Manage Chrome policies with Windows registry

Applies to Windows users who sign in to a managed account on Chrome browser.

As an administrator, you can configure Chrome browser settings on Microsoft Windows computers by modifying the Windows registry on each computer where you want a new setting. Users can make the changes themselves if they're familiar with working in the registry. Otherwise, you should make the changes for them.

When to use the registry

• When you want to configure settings that aren't managed using Group Policy Management Editor.
• When you want to apply settings to Windows computers that aren’t joined to a Microsoft Active Directory domain.

Use the registry to manage Chrome policies

Important: Modifying the registry can damage computers. Test all changes before you deploy them to users.

The Chrome browser for the enterprise bundle includes a sample registry (.reg) file that you can customize to define settings.

Configure settings on Windows computers

1. Download the Chrome browser bundle zip file.
2. Open the bundle and go to Configuration  examples.
3. Copy the chrome.reg file.
4. Open the .reg file in your preferred editor. You can edit the file with any text editor.
5. Make any changes and save the file (examples below).
6. Use your preferred method to push settings to target machines.

When a user runs the chrome.reg file, the registry keys are saved in
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE  SOFTWARE  Policies  Google  Chrome.

For instructions on how to add, change, and delete registry keys, see your Microsoft documentation.

Example settings

Below are a few settings to get you started. For a complete list, see Policy List.

Setting name (In Windows registry)	Policy name (In Group Policy)	Description
ExtensionInstallBlocklist	Configure extension installation blocklist (Extensions Folder)	Specifies the extensions that users cannot install. Extensions that are already installed will be disabled if blocklisted.
HomepageLocation	Configure the home page URL (Home page folder)	Sets the default homepage URL.
MetricsReportingEnabled	Enable reporting of usage and crash-related data	Determines if anonymous data is sent to Google.
ShowHomeButton	Show Home button on toolbar	Shows the Home button on the toolbar.

Considerations when using Group Policy and the registry

If you set a policy in Group Policy and then configure the setting differently in the registry, the policy takes precedence. To prevent registry settings from being overridden, you need to set policies in Group Policy to Not Configured. Unconfigured policies do not show up in the registry.  For details about how to see the source of a specific Chrome policy on a managed device, see View a device’s current Chrome policies.

Related topics

• Set Chrome browser policies on managed PCs

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