How Chrome OS turned from a failed experiment into a Windows competitor. Review of the Chrome OS operating system from Google

Although in fact the Chrome OS operating system from Google is open, like Android, it cannot be installed on any computer just like that. The American corporation does not prohibit doing this - it simply did not include in the proprietary OS support for special software necessary for its full launch on any electronic devices, if, of course, they meet the minimum system requirements. The company Neverware, which released a program called Cloudready USB Maker, decided to solve this misunderstanding.

Using Neverware's Cloudready utility, you can install Google's Chrome OS on any Windows computer. This will require about half an hour of free time and a free 8 GB USB 3.0 flash drive, which will have to be formatted, that is, all data will be deleted from it. The most interesting thing is that the entire OS will be launched directly from the flash drive without using the computer’s built-in memory.

The Chrome OS operating system is based on Linux, and therefore it is much less demanding on computer resources than Windows 10. To install it, you need to download the Cloudready USB Maker utility program from the official website, then insert a USB flash drive into the computer port and format it. Then you need to run the program downloaded from the Neverware website and agree to record data.

When everything is done, and this takes about 10 minutes, the program will report that the Chrome OS operating system was successfully written to the USB flash drive. After this, you can safely restart the computer, and when it starts, go to a special menu for selecting a boot device. You can find out the specific button to go to it in the instructions for the motherboard, or by searching through the buttons from F1 to F12. One of them is guaranteed to work.

Once in the boot device selection menu, you need to find a flash drive in the list and boot from it. As a result, the computer will launch the Chrome OS operating system. The user will only have to complete the initial setup and then enjoy all the functionality. However, every time you start the OS again, you will have to configure it again, because the peculiarity of the software is that it is not able to remember previously entered data.

This method of installing an operating system on a computer or tablet is suitable, for example, for familiarizing yourself with the functionality of Chrome OS. Neverware says they are working to resolve the storage limitations, but this may take several months and there is no guarantee that this will be done in the near future.

Earlier it became known that Google operating system.

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Chrome OS is a relatively young brainchild of a world-famous company, which has managed to gain interest and popularity among computer users. This operating system is based on cloud-centric technology. In essence, it is a Chrome browser developed on Linux, with additional features and its own applications.

Convenient and safe operating system for users

The announcement of the project took place in not so distant 2009. And already in December 2010, a trial version was launched. When announcing the operating system, its creators promised their users speed, simplicity, and security. They were the key points. The program should launch in a few seconds, the user-friendly interface of Chrome OS should carry out a large number of requests without user intervention, and you can completely forget about malware and viruses, as the developers of this system assure us. Let's check how reality lives up to the promises in the Chrome OS review.

Using the Linux kernel, Californian specialists presented the world with a long-awaited project - Chromium. Its most outstanding feature and difference from others is the predominance of web applications over regular OS functions. In this review, you should not compare Chrome OS with other familiar operating systems. There are no traditional desktop, icons or folders. The only thing offered is the Chrome browser, which plays the main role. In general, the approach is clear and quite explainable. Google Chrome boasts both high speed and stability. A third of all World Wide Web users use this browser. And such successes were achieved during the six years of its existence.

So what is Chrome OS? Everything is very simple. These are the minimum requirements for the hardware of a computer device, high speed Internet connection, and a user-friendly interface.

Secrets of the web system

All Chrome OS information is stored in the cloud, without using physical drives for downloading. Calculations and operations are performed at the company's expense, completely relieving the graphics card and processor. As a result, the operating system acts as something of an intermediary between the service and the user.

OS Chrome is the highest level of security, convenient usability and pleasant bonuses in the form of 100 GB of cloud storage and more. When the system starts, an authentication window appears in front of the user, where he must enter his login and password. The OS is not available for an unverified user.

You can work in the system as different users and easily administer them: access rights change, accounts can be configured according to individual parameters, there is a guest mode limited to browser operation. This operating system allows you to easily manage themes, fonts, and home page settings. Everything that is available in the browser.

The cloud system implies minimal use of the disk space of the computer itself. The calculation is based on the fact that the user will store most of the information using Google Docs and Dropbox services. There are also special services for playing videos and listening to music: YouTube, Google Music and so on. But despite this, Chrome OS has its own local storage and also has a file manager.

Chrome desktop

It’s difficult to call this a full-fledged desktop. Most of the screen is a beautiful image on which nothing can be placed. Thanks to the “Surprise Me” function, you can diversify it by regularly changing the background using images from Google resources. The taskbar can be hidden in the footer or placed on any side of the screen. There is also some alternative to the Start menu, and a kind of Launchpad.

The desktop contains browser add-ons and plugins, and you can also store applications and files here. Information is located and organized into folders. There is also a search box that will help you quickly find the information you need. But the most important function of this field is quick access to Google services. The panel also displays already running applications, indicated by a white backlight.

In the lower right corner the user will find system information, settings menu and widgets. For convenience and comfort, there are many hot keys and their combinations.

Stability and security

Google offers users three options: OS for developers, beta and stable versions. The linker page provides information such as the latest version of the system, some features of which may still be in testing and may not be stable. But what will definitely never overtake you in the new system is the ill-fated blue “deadly” screen or a forced reboot.

One great thing about Chrome OS is its built-in error protection. If you tinker a little with the system settings in the operating systems we are used to, you can enter a cycle of endless reboots, many errors, and so on. Chrome works differently. None of the applications you install will affect the kernel, so there is no way to disrupt its stable operation. And since the system is updated every time you reboot, all kinds of bugs and errors are corrected very quickly.

Magic things - synchronization, speed, user-friendly interface

Another significant advantage of the new operating system is the storage of all settings, files online and accessibility from anywhere. Automatic synchronization provides access to documents and settings from different devices while saving all changes.

Performance is the main feature of Chrome OS and its undeniable advantage. Chrome isn't just fast, it's phenomenally fast! None of the known operating systems can compare with it in this indicator. And thanks to its high speed, it is an ideal tool for working with mail, quickly searching and generally surfing the global network.

The user interface of Chrome OS is easy to understand for everyone. It is simple, convenient, comfortable. Anyone who is familiar with Internet browsers will understand all its tricks very quickly.

The Chrome OS review is complete. As a result, users will undoubtedly need some time to adapt to the somewhat unusual interface and features of Chrome OS. But the system differs from traditional OS not only in appearance, but also in functionality: speed, security, automatic synchronization and, of course, cloud-based technology, which gives it some advantage.

Despite everything, the project of a special operating system from Google continues to develop. Chromium OS is an open source operating system based on the Gentoo distribution. Its main feature is that everything here is designed to work on the Internet, and only in a browser.

Chromium OS loads quickly enough, does not consume many resources, and also supports full integration with your Google account. Your settings, history, programs, plugins and extensions are automatically synchronized.

The operating system was released in 2009 and has all the advantages of the Linux kernel. It is not officially released by Google, the developers simply opened the code and anyone can download it and build the system. At the same time, Google maintains the Chrome OS operating system, which receives updates and is distributed on Chromebooks.

This article will cover installing Chromium OS on your computer or laptop. Considering that the system is not going to Google, some difficulties may arise, but we will try to get around them.

In general, installing this operating system is easier than other Linux distributions, with a couple of exceptions.

We will not build the system from source, that would be too long. We will not use the previously popular assembly from Hexxeh. It is already outdated, and we want Chromium OS 54 or a newer version. The Arnoldthebat project collects daily builds of ChromiumOS for x86, amd64 and arm architectures.

We will use their option. There are three options here, daily, weekly and special:

Select the desired version of Camd64OS for x64 or Cx86OS for x32, then click on it to download Chromium OS.

Step 2. Burn the image

The image takes up around 600 Megabytes, so the download will complete quickly. The image is packaged in a 7z archive, if you have this utility installed, you can unpack it with the command:

7z e ~/Downloads/Cx86OS-20160824010101.img.7z

You can also unpack using a file manager. Next you need to burn the image to a flash drive. Moreover, we do not need a separate partition, but the entire flash drive. This is not just an image with files, it has markup and several sections.

Therefore, we will use the dd command to record:

sudo dd if=Cx86OS-20160824010101.img of=/dev/sdb bs=4M

Here if indicates your ChromeOS image, and of indicates your flash drive. Be very careful, your flash drive may have a different name. First check with fdisk -l, then replace the name with your own. On Windows you can use the utility.

Launching Chromium OS

Step 3. BIOS setup

Restart your computer and during the BIOS splash screen, click F2, Shift+F2 or Del. Here go to the Boot tab and in the item Boot Device Priority or 1s Boot Device install your flash drive first:

It can be displayed by label or USB Drive. Then all you have to do is go to the tab Exit and press Exit & Save Settings.

Step 4: Launch Chromium OS

Step 5. Language and network connection

Without a network connection, Chromium OS will not work. In this window, select the language, keyboard layout and network connection, Ethernet, if there is a network cable or Wifi:

Step 6: Google Account

Step 7. You are logged in

Before you is a ChromiumOS system loaded into LiveCD and completely ready for use. You'll be given a short tour of its capabilities, but we'll skip that.

Installing ChromiumOS

Everything difficult is already behind us. Installing Chromium OS is done in a couple of clicks.

Step 8: Launch Terminal

To install Chromium OS we need to launch a terminal. First, press Ctrl+Alt+T to launch the crosh developer console:

Then type shell and press Enter to access a regular linux terminal:

Step 9: Start the installation

The installation is performed with just one command, and in the parameters you need to pass the hard drive on which you want to install Chromium OS. Just type the command:

sudo /usr/sbin/chromeos-install -dst /dev/sda

If the system requires a password, enter password. All that remains is to confirm your choice. The system will clear the entire disk. You won't be able to dual boot with other versions of Linux or Windows here. To dual boot, use the CloudReady Chromium OS modification.

Step 10. Finish

After installation is complete, restart your computer and remove the USB flash drive. Your system is now ready to use and configure. You can install your programs and surf the Internet comfortably.

conclusions

That's all. Chromium OS installation is complete. As you can see, it was not that difficult and, due to the smaller number of settings, it was even much easier than in other distributions. It’s just a pity that installation in dualboot mode is not supported and cannot be installed on a virtual machine. If you have any questions, ask in the comments.

A few years ago, Google introduced the Chrome OS operating system, which was essentially the Chrome browser. Many perceived this as a failed experiment, since it was in no way suitable for a full-fledged OS. Without access to the Internet, Chrome OS was practically useless; the usual software was missing. Users had access only to Google services and numerous extensions familiar from the Chrome browser.

However, this also had its advantages: the system did not require powerful hardware, and the cost of the laptop did not exceed $300. It's cheaper than most Windows devices, not to mention a MacBook.

No longer just a browser

Almost seven years have passed since then and a lot has changed. The system has become more functional, self-sufficient, and has acquired support for offline programs. Yes, it still can do more when connected to the Internet, but now this can be said about any operating system. Offline, you can listen to music, watch movies, and work with documents. Such features will satisfy the requirements of most users.

Google's calculation was correct: people spend most of their time in the browser. Or more precisely - in . Its share is about 50%, making it the most popular in the world. “If so,” Google decided, “keep an accessible device that has your favorite browser with all kinds of extensions.” And that's it, nothing more unnecessary. The interface is simple and concise, even a child can master it.

By the way, about children: Chromebooks are most often purchased for education and the corporate segment. Thanks to this, in the first quarter of 2016 in the United States, laptops with Chrome OS outsold Apple laptops. Almost 2 million versus 1.76 million is a serious achievement for a browser OS.

But Google struck the main blow recently, in May 2016. What many have been waiting for has happened: in the near future, Chrome OS will receive native support for Android applications. Chromebook owners are incredibly lucky, because in the near future almost the entire Google Play range will be available to them! The issue of the number of applications and dependence on the Internet is immediately resolved. It is important that the applications are not emulated, but are native, that is, they have access to Wi-Fi, RAM, processor and other necessary components.

In fact, now we have another Android device, but with more advanced capabilities. Yes, but for the vast majority of users, the functionality of a Chromebook will be sufficient.

Pros of Chromebooks

1. Price

I'll start with the most important thing - the cost of Chromebooks. In the US, an inexpensive Windows laptop will cost $400–700. MacBook prices start at $899. At the same time, the price of most Chromebooks does not exceed $300. An excellent option for schoolchildren, students and simply people who need a laptop only to surf the Internet and work with documents.

2. Simplicity

Chromebooks are easy to use. They are fast, easy to set up, and absolutely everyone can master them: from children to the elderly. This is why Chromebooks are so popular in schools and the corporate sector.

3. Large selection

The range of Chromebooks is quite extensive. There are laptops with screen diagonals from 11 to 15 inches. The hardware is also very diverse: from mobile processors, which are usually installed in smartphones, to Intel processors.

4. Ecosystem

If you own an Android smartphone, a Chromebook will be a worthy addition to your ecosystem. Thanks to Google services, all data is synchronized. In the same way, you can work with third-party software thanks to native support for Android applications.

Cons of Chrome OS

1. Network addiction

Whatever one may say, the work of Chromebooks is tied to the Internet. Without the Internet, their opportunities tend to zero. Despite the fact that the Internet is now everywhere, for many it can become a serious problem.

2. Lack of “adult” software

Chromebooks are not suitable for serious work. It will not be possible to install Photoshop, AutoCAD and other software that works on Windows and OS X. Such devices are more suitable for those who spend most of their time in the browser, as well as for those who actively use Google services.

What's next?

Of course, Google has made huge strides in seven years, but experts say this is just the beginning. Once the system starts supporting Android applications, its popularity will increase significantly.

From a fun experiment, it will turn into an enhanced version of Android for budget laptops. And in this case, the competitor will not be Apple, which is focused on the premium segment, but Microsoft. After all, it mainly makes money from selling software for the corporate segment and licenses for selling laptops. The sharp increase in the popularity of devices on Chrome OS can significantly spoil the life of Microsoft.

Chrome OS is a new “cloud” operating system being developed by Google for use on relatively low-power laptops and tablets. “Cloud” - precisely in the sense that all work will be carried out by the user on the Internet and his data will mainly be stored there. Some local functionality will also be present, but will play a clearly auxiliary role, say, in case there is no Internet connection. This revives the original idea behind netbooks, which, although running conventional general-purpose operating systems, should have become a kind of Internet set-top boxes (as even the name, which comes from the word network, suggests) - but did not.

By the way, it is useful to think about the reasons for this precisely in the context of Chrome OS - what prevented netbooks from forming a separate class of devices: was it just the lack of a suitable specialized platform or the unwillingness of users to abandon familiar programs and the accumulated experience of working with them in favor of web applications and the web? -storages? I believe that the second factor played, if not a determining, then at least a significant role - here you have issues with the reliability of network resources, and far from universal (convenient and cheap) access to the Internet, and, for now, a huge discrepancy in functionality. Accordingly, I want to end this short introduction with an answer to another question that our readers quite often ask when discussing articles: why do we need this? Indeed, today it is unlikely that you will be able to get much benefit from Chrome OS - by installing it on your existing computer you will not get any new features. Moreover, the full benefits of its specific architecture can only be realized on specially designed devices, so despite being open source, it is designed for use by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), not end users. Accordingly, it’s worth reading this article and trying Chrome OS for yourself, rather, out of healthy curiosity and the desire to keep up with progress - even if Chrome OS was somewhat ahead of its time, this does not mean that the situation will not change tomorrow, especially since we are well aware of Google’s ability “push” their technologies and solutions.

Background

We first heard about Chrome OS just a little over two years ago, and in November 2009, the code for the new operating system was open-sourced as part of the Chromium OS project. At the end of 2010, Google presented a model Cr-48 Chromebook to a narrow circle of developers and beta testers, and this summer the first commercial products from Samsung and Acer appeared. They have indeed already been dubbed “Chromebooks” (Chromebook, i.e. Chrome OS + netbook/notebook) and, undoubtedly, this name will stick.

Rice. 1. Visually, the Samsung Chromebook is no different from ordinary laptops, and its internal structure has only a few features

Many other OEMs have also announced their intention to release products on Chrome OS, including not only the laptop type. For example, xi3 ChromiumPC should rather be called “chrometop” (Chrome OS + nettop). But it is clearly noticeable that none of the OEM is in a particular hurry, and the point is not even the dampness of Chrome OS itself (which is certainly the case), but rather the concept behind it. In addition, the first “Chromebooks” (due to configuration features) are not so cheap - the recommended price for the older model Samsung Chromebook Series 5 (Atom N570, 2 GB RAM, 16 GB SSD, 12.1″ LED display with a resolution of 1280 ×800, Wi-Fi, 3G modem) is $500, for this money today it is quite possible to find a better equipped general-purpose laptop.

Rice. 2. xi3 ChromiumPC is a very compact computer, essentially an Internet set-top box that is supposed to be mounted on the back wall of the monitor

Architecture

Chrome OS's focus on working with web applications determined its specific architecture.

Rice. 3. The absence of the need to run locally any applications other than the browser made it possible to simplify the Chrome OS architecture as much as possible and provide it with several specific features

As you would expect, it is based on the kernel (version 2.6.32 from the Ubuntu project, to which the necessary corrections and improvements were then made) and the Linux system environment. Since Chrome OS is designed to run one single application program in the classical sense - a browser - the latter was made compact and lightweight. X Window is also as stripped down as possible, although OpenGL support is retained (for the sake of WebGL), and the window manager is essentially combined with the browser. All other functionality, starting with OS configuration tools, is implemented by web applications that are created using HTML5 and Adobe Flash (it is likely that support for closed third-party technology is a temporary solution, a tribute to the current state of affairs on the Internet), accordingly, there are no other windows in the system, other than browser tabs and "panels" similar to the one typically used for Google Talk.

There are three main goals pursued by this architecture: simplicity, speed, security. The first has been taken to the absolute extreme: the user does not need to know anything about such things as drivers, utilities, etc. The system partition is closed for write operations, user data is stored in a specially designated area (although, of course, it is mainly supposed to be stored in the cloud). Unlocking is only allowed for developers; it is not supported in commercial products. System updates are performed automatically, as is now the case with Chrome. All that is required from the user is to be able to work with the browser; he will comprehend the necessary details as he gets acquainted with the web applications he needs.

With speed, everything is not so clear: in this context, they are mainly talking about the speed of initialization of a Chromebook - if Google's OEM requirements for device design are met (using EFI instead of BIOS, SSD instead of HDD, etc.), this figure should be no more than 8 seconds. Reviews from happy owners of Chromebooks indicate that this is absolutely possible and, in addition, the initialization speed does not drop over time, since the user, no matter how much he or she wants, cannot “litter” the OS, as often happens, say, with Windows. The performance situation for web applications is less clear. Although commercial Chromebooks are relatively powerful devices (dual-core Atom, 2 GB of memory, SSD), a large number of tabs rich in active content can completely load their computing resources. Google requires the use of a video system that supports hardware graphics acceleration; the “delights” of working without it can easily be experienced in a virtual machine, where Chromium OS, under certain conditions, simply eats up all available resources and falls into a stupor. But even on the right Chromebooks, there are complaints about performance, in particular, video playback, which, apparently, is due to hardware limitations. In addition, a radical reduction in system services and background processes has a beneficial effect on the operating time of Chromebooks. Of course, it depends on the capacity of the battery installed in a particular model and the nature of use, but, for example, the specification of the above-mentioned Samsung Chromebook Series 5 promises about 8.5 hours of continuous operation (according to a special test from Google itself) and according to the first reviews this is not far from truth.

Finally, security, the importance of which is difficult to overestimate in the Internet era. Chrome OS is designed in such a way that it is virtually impossible for foreign code to enter the system, regardless of its purpose. Additionally, all system components and updates, which, as mentioned above, are installed automatically, are signed with digital certificates. Attacks against the browser and third-party modules plugged into it are contained within individual tab processes, thanks to Chrome's built-in sandboxing mechanism, which has proven effective even in the much less restrictive Windows environment. In the worst case scenario, a reboot should return the system to its original “clean” state, but the developers still allow for the possibility of an intrusion and, in this case, provide a system integrity check during the Chromebook initialization process. For the EFI firmware, the system kernel and important components, hashes are verified and stored in a securely protected location (this can be an EFI encrypted area or a TPM chip, the second option is preferable). If mismatches are detected, the recovery process is initiated.

Because Chromebooks allow multiple users as well as anonymous guest sign-in, all locally stored data is automatically encrypted with keys generated for each Google account. Again, TPM is preferred for encryption and key storage, although software implementation is also possible. Apparently, the first OEMs adhere to this recommendation (which, among other things, leads to an increase in price), but if Chromebooks go into circulation, someone will probably want to reduce the price as much as possible, accordingly, when choosing a model, you should pay attention for this item.

Of course, we must understand that there is no absolute protection. Thus, at the recent Black Hat security conference, a method for hacking Chrome OS (or rather, some Google web applications and services) was already demonstrated, providing attackers with access to contacts, cookies, and accounts. This example clearly shows how the attack vector is changing - Chrome OS itself is not of much interest, but the browser and web applications are used as a backdoor to user information in the cloud. The flip side of the closed software core of Chrome OS is the impossibility of expansion - for example, you cannot add Java support to the system, not to mention Moonlight, as well as codecs, etc. As mentioned above, all user capabilities are limited to Flash and HTML5, web applications and extensions Chrome.

It's worth noting how big a role EFI plays in the architecture and support of Chrome OS, which is referred to as firmware in Google documentation. EFI, as you know, is a development of BIOS and has been used for a long time in Macs running Mac OS X, but almost never in “traditional” PCs, although its support is present in 64-bit Windows. The firmware code plays a fundamental role in speeding up boot time due to early initialization of devices, it may also contain basic drivers for additional equipment, and the security system and disaster recovery functions are significantly tied to it. Thus, although Chrome OS allows work with a regular BIOS, in the general case this does not make sense, so it is not at all by chance that Google is targeting the platform for OEM use, and not for self-installation, say, as a second OS - although no one has the latter option , naturally, does not prohibit it.

Rice. 4. EFI firmware plays a vital role in the Chrome OS architecture, providing important features such as fast boot and system recovery

Chrome OS should run on x86 and ARM platforms. The latter most likely means use on tablets, but they already have Android, so why another OS? I think Google's main idea is to enable OEMs to leverage a wide variety of powerful, yet inexpensive x86 hardware, and to enable web applications to run on the widest possible range of devices at desktop quality - i.e. in full-fledged Chrome, with a predictable rendering engine, with a powerful JavaScript engine, with hardware acceleration of HTML5 and WebGL, etc.

We test it ourselves

As I said above, the Chrome OS code is developed as part of the open source Chromium OS project. This is a rather subtle point. Chromium OS can be downloaded and used by anyone, but Chrome OS is only available on real Chromebooks. The fact is that Chrome OS contains a number of closed components, in particular, a PDF reader and audio/video codecs, perhaps some others. In addition, Chrome OS blocks developer-oriented features, such as the terminal. Therefore, in the following sections I will refer specifically to Chromium OS, mentioning Chrome OS only when we are talking about the concept itself or actual Chromebooks.

The standard way to get acquainted with Chromius OS is to download the source code and compile it in a Linux environment. But for most users this is a rather complicated and time-consuming procedure, and also completely unnecessary for the purposes of the first acquaintance. Many enthusiasts distribute already compiled assemblies; for example, on the website you can get the latest “nightly” assembly at any time. Many people refer to this resource and its creator seems to be known, but I still recommend that for experimental purposes you specifically create a new Gmail account, which is required to log in to the system.

Rice. 5. Builds are posted every day, it makes sense to take the latest one

This site offers images of a bootable USB flash drive (and a burning utility) and virtual disks for VMware Workstation/Player and Oracle VirtualBox. In theory, the option with a bootable flash drive is preferable, since you can work with it on real hardware - but only on the condition that it turns out to be compatible with Chromium OS. Unfortunately, the latter is not always done; most often the video system is not recognized (the OS is either not initialized at all, or hardware graphics acceleration is not enabled) and the network adapter, especially the wireless one. My most successful experience was with the Acer Aspire One on the new AMD Brazos platform: Wi-Fi did not work, and although the graphics were picked up, the acceleration gave strange results and effects, so it was not even possible to get adequate test results. In a word, the USB option is worth a try for everyone, but for guaranteed results, use virtual machines.

Oddly enough, for these purposes I recommend using Vmware solutions rather than VirtualBox. For me (perhaps it was due to some peculiarities of my computer), Chromium OS worked unstably in VirtualBox, with various strange effects, but in Vmware Player it was not only more stable, but also visually somewhat “faster”. In addition, Vmware Player is also a free product, and it is even easier to adjust the configuration of a virtual machine.

So, first, register and download it yourself - about 100 MB. Installing the program does not require additional actions, you can safely agree with all the options offered, at the end you will need to reboot.

Rice. 6. The least problematic way to test Chromium OS is Vmware Player

The Chromium OS image (archive of about 250 MB) for Vmware will be distributed with a ready-made virtual machine, but I recommend that you configure it further before use. Unzip the downloaded file, launch Vmware Player and open the file with the .VMX extension (something like ChromeOS-Vanilla-0.14.805.2011_08_21_1656-r8ca0f243-VMWare.vmx). Then right-click on the Chromium OS machine that appears in the left pane and select Virtual Machine Settings. Although the preset parameters are quite sufficient for the functioning of a virtual machine running Chromium OS, depending on the host configuration they can be adjusted - for example, adding RAM or processor cores.

Rice. 7. Although Chrome OS is designed for the Internet, Flash and HTML5 are quite taxing on processing resources, so adding them to the virtual machine can't hurt

Next, select Hard Disk (IDE) from the list of virtual equipment and note in the right panel the name of the hard disk image file. It will look like ChromeOS-Vanilla-VMWare.vmdk, while the file name from the archive will include the date and other details - it needs to be edited accordingly.

Rice. 8. You need to correct the name of the virtual disk file so that it matches what is specified in the virtual machine settings

Now select Network Adapter and select the NAT connection type in the right pane.

Rice. 9. NAT - the most universal and trouble-free mode of operation of a virtual network

In this case, Vmware Player does not allow you to configure the video system from the graphical interface, there is no such option in Chromium OS, therefore, if you do not take additional actions, the virtual machine will work in an unpredictable resolution - for example, for me it even exceeded the physical resolution of the monitor. To fix this situation, you need to open the virtual machine file (.VMX) in Notepad and add the following three lines at the end:

svga.autodetect="FALSE"
svga.maxWidth="1024"
svga.maxHeight="768"

In this case, the working resolution will be 1024×768; specify other parameters if necessary. Finally, in the main menu of Vmware Player, select File and there - Player Preferences. Since you still cannot install the Vmware Tools component in Chromium OS, you can uncheck the Check for software components as needed option to disable constant reminders.

Rice. 10. Uncheck to avoid Vmware Tools reminders every time you start the virtual machine

Now you can turn on the virtual machine.

First meeting

After a really quick initialization, you'll see a welcome and initial setup screen. Many languages ​​are supported - let's choose Russian.

Rice. 11. Chrome OS supports many languages, although localization is not fully done

Next comes the Login screen, where you can specify your existing Gmail details, create a new account, or perform a guest login, during which it will be impossible to make and save any changes to the system.

Rice. 12. You can work in guest mode, but it is better to create a separate account

The last stage of preliminary setup is choosing a picture for your account. It is not too wide, naturally, you won’t be able to take a photo of yourself in the virtual machine, but in the future you can upload any image.

Rice. 13. The last stage of pre-configuration of Chromium OS

Then, finally, you will be taken to the Chromium OS environment itself. Here you will immediately be asked to master simple gestures for working with the touch panel of Chromebooks, which makes no sense in the case of a virtual machine, in addition, this page will not shine with speed, so you can safely close it right away. As a result, we will see the Chromium OS interface - the Chrome browser (or rather, also Chromium). All further work is carried out with it, so that users who have relevant experience with the desktop version will feel quite comfortable and confident. However, there are some features that everyone should get acquainted with.

Rice. 15. You can use some gestures on Chromebook touchpads, but they are useless in a virtual machine.

Rice. 16. If you have already used an account, all settings will be picked up: browser design, applications, extensions (to the right of the address bar). In the title bar are system indicators, below is a wrench to access settings

The Chromium OS interface differs from regular Chrome in the presence of several icons in the title bar. Initially, the rightmost one is the battery charge indicator (in a virtual machine, of course, it does not work); then - the network connection indicator, visualizing the type of network (wired or wireless), clicking on it opens a menu in which you can configure connection and VPN settings; Next comes the keyboard layout indicator, which can be switched either through the menu or using the Alt-Shift and Ctrl-Space combinations (return to the previous one); and finally, the clock. Although the Chromium OS window manager is as simplified as possible, the system can create not only new tabs, but also new browser windows (Ctrl-N), in which case they open on three-quarters of the screen, and another icon appears in the title bar for collapsing and expanding them (switching by Alt-Tab and Ctrl-).

It's easy to see that the minimalist design of Chromium OS encourages the use of keyboard commands, and to help with learning and remembering them, Google has built visual cues into the OS. It is called by Ctrl-Alt-/ (in fact, this is the only combination that you absolutely need to remember), then you can press various control keys and explore the available combinations.

Rice. 17. Visual help for keyboard commands is called by Ctrl-Alt-/. In this case, combinations with the Ctrl key are shown

Some control can also be carried out from the system menu, similar to that in Chrome, but in this case containing more commands and options. Chromium OS is not an operating system that needs configuration, and most likely the user will not need to look here. However, there are settings for time, touchpad, languages, accounts, and network.

Rice. 18. A button with a wrench provides access to a few system settings

Like Chrome, Chromium OS has hidden settings, usually governing features that are still in development and unstable - you can get to them by typing about:flags in the address bar. Experimenting with them is not encouraged, although virtual machines encourage this, and even on real Chromebooks it is easy to roll back to the previous state of the system.

Rice. 19. You can access experimental options through a special page

For those who like to really delve into the details, another trick will come in handy: a special address chrome://chrome-urls - with its help you can get a list of all similar URLs for pages with secret knowledge. They won't be of much help, of course, but they can provide some interesting information, such as memory allocation or Flash plugin version.

Rice. 20. You can get a list of all system pages with settings and additional information at once

Chromium OS, intended mainly for developers, has a command shell called crosh (called Ctrl-Alt-T). It provides network utilities (ping, route, ssh), as well as a shell – essentially a standard terminal. *nix experts can take advantage of this opportunity to, for example, try to add some modules, codecs, plugins for Chrome to the system, although, as far as I know, no one has yet succeeded in connecting Java. The command shell is not available on Chrome OS

Usage

Most of the tools listed above are completely unnecessary, most likely they simply won’t be on real Chromebooks. As I already said, the general idea of ​​Chrome OS is for the user to work exclusively with the browser. This is why Google supports a store of web applications and Chrome extensions, where you can already find almost everything you need for everyday activities. Google itself offers many really useful services, the same Google Docs and Google Dictionary (the pop-up translation of which works, surprisingly, no worse than that of local dictionaries), and third-party developers are not lagging behind. For example, one of the latest new products is the Kindle Online Reader from Amazon, which can download books locally and work without an Internet connection. As a result, the Chromebook can be used as an e-reader.

Rice. 21. The usability of Chrome OS depends entirely on the quality of the web applications you use. Fortunately, there are more and more of them, a wide variety of

Offline work is a fairly important point. Although many people can no longer imagine life without the Internet, it happens that it is not available (on an airplane) or, for example, too expensive (in roaming). Of course, I wouldn’t want the Chromebook to simply turn into ballast in this case. Google naturally understands this and is working to provide some minimum of offline functionality. You can log in without an Internet connection for previously used accounts. In Chromium OS itself, there are currently only two local applications (except for Chrome, which should be considered as part of the OS): a file manager and a media player - both are quite primitive. The first one knows only a few formats, mostly multimedia; even some .doc will have to be uploaded to Google Docs yourself. The second one can’t even play mp3, but this only applies to Chromium OS: as I said above, Chrome OS has some codecs built into it. One way or another, the situation will gradually improve - thanks to HTML5, which allows you to simply and efficiently provide offline execution of web applications from a special cache.

Rice. 22. Built-in Chromium OS applications are primitive, but without them it would be completely sad

Another important aspect of Chrome OS is support for additional hardware. Chromebooks are initially equipped with everything necessary: ​​Wi-Fi adapters, 3G modems, SD card readers, web cameras, etc. But the list of compatible models is apparently quite scant. Enthusiasts try to make their own builds of Chromium OS with additional drivers, libraries, etc., but this violates the purity of the original idea. USB ports also allow you to connect only select categories of devices. Initially, these included keyboards and mice, now the Google website reports support for USB drives, although I could not get it to work in the current build. Work is underway to support Android smartphones.

On the other hand, the inability to connect printers is even presented as an advantage: “forget about cables and drivers!” But miracles, of course, do not happen, and the printer still must be connected somewhere - with a cable and driver, and printing in Chrome OS is carried out through the Google Cloud Print system. For it to work, you must have either a special printer that connects directly to the Internet and the corresponding Google service (for now this is only the HP ePrint line), or any other printer connected to a computer running Chrome. In the latter case, you need to go to the advanced settings section of the browser, connect locally available printers and, if a different Gmail account is used in Chromium OS, give the appropriate permissions.

Rice. 23. First, on a regular computer, you need to connect available printers to Google Cloud Print

Rice. 24. Then - give the necessary permissions

In Chrome OS itself, all printers available for the current account will be automatically displayed in the Google Cloud Print window, which is also called up from the advanced settings. By launching the page printing function, you can select the one you need from the list and even configure its parameters, down to the hardware resolution. Preview has been introduced in recent versions of Chrome, but does not work on Chromium OS due to the lack of built-in PDF viewers. Recently, the Print to Google Docs function has also appeared, which involves converting to PDF.

Rice. 25. When printing via the cloud, you can even adjust basic printer settings. This feature is available in any Chrome browser, but in Chrome OS it is the only one

Conclusion