demo · v133

What replaces `chrome://welcome` for enterprises

As of 133, putting chrome://welcome in first_run_tabs is a no-op. Enterprises that relied on it for a custom IT-pinned onboarding page need a different path. Three working alternatives compared.

droppedchrome://welcome via initial_preferences

Originally how new installs opened the welcome page. The internal page itself still exists, but the trigger is gone.

{
  "first_run_tabs": [ "chrome://welcome" ]
}

keptfirst_run_tabs with a real URL

An IT department's own intranet onboarding page still loads — only the internal chrome:// URL was dropped.

{
  "first_run_tabs": [ "https://it.example.com/welcome" ]
}

keptRestoreOnStartupURLs enterprise policy

Open a set of URLs every launch — the modern policy path.

{
  "RestoreOnStartup": 4,
  "RestoreOnStartupURLs": [ "https://it.example.com/welcome", "https://intranet/" ]
}

keptHomepageLocation + FirstRunPage

For setups that prefer the homepage button to do the work.

{
  "HomepageLocation": "https://it.example.com/start",
  "HomepageIsNewTabPage": false
}

scenario	old (pre-133)	new (133+)
show built-in welcome	first_run_tabs chrome://welcome	FRE handles this automatically; no config needed
show enterprise IT page on first launch	first_run_tabs (custom URL)	still works — only chrome:// URLs ignored
force a URL on every launch	RestoreOnStartupURLs policy	same

why it was removed

The First Run Experience that desktop Chrome shows on a new install already covers the same ground — sign-in, default browser, sync setup. The legacy chrome://welcome trigger via initial_preferences was a second path that did less, and enterprises occasionally accidentally chained both. Dropping the trigger removes the duplicate and forces a single onboarding code path.

scenario focus

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