Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google is not engaged on its Ferrochrome launcher, an app that will’ve made working Chrome OS in a digital machine on choose Android gadgets tremendous simple.
- Google began the Ferrochrome undertaking as a tech demo to reveal Android’s improved virtualization capabilities.
- With the elimination of the Ferrochrome launcher, it’ll nonetheless be doable to run Chrome OS in a VM on Android gadgets, however it’ll require a number of handbook effort.
The perfect Android telephones of 2024 actually have the {hardware} to be thought-about highly effective transportable PCs, however most of them lack the software program to really deal with the standard PC expertise. If there have been a option to run an OS constructed for PCs like Chrome OS on them, although, then they could truly be capable to function PC replacements for many individuals. Earlier this 12 months, we discovered about an app that will make it very easy to run Chrome OS on prime of Android, however we’ve now discovered that Google is canceling its plans.
Again in Could, we solely reported that Google was experimenting with working Chrome OS on Android by means of the usage of virtualization. This takes benefit of a comparatively new expertise in Android referred to as the Android Virtualization Framework (AVF). AVF was launched in Android 13 as a approach to supply a safe and personal execution atmosphere for extremely delicate code. Initially, AVF was solely designed to execute small workloads in a really barebones construct of Android working in an remoted digital machine, however over the previous 12 months, Google has been engaged on making it able to working various working methods with full graphical interfaces.
When Google selected Chrome OS to reveal the improved virtualization capabilities of Android 15, it sparked hopes that ultimately the corporate would possibly flip this right into a function we’d get in a future model of Android. Even when Google advised us that its efforts to run Chrome OS on Android was only a enjoyable proof of idea, we have been nonetheless hopeful that its efforts would open up the likelihood to simply flip our Android telephones (and tablets) into transportable Chromebooks.
The rationale we have been hopeful is that Google, regardless of calling the undertaking a tech demo in Could, began engaged on an app in June that will have made downloading and working Chrome OS on Android as simple as a single click on. With a purpose to get Chrome OS up and working by myself Android telephone for our unique first have a look at the undertaking in Could, I needed to manually receive a Chrome OS picture and configure every part myself. This concerned manually pushing a bunch of information to my gadget and executing some scripts to configure the digital machine.
In distinction, Google’s new app referred to as Ferrochrome launcher would have robotically downloaded, arrange, and began Chrome OS for you. The Ferrochrome launcher app would have dealt with every part for you, even right down to configuring the digital machine and executing the VM launcher app that reveals the Chrome OS graphical interface.
Sadly, although, Google has determined to kill its Ferrochrome launcher app. This was revealed to us by a code change not too long ago submitted to the AOSP Gerrit. The code change, which hasn’t been merged but, removes your entire Ferrochrome launcher app from AOSP. Google’s cause for eradicating this app is that it doesn’t plan to ship it or preserve its code. It appears that evidently Google is shifting in direction of utilizing the Linux-based Debian distro as a substitute of Chrome OS as its testbed for AVF improvement.
Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
The impression of this determination on customers is minimal contemplating Google by no means even formally dedicated to delivery Chrome OS this manner. Nonetheless, I’m positive it’s disappointing to a few of you that this function received’t be coming, no less than not in a approach that’s simply accessible. Whereas it would nonetheless be doable to run Chrome OS in a digital machine since Android’s underlying virtualization enhancements are nonetheless there, you’ll must do a number of handbook tinkering to get it up and working.