I need to emulate an older version of chrome. I want to avoid the solution where I have to uninstall the current version and install the desired one each time I need to test my app. I came across this article but it doesn't quite answer my question. Thank you!
It's not possible to emulate older versions of Chrome from within DevTools, as is possible in IE. It's not very reliable to emulate them anyway. I've used IE 8 emulator in the past, and on occasion it has provided different results from the version I installed on an XP VM.
In theory, it should be possible to install multiple Chrome instances side-by-side because the installation directory is OS user based. However, I don't think the installations are fully isolated from one another. At least in Windows, the application would likely write to the same registry keys. In OSX, you might be alright, provided you modify the user directory path.
An alternative solution would be trying the portable versions of Chrome that appear over the Internet, usually illegally. Everything is self contained in a directory, but it will likely perform differently from normal installations. Check out PortableApps.
I think the best solution would be to set up some VMs for the different environments and browsers you want to test with. You can manually set up these, using VirtualBox or similar. Many hosted providers will allow you to spin up fresh VMs with automated tasks to install applications and services. You have to pay for these though.
If you just need to check what server returns for old browsers (not full emulation), you can set User-Agent in Network Conditions (for now, chrome 67).
Just for completeness, here is a link (September 2021) that provides historical snapshots of the 'chromium' browser, sorted per operating system and per 'position'. I needed this when I had to test on an 8-year old version of Chrome(~ium)
https://commondatastorage.googleapis.com/chromium-browser-snapshots/index.html
The URL looks legit (googleapis.com) to me, but please check for yourself before downloading. At your own risk.
Updated on 21/03/2019
I have found the following link which contains links to previous Google Chrome Versions (32bit, 64bit and Linux).
https://www.slimjet.com/chrome/google-chrome-old-version.php
Old post
Just found out that different versions of Google Chrome can be installed.
You will have to uninstall your existing version.
Download the package from here - https://www.chromium.org/getting-involved/dev-channel
Follow the instructions and install.
Hope this helps someone. The downside is you have to uninstall your current version.
Cheers!
Today you can run Windows Sandbox to avoid installing malicious programs. (Windows Professional or Enterprise Edition is required).
more info:
Windows Sandbox Doc
While I don't have a way to emulate a different version, I did find a way to have a current and an old version installed at the same time. For the 'current' version I installed Chrome Beta. Then I set the regular version of Chrome to the older version I needed.
Google's docs didn't put all the information in one place, so here are the steps for a normal Chrome user in Windows 10:
Download the Google Update policy template (alternatively Chrome Enterprise also contains the files you'll need) and unzip it.
Copy the .admx and .adml files into %systemroot%/PolicyDefinitions (.admx files go there and .adml in the language subfolder (en-US) as found in the zip you downloaded)
Open Group Policy editor and the required settings now exist
In Computer Configuration->Administrative Templates->Google->Google Update->Applications->Google Chrome,
set Rollback to target version to enabled
set the Target version prefix override to enabled and your desired version
(e.g. 86. for version 86)
Finally open Chrome, go to Settings->About and let it check for updates. Chrome will automatically download the target version and prompt you to restart.
Do note that this deletes local user profiles and recreates them from remote including redownloading browser extensions, so use with caution. Remember to go back to the normal version of Chrome by unsetting the Group Policy settings and letting Chrome update itself when you're done.
Related
Can i change the version of browser while debugging.
I'm currently using chrome.
I want to test my application for chrome older version compatibility.
Is their any option using chrome dev tools to change chrome versions.
You can use Browser stack for the same it free for some time
browserstack
There's definitely no feature within Chrome DevTools to change Chrome versions.
Chrome doesn't provide a simple or official way to download old versions. You might be able to find some unofficial archives of old versions, but use with caution.
Can I roll back Google Chrome to a previous version?
No - rollback is not supported.
To get to a previous version (which would not be supported by Google),
you would need to uninstall your current version, delete every user's
saved profile data, and re-install the older version. Users' personal
profile data is kept in:
On Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\\Local
Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\User Data On Windows Vista /
7: C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data
https://www.chromium.org/administrators/frequently-asked-questions
You Need Various Browsers
So, you need to test
your web stuff
with various browsers.
Some of these browsers
may be unavailable
on the OS
in which you develop.
Microsoft browsers (Internet Explorer)
are only available for Windows.
Further,
each Windows installation
can have only a single
Microsoft browser.
Also, Safari is only available in OS X.
The Obvious Solution: Virtualization
The obvious solution is
hardware virtualization.
The idea is to host
virtual machines
in your development system,
in which you'll be free to install
the operating system
and browser combination
that you require for testing.
So, How?
How do I do that?
Safari: Only on OS X
The latest version of
Safari
is available only for
recent versions
of OS X.
running of OS X in virtualization
is supported only on
Apple hardware.
For further details, read:
VirtualBox's documentation on OS X guests
VMware's "Virtualizing Apple Mac OS X (1000131)".
Manually
You can
create VM's
and install
the OS/browser
combinations
that you require.
I recommend VirtualBox.
Advantages of Manual
You do not have to
discard
the changes in the VM
after each use session.
And, unlike with ievms,
you do not have to
reinstall from scratch
every time the license expires.
Apart from saving time,
this means that
you can configure/customize
the operating system and browser
and install additional software
according to your requirements and preferences.
The Disadvantage
Valid licenses for the
software involved
may be required by law.
Tips
The same version of browser
may behave differently
on different versions of Windows.
Provide enough memory to your VM's.
I recommend at least 1GB, per VM.
To be sure,
check how much memory is free
during a typical testing session.
If you wish to test on
multiple versions
of Internet Explorer,
see you install from
Windows installation media
that includes the version of Internet Explorer
that you require
and not a newer one.
Virtualization software
(like VirtualBox)
have powerful snapshot features.
Take snapshots after you make configuration
changes or install software or updates.
In case something goes bad,
you would be able to easily revert.
Clone the VM instead of
installing the same version of Windows
on multiple VM's.
After you install Windows on one VM,
clone it into a linked clone
(this is VirtualBox terminology)
and then simply upgrade Internet Explorer.
Choose to reinitialize the MAC addresses when you clone
(VirtualBox asks about this).
Make sure that the
browser will remain the same version
by turning off automatic updates
or choosing to ignore
the specific browser updates.
Disable System Restore.
Disable the screensaver.
Install the VirtualBox Guest Additions
and upgrade them each time you upgrade VirtualBox.
Configure your web browser
(home page, new tab page,
automatic form filling,
disable "accelerators", etc.).
ievms
An easy and popular way
for developers to
get some VM's with
Microsoft browsers
up and running
is ievms.
Time and Storage Saving Tip Regarding ievms
To save time and storage,
intall only those browsers that you intend to use.
I have tried removing it from the extensions section in Chrome settings, but it reappears every time I reopen Chrome. My computer runs on Windows 7 Ultimate
As you haven't specified, I assume, you are using Windows OS. It is a potential malware. You have to uninstall the program explicitly from control panel and then restart chrome. It should work. If it doesn't work, then you might have to scan your system by some good anti-virus like kaspersky or avast.
You should download Microsoft Security Essentials (or another similar anti-virus program) I've used MSE in the past and it works well (without noticeably slowing down your system) there are no up-sells with it either (like you'll get w McAfee or Norton antivirus).
Just go to Google, search Microsoft Security Essentials. Then download and install the latest version (for Windows 7 32-bit)
It's free and should get rid of this program (looks like Malware to me).
Here's a link: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-ca/windows/security-essentials-all-versions
I am using custom sync options to synchronize only some of the artifacts from a Google chrome installation - just Bookmarks, Extensions and Open Tabs. All three are working on well on my two windows computers - but on the Linux machine, I am not getting the extensions. I have tried wiping the Linux Chrome data (by removing ~/.config/google-chrome/ and re-configuring it, the the problem remains the same.
I am wondering if there are any logs that the chrome browser produces that can give me a hint on what the problem might be.
Thanks a lot
Looks like this is not a bug but a "feature", different support of extension per OS, but seems there might be hope this is fixed in future releases see:
Chrome Web Store to get multi-platform app support for Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, and Chrome OS
Other Deployment Options
I am a beginner HTML/CSS coder and I have noticed that the most problematic browser is IE6. Now I want to install IE6 on my computer, to be able to perform live test, but when I try to install IE6 a notification appears saying that it's not possible to install IE6 on 64bit.
Is there a way I can do it?
Try this:
IETester
You get a pseudo IE version emulation, instead of installing (downgrading) IE version
You will need a virtual machine. I know microsoft hosts a version themself. Right now the link isn't working for me but you might want to try this:
http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?DisplayLang=en%3e&id=11575
Also if you have an old windows xp disk you can just install virtualbox
And then install Windows XP on it.
It is not directly an answer to your question but if you want to test various different Internet Explorer versions you may use a tool like IE Tester:
http://www.my-debugbar.com/wiki/IETester/HomePage
You may test IE5.5 up to 10 with this single application.
Microsoft provide virtual machines for testing specific versions of Internet Explorer. This page has all the links and information you need.
You could start off by writing one simple Selenium script and test your website immediately in all browsers.
For example on http://testingbot.com you can run your browser test on all browsers at once.
This way you're not only testing ancient browsers, but also the newer ones.
If you don't want to bother setting up a VM, you can use a service like Sauce Lab's scout. It's free service, though you have to register an account. I've used it for quick testing of designs on older browsers:
https://saucelabs.com/docs/scout/getting-started
(It actually spins up a VM in the cloud and gives you limited remote control).
ie6 is dying and almost dead... meanwhile, you can maybe install virtual xp machine and get ie6 there for test...
also, there's Adobe browser lab with all existing browsers...
There's a VirtualBox image with Internet Explorer 6 in it available here:
http://www.npackd.org/p/xp-ie6-virtualbox/2014.10.27
You can download VirtualBox here: https://www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads