Google Unveils Chrome OS
Four months after its announcement and slight more than one year after the release of its key component, the Google Chrome Browser, Google demonstrated an early version of its upcoming Google Chrome Operating System which is described an “open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks.” It uses a custom Linux kernel and window manager that runs the Chrome browser and nothing else. Its expected release date is the second half of 2010. It will run on custom designed netbooks using flash memory solid-state drives, Google is not aiming at supporting regular hard drives.
Key ideas of Chrome OS and the Open Sourced version, Chromium OS include:
- Three tier architecture (from lowest level to top level):
- Firmware which has the ability to verify and reinstall the OS if corrupted or compromised.
- System-level software and user-land services: the Linux based kernel drivers, connection manager, and so on
- The Chromium-based browser and the window manager which handles the user's interaction with multiple client windows. It is similar to other X Window managers. Rendering is done by OpenGL or OpenGL|ES. The Browser uses Html 5, JavaScript and Flash to produce a rich environment without native apps. All user interaction is via the browser.
- Deploy defences in depth including verified boot, rebooting when system may be comprised. It mitigates data loss if a device is stolen by encrypting all local data and storing copies in the cloud.
- Automatic OS updates with all OS files in a pair of read-only partition, one active and one containing the previous version of the OS so it can be used as a fallback in case of error.
Looking at Google’s design it is reminiscent of Oracle’s thin client idea and many bring to fruition Marc Andreessen’s idea of replacing Windows’s “poorly debugged bag of device drivers” with a browser.
The question is can a user have an acceptable experience with only a browser? Google certainly thinks so.