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The version of Google Chrome can be checked by going to chrome://help. However, if Google Chrome is not up to date, it will upgrade itself without asking the user. How can I check the version of Google Chrome without it upgrading itself without asking me?
I use Google Chrome on Windows 7 SP1 x64 Ultimate.
Franck Dernoncourt
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 13 518
136
Below are some possibilities.
chrome://version in the Chrome address barThe version number will be displayed:
In the "Start" menu of Windows select "Control Panel" then select "Programs and Features".
The version number will be displayed in the last column:
chrome://version in the Chrome address barTo check for the update, Google Chrome uses two System Services namely Google Update (
gupdate) and Google Update (gupdatem). So, to turn off automatic update in Google Chrome, we have to disable these Google services.You can disable these services easily from the System Configuration window. Follow these steps to know how to turn off automatic updates in Google Chrome.
Note: Turning off auto-updates should be done with caution. You may not receive the latest security updates if you do not auto-update or manually update Google Chrome frequently.
Close the Google Chrome browser. Make sure you save all open tabs in Chrome if you want to restore them later.
Press WindowsR. It will open the "Run command" dialogue box.
Type, "msconfig" in the box and press enter. It will open the "System Configuration" Window.
In the "System Configuration" window, select the "Services" tab.
At the bottom, check the box "Hide All Microsoft Services". This will hide all the services related to Microsoft so that you don’t disable essential services.
Under services section search and find "Google Update (gupdate)" and "Google Update (gupdatem)".
Uncheck both the Google Services and click "Apply". Click "OK" to save the settings.
Now, you will be asked whether you want to exit without restart or want to restart your PC now. Choose anything according to your current situation.
That’s it! You have successfully disabled automatic updates in Google Chrome.
To check whether the settings have been applied correctly, open Google Chrome > click "Chrome Menu" > "Help" > "About Google Chrome".
Now Google Chrome will start checking for the available update. If you see an "An error occurred while checking for updates: Update check failed to start (error code 3: 0x800704C7 — system level)." message then you have successfully disabled the automatic updates in Google Chrome.
Note:
When you open Google Chrome next time, you might be asked to provide administrative access to enable automatic update in Google Chrome. Simply select "No" every time.
DavidPostill
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 118 938
4
Don't forget about Add/Remove Programs. Feel free to use my screenshot :-)
– MonkeyZeus – 2016-09-12T14:09:23.52351
You can also consult the properties of the Chrome executable. (This works even if Chrome isn't running.) To find that file, choose Open file location in the context menu of Chrome's Start menu entry, then right-click the shortcut you get and choose the same option. For me, the main Chrome program is here:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe
Right-click that file and choose Properties. On the Details tab, there is a Product version row, which contains the Chrome version.
If Chrome is running, there's another way if you like consoles: You can use PowerShell!
(Get-Process 'chrome').MainModule[0].ProductVersion
That prints the product version of a Chrome process's main module (chrome.exe) to the standard output. You'll get the same value as you do in the above screenshot.
Ben N
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 32 973
20
Just type this into the address bar:
javascript:alert(navigator.userAgent)
Note: Type, don't paste - if you paste, the browser removes the javascript: part automatically, and then it does not work.
Nathan Osman
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 2 552
2-1 This should not and does not work in Chrome. If you try to paste something starting with javascript: in to the URL bar the javascript: part is removed (to prevent a lot of human powered XSS attacks). Okay, very technically speaking the answer says 'type', so I won't actually downvote, but still... doubt anybody who reads this answer would not try copy pasting. – David Mulder – 2016-09-13T10:03:41.610
4A better way, since you have to type into the address bar, would be to open the developer tools (F12) and type into the console which will even provide intellisense: console.log(navigator.userAgent) – Metro Smurf – 2016-09-13T15:26:12.867
2@MetroSmurf Yeah, I was also thinking like that (since you are already in the console, you don't even need the console.log: just type navigator.userAgent on it and hit Enter). But since it's easier to copy+paste chrome://version to the address bar as DavidPostill suggested, why bother opening the dev tools? – CPHPython – 2016-09-13T16:00:37.660
@CPHPython - nice tip on sans console.log. – Metro Smurf – 2016-09-13T18:15:41.917
12
The easiest way is to go to whatismybrowser.com which will show you your version number (scroll down to see the full version). It will also tell you if it's the latest version - without chrome dialing home to Google's servers.
Amanda
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 121
1
I was about to post a similar answer linking to http://useragentstring.com/, but the resource you listed is even better.
– Joe DeRose – 2016-09-14T13:30:44.8879
Another effective (and default) way to prevent the auto-update is to set the User Account Control (UAC) settings' bar to the highest level in your Windows machine. On Windows 7:
You can open the dialog by going to Control Panel, clicking User Accounts, and then clicking Change User Account Control Settings (MS TechNet).
Normally this is the default level:
Drag that bar up to the top and click OK:
Now when you access chrome://help a pop-up will show up asking if you want to give write permissions to Chrome. If you click No, the update will not be performed.
You may access chrome://version later to confirm it.
Note: having UAC set to the highest level is recommended in terms of system security, especially because it does not allow most programs to perform write operations without your confirmation (e.g. when you download a .ppt from an email with cute kittens that has some embedded macros, it will prevent those macros to be run without your authorization).
CPHPython
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 417
Would this work if you installed Chrome only for the current user? (I assume that is still an installation option.) – jpmc26 – 2016-09-14T18:53:43.963
@jpmc26 the pop-up will show up as long as the current Windows user that visits chrome://help has that UAC level set to maximum. Which means: the options you set when you are running the Chrome installation process will not change the UAC level, therefore the Windows pop-ups will always show up. – CPHPython – 2016-09-14T19:17:43.047
1
You may wish to turn off Google Update services. This may help.
pbies
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 1 633
1I don't see why this answer is being downvoted. Simply disabling Google Update is enough to solve the problem. Now the user can enter chrome://help and Chrome will not update itself – kukis – 2016-09-12T08:05:06.977
2@kukis (not my downvote, but) it seems to already be covered in the top answer. By the way, I don't have such a plugin in my browser. – Amani Kilumanga – 2016-09-12T09:19:45.017
1@AmaniKilumanga I think "Google Update services" means the Windows service in services.msc? I don't know if disabling the service alone can stop the update. – jingyu9575 – 2016-09-12T14:30:35.263
2I wish I could downvote because turning off update services for one of the two main sandboxes on your system is beyond irresponsible advice. – David Mulder – 2016-09-12T20:30:21.917
1@kukis: It was downvoted because it is a single-sentence answer (when you remove the second answer, which is pure useless noise) giving a vague recommendation without any effort to explain why this might help, and what the downsides may be (of which, in this case, there are serious examples). If "this solves the problem but causes ten more much worse" is acceptable to you then go for it, but there is no way we should be taking this approach in the general case when providing answers on Stack Exchange. – Lightness Races with Monica – 2016-09-13T08:44:23.730
0
You can check google chrome's version from the command line, I'm using chromium (The open-source project providing the code for Google Chrome) on a Debian distro, I can type chromium --version, I get this :
Chromium 49.0.2623.87 built on Debian stretch/sid, running on Debian Kali
Linux Rolling
the version in my case is : 49.0.2623.87
In your case, you're using Windows, look for CMD commands to do the same.
7bisso
Posted 2016-09-11T15:29:52.527
Reputation: 136
22Silliest idea: Unplug cable / disconnect WiFi, and open that page? – Kroltan – 2016-09-13T22:23:21.737
3@Kroltan someone suggested that earlier but it looks like comments keep getting deleted here – Franck Dernoncourt – 2016-09-13T22:26:49.690
2As an aside, why would you not want it to update? - This'll effect which answers are most suitable (a one off check of version doesn't help if you're trying to limit data usage and it just updates itself anyway). – djsmiley2k TMW – 2016-09-14T13:17:43.280
2@djsmiley2k someone suggested that earlier but it looks like comments keep getting deleted here – Franck Dernoncourt – 2016-09-14T15:06:46.933
1I had a similar problem when trying to lock Firefox to version 46. Need to disable automatic updates before checking the version. – azz – 2016-09-15T09:54:33.140
1This fiddle may help you. – hims056 – 2016-09-16T12:11:27.650
1Thanks. Actually I discourage myself (and everyone) to post link only answers so didn't post it even after that fiddle is created by me :). But will surely add if that comment is removed. – hims056 – 2016-09-17T05:08:48.100
FYI Why did these comments get deleted? Someone else wrote the same afterward and got over 20 upvotes
– Franck Dernoncourt – 2017-02-05T04:47:35.470