If your computer is shared with many people and you do not want others to install additional browser extensions. The purpose of this is to help keep the security from installing malicious extensions and affecting the browser, In this article, I will show you how to use Chrome’s policy for admins to disable extension installation feature.
| Join the channel Telegram of the AnonyViet 👉 Link 👈 |
You may be annoyed when others install the extension, but for 11 Chrome Extensions to increase student productivity this is different.
You can use Registry Editor or Local Group Policy Editor. Registry Editor is accessible on all versions of Windows 10. Local Group Policy Editor only supports Windows 10 Pro and above, the Home version cannot use this feature.
Note: Using Registry Editor or Local Group Policy Editor to block others from installing Chrome extensions will cause Google Chrome to display as “Managed by your organization” on the screen Settings.
Use Registry Editor to block others from installing Extensions
If you are using Windows 10 Home, you can simply use the Windows Registry to make this change. You can also do it this way if you use Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise but only if you are used to using the Registry instead of the Group Policy Editor. (However, if you use Pro or Enterprise, I recommend using Local Group Policy Editor because it’s easier)
Must-read warning: Registry Editor is a tool that deeply interferes with the system, if it is wrongly manipulated, it will make Windows unstable or even inoperable. This is a pretty simple hack and you won’t have any problems as long as you follow the instructions exactly. If you’ve never worked with Registry Editor before, consider reading about how to use Registry Editor before you begin. And be sure to back up the Registry before doing so.
To open the Registry Editor, press Start and then type “regedit” into the search box and press Enter.
In the Register Editor window, enter HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > SOFTWARE > WOW6432Node > Policies if you are using 64 bit version of Windows.
If you are using a 32-bit version of Windows, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE> SOFTWARE> Policies.
In the left Panel, right click on the folder “Policies“. Select option “newthen select “Key“. Name this new subkey “Google” without quotes.
Next, right-click on the newly created “Google” subkey. Select the “New” option, then select “Key” to add a new subkey. Name it “Chrome” without quotes.
Right click on the “subkey”Chrome” and choose New > Key once again. Name this key “ExtensionInstallBlocklist” without quotes.
Right click on the “ExtensionInstallBlocklist” subkey, select New > String Value and write first in valuename.
In the right panel, double click on the value name “first” to open its properties. In Value data, write “*” and press “OK“.
Next, right click on the “Chrome” subkey again and select New > Key. Name this key “BlockExternalExtensions” without quotes.
Right click on the “subkey”BlockExternalExtensions“, select New > String Value and set the value name to first.
In the right panel, double click on the value name “first” to open properties. In Value data, enter “*” and then press “OK“.
By adding these two keys, you can ensure that no other users can install the extension from the Chrome Web Store or any other online source. The only downside of the way is that you have to remember the path for these new subkeys.
Using Group Policy on Windows 10 Pro
If your PC runs Windows 10 Professional or Enterprise edition, you can skip the registry usage. Instead, you can use the Local Group Policy Editor to prevent others from installing extensions on Chrome.
First, download Chrome policy file from Google and extract it on your computer.
To open the Group Policy Editor, press Start then enter “gpedit.msc” and press Enter.
In the Local Group Policy Editor window, in the left pane, enter Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates.
Click on the menu “Action” at the top and select the option “Add/Remove Templates”.
From the new window that opens, click the “Add” button.
Select the folder where you unzipped the Chrome template policy and navigate to the folder policy_templates> windows> adm.
Double click on the “en-US” language folder, select the “chrome.adm” file and click the “Open” button. You can choose a different language folder that matches your PC’s system language.
When the Chrome template file appears in the list Current Policy Templatesclick the “Close“.
In the left Panel of the Local Group Policy Editor window, enter Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Classic Administrative Templates (ADM) > Google > Google Chrome > Extensions.
In the right pane, double-click the “Configure extension installation blocklist” setting. When the settings window opens, select the “Enabled” option and click the “Show” button.
When the new Show Contents window opens, enter the “*” in the first column Value and click the button “OK“.
Click the “OK” button in the “Configure extension installation blocklist” window to close.
Now use the same procedure to open settings “Block external extensions for being installed” to prohibit others from installing extensions into Chrome. When the settings window opens, click on the option “Enabledthen click the “OK“.
After you make the change, no one can install any extension from Chrome Web Store or from a computer. You can launch Chrome and try to install an extension to check if you have configured the policy properly.
