I am currently developing a kiosk application and have been trying to use the "Manage kiosk applications..." option in the Chrome://extensions page when developer mode is on.
Whenever I choose an application in the manage kiosk applications popup it just saying invalid application. I've tried local IDs, Chrome Web Store IDs and still nothing works.
In the manifest I've allowed kiosk mode and have another version with kiosk only enabled but that still doesn't work.
This is not a hosted app, all the assets are local and the Chromebook is not managed.
I've tried other solutions such as logging out and pressing ctrl+alt+k at login. I've wiped the chromebook and restarted fresh.
Any help would be appreciated.
If you're not hosting the app in the Chrome Web Store, Managing Kiosk Applications should be done by entering the app ID and the URL of the third-party web server in the Specify a Custom App dialog and click Add.
You may check Create a Chrome Kiosk App to know more details on how to create, publish and add the app as kiosk app.
Kiosk apps can only be installed from the "Manage kiosk applications..." menu if they are published in the Chrome Web Store as either "Public" or "Unlisted". If the app is published as "Private" it will fail to load.
Related
Google is deprecating Chrome apps in favor of Progressive Web Apps (PWA) or Chrome extensions. This leaves extensions as the only way to access Chrome device APIs. I'm looking for a way for my PWA to run along with a Chrome extension in kiosk mode but I'm not sure if it's possible.
The reason I need my PWA to access Chrome device APIs is to get a unique identifier per device to decide which content to display.
As per chromeos.dev: "Previously, Chrome Apps had extra functionality available to them in kiosk mode that is not currently supported by web apps alone. You can continue to use some of this functionality by deploying an extension with your kiosk web application."
Source: https://chromeos.dev/en/education/connecting-an-extension-from-a-kiosk-pwa
It only talks about sending a message from PWA to extension in order to execute a chrome API (like restart) but doesn't talk about how to send information back from extension to PWA. We are also stuck in the same boat- looking for a unique identifier so as to throw content on the chromebox running the PWA. Currently we use chrome.enterprise.deviceAttributes to get serial number and directory device ID in kiosk mode and would need the same once we migrate to PWA. Any luck on this?
I'm trying to determine if I can access any browser api for chrome OS that will allow me to identify the device that its running on when the application has been force-installed in kiosk mode as a PWA.
We're running into exactly the same issue right now. The correct path seems to be to create a PWA and to connect it to a (pre-installed) extension that has access to the enterprise.deviceAttributes:
See https://developers.chrome.com/apps/migration:
"If there is a capability that your Chrome App has that the regular web platform can't provide, it might be available as an extension API. In this case, you use a progressive web app together with an externally connectable extension your web app can send messages to."
enterprise.deviceAttributes are only accessible if the calling App/Site is pre-installed to the device and not loaded dynamically, so it cannot run in the PWA by design.
But with this tutorial, it seems possible:
https://developer.chrome.com/extensions/messaging#external-webpage
We're looking into that right now and will post our progess here.
tl;dr I want to use an API that only works for Chrome Kiosk Apps. How can I run my app locally as a kiosk app such that I can access these APIs?
Hey All,
I am trying to develop an application that uses the chrome.audio API. Though the docs do not say so, upon loading an unpacked app on my Chromebox I get a warning saying "'audio' is only allowed to run in kiosk apps sessions, but this is a regular user session."
So I began trying to get the app launched in kiosk mode. I have modified the manifest.json file to claim kiosk mode: "kiosk_enabled":true. I navigate to chrome://extensions and click "Manage Kiosk Applications" but when I put in the app ID provided when loading my unpacked extension, I always get a message saying "Invalid App ID".
It has been suggested to me that the only way to load a kiosk app is either through the admin console (not applicable to me since my device is unmanaged) or by publishing the app to the Chrome Web Store, which is crazy overkill since I have not even developed my app yet, I just want to see if this API can provide functionality I need.
In summary, my question is this:
How can I run my app locally as a kiosk app such that I can access these APIs?
I have (had) a hosted app in the Chrome Web Store, built using the following Developer documentation:
https://developers.google.com/chrome/apps/docs/developers_guide
After being in the Chrome Web Store for years, I recently received an email saying my app does not comply:
Your item did not comply with the following section of our policy:
Do not post an app where the primary functionality is to install or
launch another app, theme, or extension. For example, if your app’s
primary function is to launch a desktop app that the user has already
installed, that is not allowed. Another example is a packaged app that
just launches a website.
My question is: Did the rules change? A Hosted App IS an app that launches a website. Does anyone know what to change in a Hosted App to make it compliant again?
A Hosted App, a Chrome App (successor to Packaged App), and a Chrome Extension are three separate things, distinguished by how their manifest.json file is set up. What this email appears to be saying is that you're not allowed to have a Chrome App (which they call a packaged app) whose only purpose is to launch another app or a web site. They are saying nothing about Hosted Apps, which continue to be allowed, as far as I know. (I have one in the Chrome Web Store myself.)
Is your app truly a Hosted App? Or, is it a (legacy) packaged app or a Chrome App?
Google is changing Chrome's policy to no longer allow installation of extensions in any way other than through the Chrome Web Store. However, their wording is a little unclear. They state:
We’ll continue to support local extension installs during development as well as installs via Enterprise policy, and Chrome Apps will also continue to be supported normally.
But it's unclear whether they mean ChromeOS apps, or packaged apps as defined by an "app" section in the manifest.json. Do they mean packaged apps can still be installed outside the Chrome store?
http://blog.chromium.org/2013/11/protecting-windows-users-from-malicious.html
"ChromeOS apps" and "packaged apps as defined by an "app" section in the manifest.json" are one and the same thing. And yes, packaged apps can be installed outside the Chrome Store in their unpackaged form (click the "Development mode" checkbox in chrome://extensions page). Otherwise app development would be seriously hindered.