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I really need to run Chrome in kiosk mode with an extension. If I start chrome with --app-id=xxxx it runs the app, but --kiosk is ignored. If I start it with --kiosk the app-id is ignored.

Is there any way to do both? Starting in full screen (F11 mode) is not going to work because of the bubble window at the top and the user can exit.

Konrad Dzwinel
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David_24
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6 Answers6

5

Go to options and for "Home Page" pick "Open this page" and enter the url for your web app and then add --kiosk to your command line.
To get the url for your app I usually just open the app in a tab, right click and pick view source and then youll get something like view-source:chrome-extension://hiddpjhppcbepfekmomnlopbjjjhilhk/popup.html for its url, copy everything after view-source: and put that as your homepage.

KingCronus
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PAEz
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    That fails - cant find the page. But it does work from the command line in a similar way: chrome.exe --kiosk url thanks! – David_24 Feb 02 '12 at 22:36
  • @DavidKrauss, did this answer solve your problem? Because then consider accepting it as the correct answer. :) – Sune Rasmussen Jul 08 '12 at 14:21
3

Try:

--user-data-dir=$(mktemp -d)

This works for me in Chrome 43, but don't load extensions. How to enabled extensions in kiosk mode on windows 7?

user3563850
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For some reason, the command line switch --kiosk doesn't work in Mac OSX, and from what you're describing, maybe it doesn't work at all. ( http://peter.sh/experiments/chromium-command-line-switches and scroll down to --kiosk, THEN to the footnote....no explanation, but there it is).

You didn't specify if this a Mac OSX or Windows issue you're having, so I'm sorry if this doesn't help...

To workaround this on Mac OSX, you have to take two steps. (It's still kind of wonky even then, because each new tab is a new fullscreen app at least in Lion)

  1. Create an App pointing to your URL with this handy script.

  2. Take note of your app's name (replace [MyAppName] below) and create the following applescript:

    do shell script "open '/Applications/[MyAppName].app' "
tell application "[MyAppName]" to activate
tell application "System Events"
    keystroke "f" using {command down, shift down}
end tell

    Save that applescript as an application, and run it.
    You can change the icon of your app as well. Here's how in case you didn't already know (like me. had to look it up): http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2493

Sergey Glotov
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strack
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    Well, that linked page has auto-updated, so now add "no footnote" to "no explanation" :/ I wish you'd quoted in full. Is there a Chromium bug for this? Your fix doesn't enter "Kiosk Mode", just "Full Screen". It's a bit confusing, here's how I understand it: "Full screen mode" shows the url bar. "Presentation Mode" shows no URL bar, but allows the user to access the menu bar by scrolling off the top of the screen. "Kiosk Mode" shows no URL bar, will not show a menu ever, can only be exited at the keyboard, and can apparently only be entered from the command line. Is that now fixed on mac? – Ben Oct 01 '13 at 22:40
2

Ok, proper solution:

Create a shortcut to the following(chrome.exe) (enter your url in the quotes):

"%localappdata%\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe " --user-data-dir=$(mktemp -d) --kiosk "http://stutzen.co"

This will create an entirely separate instance of Chrome with its own userdata, sessions etc. in full screen kiosk mode. This can be exited by Alt-F4 or Alt-Tab.

src: https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/chrome/eX15CQ602UQ

arvindwill
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  • It appears chrome will only open in kiosk mode if there is no user data (the user-data-dir must be empty). After this it will never open in normal mode using that user data. This would seem to make it impossible to run kiosk with extensions. – whitey04 Mar 03 '15 at 23:52
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Kiosk mode is basically the same as fullscreen mode, except the 'exit fullscreen' button doesn't work. The user can still quit the app because all of the menu options are still there.

I've found a way to hide the menu AND the dock by modifying Chrome's permissions. Note that this fix is specifically for OSX.

  1. Open the Chrome permission list: sudo open -e /Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/Info.plist

  2. Add this. <key>LSUIPresentationMode</key> <integer>3</integer>

Use this hack in conjunction with chrome command line option --kiosk http://yoururl.com to get true kiosk behavior.

posit labs
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As of 2017 chrome will no longer allow you to enter kiosk mode on new devices without a google chrome management license subscription. "Note: If your Chromebook, Chromebase, or Chromebox is from 2017 or later, it won't work in kiosk mode unless it's managed by an administrator."

See this article: https://support.google.com/chromebook/answer/3134673?h

user8062184
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  • I've reread that article 3 times and doesn't say anything about "As of 2017 chrome will no longer allow you to enter kiosk mode on new devices without a google chrome management license subscription." That only happens on chrome ones not all "new devices". – FrakyDale Aug 29 '17 at 11:57