Installing Google Chrome on openSUSE: An In-Depth Guide

Google Chrome is undoubtedly the most popular web browser across platforms. Developed and maintained by Google, Chrome commands over 60% of the total browser market share as of 2024.

Known for its simplicity, speed, and security, Chrome offers a smooth and fuss-free browsing experience. This guide will walk you through multiple methods of installing the latest Google Chrome on openSUSE.

Why Chrome and Not Chromium?

While researching Chrome installation methods, you must have come across Chromium – the open-source upstream project behind Google Chrome. Since it‘s also available directly in openSUSE, you might wonder, why go through the hassle of installing Google Chrome instead of just using Chromium?

There are a few key reasons why one might prefer the proprietary Google Chrome over the open-source Chromium:

• Automatic updates: Chrome gets updated automatically in the background by Google. Chromium relies on the distro repositories which are often dated.
• Media codecs: Chrome bundles licensed media codecs like H.264 out-of-the-box. Chromium doesn‘t include proprietary codecs due to licensing restrictions.
• Stability: Although both projects share a huge common codebase, Chrome tends to offer better stability owing to Google‘s backing.
• Sync: Chrome provides official support for syncing with a Google account, offering handy features like tab/history/password sync across devices.
• Extra features: Chrome often gets more features and updates from Google like built-in PDF viewer, official extensions store, etc. These take longer to transition into the open-source project.

If you prioritize having the most up-to-date and optimized experience, Google Chrome makes an obvious choice. But Chromium is still very capable for general browsing needs.

With that context, let‘s get started with installing Google Chrome!

Prerequisites

Before installing Chrome, ensure that your openSUSE system meets the following requirements:

• openSUSE Leap 15.2 or later
• sudo privileges available for the user
• working Internet connection

Optionally, it‘d be best if you also have:

• The KDE Plasma desktop for visual consistency with the guide
• Existing codecs and media packs for playing audio/video in Chrome without issues

With those covered, let‘s explore various methods of installing Google Chrome.

Method 1: Adding the Google Chrome Repository

Google hosts dedicated package repositories for easily installing and updating Chrome on RPM-based distros like Fedora and openSUSE.

The following steps will help you install Chrome stable through Google‘s official repository:

1. Import Google‘s public signing key:

   sudo rpm --import https://dl.google.com/linux/linux_signing_key.pub

   This allows zypper to verify the downloaded Chrome packages are legitimately from Google.

2. Append the stable repo address:

   sudo zypper addrepo http://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/rpm/stable/x86_64 Google-Chrome

   This adds the repo from which Chrome will install.

3. Refresh zypper‘s package cache:

   sudo zypper refresh

   This step indexes all enabled repositories to recognize the newly added Chrome repo.

4. Install the latest Chrome stable:

   sudo zypper install google-chrome-stable

And we‘re done! Google Chrome should now be successfully installed and launchable from the application menu.

The benefit of this method is that Chrome will continue to auto-update seamlessly in the background via the Google repo.

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Installing Beta and Unstable

If you‘re feeling adventurous, you can also install the Chrome Beta or Dev (Unstable) builds instead of Stable through the repository method.

Just replace the last install command with either of the following:

Chrome Beta:

sudo zypper install google-chrome-beta

Chrome Dev:

sudo zypper install google-chrome-unstable

Do note that these pre-release channels get updates way more frequently but offer cutting-edge features at the cost of potential bugs and stability issues.

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Method 2: Installing via Official Chrome RPM

Google provides self-contained RPM packages to install the latest Chrome builds without needing to configure custom repositories.

Just run the following one-liner to fetch and install Chrome Stable using the official RPM:

sudo rpm -ivh https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_x86_64.rpm

This automatically imports Google‘s public key, downloads the RPM package, verifies integrity, and installs Chrome for you in one swift step!

Even with the RPM method, Chrome will continue auto-updating itself in the background seamlessly. So you always have the latest and greatest version.

Pretty convenient!

Method 3: Installing as a Flatpak

The Flatpak packaging format is becoming increasingly popular for distributing desktop applications across Linux distributions. Flatpaks bundle all dependencies to mitigate version conflicts and distribution inconsistencies.

openSUSE has out-of-the-box support for Flatpaks. We can leverage this to install Chrome from Flathub – the official Flatpak app store.

1. Ensure Flathub is configured as a remote repo (one-time setup):

   flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

2. Install the Stable version of Chrome:

   flatpak install flathub com.google.Chrome

And we‘re done! The major advantage of using Flatpaks is the clean self-contained bundle that mitigates dependency issues. However, the drawback is larger storage footprint and slower launch times.

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Getting Beta/Dev Flatpaks

To grab the Beta or Dev versions instead:

Chrome Beta Flatpak:

flatpak install flathub com.google.ChromeBeta

Chrome Dev Flatpak:

flatpak install flathub com.google.ChromeDev 

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Bonus: Installing the Open-Source Chromium Browser

While Google Chrome takes center stage as the "mainstream" browser, Chromium serves as its free and open-source backbone.

Packaged in most distros, installing Chromium usually boils down to a simple:

sudo zypper install chromium

However, more methods exist for those wanting alternate Chromium packages, such as:

• Flathub:

  flatpak install flathub org.chromium.Chromium

• Snap Store:

  snap install chromium

Performance and features-wise both browsers are neck-to-neck. Chromium lags slightly behind on stability but offers greater customizability being open-source.

So if you prefer free software or don‘t need Chrome‘s minor proprietary touches, Chromium remains a compelling choice!

Final Words

And that concludes our guide on installing Google Chrome across various mediums on openSUSE!

While simple zypper commands or GUI package managers seem sufficient, exploring diverse approaches enables us to better understand dependencies, updates, self-containment, and other aspects.

Hopefully, the step-by-step directions give you the confidence to get Google Chrome up and running swiftly on openSUSE either temporarily or as your full-time browser!

Did we miss out on your favorite method? Let us know in the comments!