Linux it is…

How this project turned out to be Linux-only

While testing how builds worked and preparing this project for a release, I came to the realization that if I’m promising a cross-platform product, I should test it on all platforms first. I’m a Linux person, so when it all worked on my local machine, I didn’t bother much.

Turns out - that was a huge mistake! Chrome-based browsers on Windows and macOS tend to block custom policy installed extensions due to security reasons. For that to work, a machine must be enrolled to a real management framework - Active Directory or similar. Linux is excluded due to no standard tool existing and the fact that not everyone using a Linux machine might have root access.

What did I do to resolve this?

First of all, I panicked, as any normal human being would. My first thought was to ensure a manual installation flow on Windows/macOS by letting users install the extension through development mode. However, the thing that disallowed me from implementing such approach was incompatibility between browser Preferences file schemas (at least when I went to check, it seemed this way). Not knowing how to ensure a working build quickly, my solution was to only support Linux systems.

Can I still install the extension on my non-Linux machine?

Yes! If your browser is built on Chromium (the architecture that powers Chrome, Brave and more), you can, and there are still instructions on how to get the builds working on all platforms for the extension itself. However, you should be aware of such things:

You will get the default Alt+Q shortcut provisioned instead of Ctrl+Tab override (unless you decided to edit the BrowserInstall/Profile/Preferences file after installation (replace BrowserInstall with your browser’s data directory and Profile with your profile name (Default by default)).
You are taking management into your own hands without any official support from me.

Are there more updates planned?

Not really. I set up this project for shipping with custom branding and subtle tweaks within extension code, as well as a fully working provisioning framework for Linux users, and I’ll go create something new now!

This was never intended to be production-ready, but instead serve as a tool for making Chrome more usable than it currently is.

Even if you see a struggle, try to do everything in your will to overcome it, even if it means cutting corners is necessary!