Google Chrome Prepares Deferred Restart Feature to Apply Security Updates Without Disruption
Google is preparing a new Chrome feature that will allow the browser to apply security updates through a deferred restart mechanism, avoiding sudden closures during active work sessions.
After an update has been downloaded, Chrome will present two options: restart immediately or wait until the user steps away from the computer. In the second scenario the browser will monitor for approximately five minutes of inactivity before attempting to close and relaunch itself.
The restart will be automatically cancelled if Chrome detects ongoing file downloads, audio or video playback, screen recording, or camera usage, thereby protecting active tasks such as video calls or large archive transfers.
Users will be notified of the scheduled restart through a pop-up message and a menu indicator displaying the text “Scheduled Restart”. Additional reminders may appear when a new tab is opened to reduce interruptions during focused work.
The current implementation does not permit users to choose an exact restart time as available in Windows Update; instead it relies primarily on detected inactivity. The changes are visible in the Chromium source under the queued-restarts topic but have not yet reached the stable release channel.
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