How to Install Crouton on Your Chromebook: A Step-by-Step Guide

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Turn your older Chromebook into Linux with this user-friendly guide

Written by Nicole Levine, MFA

Last Updated: August 27, 2025 Fact Checked

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Enabling Developer Mode

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Installing Crouton

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Updating Crouton

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Video

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Tips

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Warnings

Crouton is a script written up in a bundle meant to allow Chromebooks to run Linux without sacrificing the Chrome OS platform. While it's more common to use Crostini to install Linux on newer Chromebooks, older Chromebook owners can still install Crouton (which is no longer in development) for better compatibility with older hardware.

Installing Crouton on a Chromebook

First, put your Chromebook into developer mode and set it up like new. From there, install the Crouton Integration extension from the Chrome Web Store, download Crouton from git.io/JZEs0, and make the installer executable. To install, run the "sudo crouton -t xfce" command.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Enabling Developer Mode

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1
Reboot your Chromebook with a special keyboard shortcut. To enable developer mode, hold down the Esc and Reload keys at the same time, and press the Power button. Your computer will reboot, and a big exclamation mark will appear.
- On some Chromebooks, you'll need to hold down the Esc and Fullscreen keys instead.^{[1]
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- Entering Developer Mode will also powerwash your Chromebook, so make sure you've backed up anything that isn't synced to your Google account.
- If you have a newer Chromebook that's still receiving updates, you shouldn't use this method to install Linux, as it's deprecated. Instead, you can enable the Linux development environment from within your Chromebook's settings.^{[2]
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2
Press Ctrl+D and then ↵ Enter. This confirms that you want to enable developer mode. Your Chromebook will reboot again and reinstall the operating system in developer mode.
- It can take a while for your Chromebook to prepare for developer mode. Spend a few minutes getting a cup of coffee or relaxing.
- When it's finished installing, you'll see a screen with an exclamation point.
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You can also wait a few moments for your Chromebook to enter developer mode on its own.
Just like when you first got your Chromebook, you'll have to set up your laptop. Make sure you connect your Chromebook to Wi-Fi so you can download the files to install Crouton.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Installing Crouton

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1
Install the Crouton Integration extension. Before installing Crouton, add this extension while you're still in developer mode. This extension allows you to use the same clipboard as you switch between ChromeOS and Linux, allows you to use ChromeOS to handle URLs, and allows chroots to create graphical sessions as ChromeOS windows.^{[3]
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- You can install the extension by visiting its site on the web store and clicking Add to Chrome.
You can get it from https://git.io/JZEs0. This will save a file called crouton to your Downloads folder.^{[4]
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You can do this by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T, typing shell, and pressing ↵ Enter.^{[5]
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To do this, type sudo install -Dt /usr/local/bin -m 755 ~/Downloads/crouton and press ↵ Enter. This makes the installer executable by moving it into /usr/local/bin so you can use it to install Crouton.
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Run the Crouton installer. Type sudo crouton -t xfce and press ↵ Enter. Follow any on-screen instructions that appear, such as creating a username and password for Crouton.
- By default, Crouton will install Ubuntu 16.04 (xenial). If you want a different version, run crouton -r list to see your options, or just specify the name of the Ubuntu release. You can specify the release to install using sudo crouton -r (releasename) -t xfce.
- Release names can be found at https://releases.ubuntu.com.
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Enter Xfce (the Crouton GUI). To do this, type sudo startxfce4 and press ↵ Enter. If that doesn't work, you can also use sudo enter-chroot startxfce4. This takes you into your Linux installation.
- You can switch between Crouton and ChromeOS by pressing Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Back and Ctrl + Alt + Shift + Forward.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Updating Crouton

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1
Check for a new version. Open a terminal in your Ubuntu installation by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T, then run the command croutonversion -u -c to see if a new version is available.
- If a new version is available, you'll see its name (e.g., xenial). You'll also see your current version listed. If you don't have the newest version, you can continue with this method to install it.
If a new version is available, you'll want to install it from ChromeOS, not Ubuntu. You can shut down Ubuntu by logging out, or by toggling back over to ChromeOS, selecting the terminal window you launched Crouton from, and pressing Ctrl+C.^{[6]
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To do this, use sudo sh ~/Downloads/crouton -u -n (versionname), where (versionname) is the latest version that's available. This will update your chroot to the latest version. Once the update is complete, you can restart Crouton to access the updated version.

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Tips

To make a backup, use sudo edit-chroot -b (name). This saves the backup to the current directory as a tarball.

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To restore from a backup, use sudo edit-chroot -r (name).

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As with any Ubuntu installation, you can use the apt package manager to install software.

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Warnings

Enabling developer mode on your Chromebook disables your computer's built-in security features. Only do this if you understand the risks.^{[7]
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