Enable Chrome Gemini#

Overview#

Use this skill to set up Gemini in Chrome on Windows, macOS, or Linux for the first time in non-US regions, or to bring it back when it was previously working and the sidebar or floating panel no longer opens.

Workflow#

1. Close Chrome#

• Close every Chrome window.
• If Chrome is still running, stop here before editing profile data.

2. Patch Local State#

• Run scripts/repair_chrome_gemini.py.
• The script backs up Local State and patches the Gemini eligibility fields.
• It sets the variation country to us, marks Glic eligibility true, keeps the glic@1 and glic-side-panel@1 experiments, and normalizes the Chrome UI language to en-US.

3. Relaunch and verify#

• Open Chrome again.
• Test Alt + G.
• If Gemini appears, the setup is complete.

4. Finish the native setup if needed#

• If Gemini still does not appear, open chrome://flags and verify Glic and Glic side panel.
• Only use the manual flags step if the underlying profile state did not take effect.
• On macOS, the Chrome profile lives under ~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome.

5. Confirm the result#

• Use Alt + G one more time.
• Check that the Gemini sidebar or floating panel opens on the active Chrome profile.

What The Script Changes#

• Set Chrome variation country fields to us.
• Set glic.is_glic_eligible = true.
• Keep existing Glic experiments and ensure glic@1 and glic-side-panel@1 are present.
• Set intl.app_locale, intl.selected_languages, and intl.accept_languages to English values.
• Write a timestamped backup next to Local State.

When To Use It#

• First-time Gemini in Chrome setup outside the US.
• A fresh Chrome profile needs Gemini enabled.
• Gemini in Chrome worked before and stopped opening.
• The sidebar, floating panel, or Alt + G shortcut no longer appears.
• Chrome has the right version, but the entry is hidden or eligibility seems missing.
• A browser state from a prior tutorial or profile needs to be normalized into the native Gemini setup.

What This Skill Covers#

• Native Chrome Gemini / Glic setup.
• Windows, macOS, and Linux profile locations.
• Local State patching for region and eligibility.
• Flag and language checks that unblock the native UI.

What This Skill Does Not Cover#

• Third-party Gemini extensions.
• Non-Chrome browsers.
• Enterprise policy administration beyond detecting that policy may block the setup.

Guardrails#

• Only edit Local State.
• Do not touch unrelated Chrome profile files.
• If Chrome is still running, stop and ask the user to close it unless --force is requested.
• If the profile is managed by policy, stop and report that the fix may be blocked.

Script Usage#

powershell

python scripts/repair_chrome_gemini.py --user-data-dir "%LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data"

bash

python scripts/repair_chrome_gemini.py

Use --dry-run to preview changes, --force if Chrome is already open and you want to override the safety check, and --language "" to skip language normalization.

On macOS or Linux, the script defaults to the standard Chrome profile location, so the --user-data-dir flag is optional unless you use a custom profile path.