblock Plus to many computers, preconfiguring the extension etc.
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tswartz

chrome: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Post by tswartz »

I know Chrome >v.25 requires the little 'bubble' notification regarding the extensions, however- I'd like to prevent the 'AdBlock has been installed' page from appearing.

Here's the situation:
We have ~1,000 shared 'classroom' linux computers using Chrome. We'd like to install ABP on these machines to prevent ads from showing up (especially for the younger kids).
Because of the way that the computers are managed, we remove the user profiles after each logout, so every time one logs in, it's a fresh, clean slate.

Unfortunately, because the Chrome .config folder is removed, every fresh time Chrome is launched, one would be greeted with the 'ABP has been installed!' screen. Not very useful.

Is there a way to deploy the extension and prevent it from showing this splash page?

Thanks!
InsaneCoder

Re: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Post by InsaneCoder »

You may do so by changing a little something in the app:

Step 1. Download the latest .crx Chrome development build on en/development-builds
Step 2. Unzip the .crx, and remove the following line in background.js:

Code: Select all

win.openTab(ext.getURL("firstRun.html"));
Step 3. Then pack your modified app (look at "Step 3" here), and install it in Chrome.

I tested it quickly and it worked. You may also want to try to disable the automatic updates for that app, and update it yourself (after having modify the new version).
kjarrett
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Sep 02, 2014 3:12 pm

Re: chrome: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Post by kjarrett »

I have the same question, but for ChromeOS, not the Chrome browser, for a Chromebook deployment.

Preinstalling the extension works perfectly, but the splash page appears after every user login.

On the Chrome browser, the splash page only appears once.

This would be HUGE as like the OP we would like to use ABP in a school setting.

Thanks for any help,

-kj-
User avatar
Matze
Posts: 7
Joined: Thu Aug 14, 2014 9:41 am

Re: chrome: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Post by Matze »

Hello kj,

what do you mean by "after every user login"? Literally each time one logs in, even if it's on a Chromebook the same person has been logged in before (after the ABP installtion, of course)? Or just when a user logs into each device for the first time?

Cheers!
Matze
nkelnhofer

Re: chrome: Is it possible to 'quiet' install AdBlock?

Post by nkelnhofer »

The problem is that in a managed environment, an institution may assign the AdBlock Plus Extension to be automatically installed to a large number of Chromebooks. If the Devices are Managed in a way that the user data is wiped from the device after each login, the 'AdBlock has been installed' page will pop up for every user every time they login to the Chromebook.

I would also point out that this problem extends to any other settings for the extension since there doesn't appear to be any way to manage custom settings for an extension at the Google Device Management level.
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