Install Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm | Easy Steps

In this guide, you will learn to Install Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm from Command-Line. Chrome is a free and cross-platform web browser developed by Google. It is the most popular and widely used browser in the world.

You can follow this guide on the Orcacore website to start your Chrome installation from the Debian 12 command line interface.

To Install Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm, you must have access to your server as a non-root user with sudo privileges. To do this, you can visit this guide on Initial Server Setup with Debian 12 Bookworm.

Step 1 – Install Required packages for Chrome on Debian 12

First, you need to update and upgrade your local package index with the following command:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Then, you need to install the required packages and dependencies for installing Chrome on your server:

sudo apt install apt-transport-https ca-certificates curl software-properties-common wget fonts-liberation libu2f-udev libvulkan1 -y

Step 2 – Download and Install Google Chrome Setup Deb File From Debian 12 Terminal

At this point, you can use the following wget command to download the Google Chrome installation setup file:

sudo wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb

When your download is completed, you can install Google Chrome by running the command below:

sudo dpkg -i google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb

You can verify your installation on Debian 12 by checking its version:

google-chrome --version

**Output**
Google Chrome 115.0.5790.170

Now you have Google Chrome installed on your server.

Step 3 – Launch and Run Chrome Browser on Debian 12

You can easily launch it by running the below-given command on the terminal window:

google-chrome

Or from your Application finder on Debian 12, you can search for Google Chrome and Launch it.

After that Chrome will start and you will be asked to check or uncheck boxes and then hit ‘Enter’.

Once done, you will see the following window:

Click on the Get Started button and you have your Google Chrome.

Step 4 – Run Google Chrome as root on Debian Linux

Google Chrome on Linux will not be run as the root user. If you want to use it as the root user, you must edit the Goole Chrome file as shown below:

vi $(which google-chrome)

Then, at the end of the file add the –no-sandbox line to the file as shown below:

xec -a "$0" "$HERE/chrome" "$@" <mark>--no-sandbox</mark>

When you are done, save and close the file. In this way, you can run your Google Chrome as the root user.

To learn more about Chrome features, you can visit the Google Chrome Features Page.

Step 5 – How To Update Google Chrome on Debian 12?

Also, you can easily update your Google packages by running the system update and upgrade:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

Conclusion

At this point, you have learned to Install and Run Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm from the Command Line interface. Hope you enjoy it. Also, you may be interested in these articles too:

Install Google Chrome Web Browser on Centos 7

How To Install Google Chrome on AlmaLinux 8

Alternative Installation Methods for Google Chrome on Debian 12

While the above method details a reliable way to install Google Chrome, alternative approaches exist. These methods might be preferable in certain situations or for specific user preferences. Here are two different ways to install Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm:

Method 1: Using Google’s APT Repository (Recommended for Automatic Updates)

This method involves adding Google’s official APT repository to your system’s package sources. This is the recommended approach because it ensures you receive automatic updates for Chrome directly from Google whenever a new version is released.

Steps:

1. Download Google’s Signing Key: This key is used to verify the authenticity of packages downloaded from the repository.

   wget -q -O - https://dl.google.com/linux/linux_signing_key.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /etc/apt/trusted.gpg.d/google.gpg

2. Add the Google Chrome Repository: Create a new APT source list file.

   echo "deb [arch=amd64] http://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google-chrome.list

   This command creates a file named google-chrome.list in the /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ directory, which tells APT where to find the Google Chrome packages. The [arch=amd64] part specifies that the repository is for 64-bit systems. If you are running a 32-bit system, you would need to adjust this accordingly (though Chrome support for 32-bit Linux systems is limited).

3. Update Package Lists: Update your APT package lists to include the new repository.

   sudo apt update

4. Install Google Chrome: Now you can install Google Chrome from the repository.

   sudo apt install google-chrome-stable

   This command installs the stable version of Google Chrome. You can also install google-chrome-beta or google-chrome-unstable if you want to try out pre-release versions, but be aware that these may contain bugs.

5. Verify Installation:

   google-chrome --version

   The output should display the installed Chrome version.

Explanation:

This method leverages Debian’s APT package management system to handle the installation and subsequent updates of Google Chrome. By adding Google’s official repository, you ensure that you receive the latest security patches and feature updates directly from the source, simplifying maintenance. This is generally the preferred method for long-term use. Using this method helps keep your Google Chrome installation on Debian 12 Bookworm up-to-date.

Method 2: Using apt install ./google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb to Handle Dependencies.

The original article used dpkg -i to install the .deb package. While this works, it sometimes fails to resolve dependencies automatically. A slightly better approach, still using the .deb file, is to use apt install ./google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb. This tells apt to install the package and automatically resolve any missing dependencies.

Steps:

1. Download the .deb file (as in the original article):

   sudo wget https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb

2. Install using apt:

   sudo apt install ./google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb

   apt will analyze the package, identify any missing dependencies, and prompt you to install them.

3. Verify Installation:

   google-chrome --version

   The output should display the installed Chrome version.

Explanation:

The apt install command is a higher-level package management tool than dpkg. It automatically handles dependency resolution, making the installation process smoother and less prone to errors. While the original article’s method usually works if all dependencies are already installed, using apt is more robust. This method is particularly useful if you encounter errors related to missing dependencies when using the dpkg command. This helps make sure the Install Google Chrome on Debian 12 Bookworm is successful.