How do I use VNC Viewer on a Chromebook?

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While VNC Connect does not currently have a dedicated ChromeOS app, there are options available to run one of RealVNC's other VNC Viewer apps.

Using VNC Viewer for Linux

If your Chromebook supports running Linux applications you may be able to use VNC Viewer for Linux. For the full list of Chromebooks that support running Linux applications please click here.

Enabling Linux applications on your Chromebook

Before you can use Linux applications on your Chromebook you first need to enable it in your device's settings. To do this, open the Chrome OS Settings app and look for Linux (Beta) in the left navigation menu. For a more detailed guide on how to do this, we suggest using the guide here.

Once Linux apps are enabled you will need to install a GUI, such as GNOME.

Firstly, ensure the package lists are up to date by running:

Sudo apt-get update

Once the command finishes are finished, install GNOME by running:

Sudo apt-get install gnome-software gnome-packagekit -y

After GNOME has been successfully installed, please restart your Chromebook.

Installing VNC Viewer on your Chromebook

To install VNC Viewer on your Chromebook, firstly download VNC Viewer from this link.  You must use the DEB option for this process. For 64-bit, choose the x64 option, and for 32-bit choose x86. (see note below for additional steps for 32-bit).

You will need to download the installer to a directory that the Linux applications can access. To share a directory with Linux apps you will need to use the My files app and navigate to your chosen directory. Right-click the chosen directory and select “Share With Linux”.

You can now access this directory using the following command:

cd /mnt/chromeos/MyFiles/

Once you have downloaded the DEB package please run the following command to install VNC Viewer.

sudo apt install ./<download-file>    

Once VNC Viewer has been installed, you can open it via the applications menu or by running

vncviewer

For our full guide on setting up VNC Viewer please click here.

A note for 32-bit Chromebooks

If your Chromebook is running as 32-bit, you will need to enable i386 before installing VNC Viewer. To enable this run:

sudo dpkg --add-architecture i386

Using VNC Viewer for Android

Alternatively, if your Chromebook supports Android apps (supported devices are listed here), you may be able to install VNC Viewer for Android.

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2 comments
  • I can't use VNC by My MacbookAir(late2010) on ChromeOS Flex.
    My MacbookAir have Core2DUO.
    My MacbookAir don't supports Linux application and Android.
    Please let me know VNC use My MacbookAir on ChromeOS Flex.
    I want use VNC by ChromeOS Flex on My MacbookAir.

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  • You might want to double-check the case sensitivity in the "Enabling Linux applications on your Chromebook" section. There's a line that's intended for people to copy/paste into a terminal prompt, but the "s" in "sudo" is a capital "S" (Sudo - should be sudo).

    This is the example:
    Sudo apt-get install gnome-software gnome-packagekit -y

    This is what it should be:
    sudo apt-get install gnome-software gnome-packagekit -y

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