The Chromebook beta isn’t open yet
Silent Student runs on a Mac or a Windows PC today. It doesn’t install on a Chromebook, an iPad or a phone.
Download Silent Student for Mac or Windows · Watch it work in the live demo
Silent Student on a Chromebook
Short answer: on your own Chromebook, Silent Student runs inside ChromeOS’s Linux development environment. You turn Linux on once, install the app from a .deb file, and sign in. It doesn’t work on a Chromebook your school issued or manages.
Public beta. Questions? Email support@silentstudent.com.
Preview: this guide isn’t open to students yet.
How do I install it on my Chromebook?
Check that it isn’t school-managed
Open Settings → About ChromeOS. If you see “Your Chromebook is managed by” a school or company, stop here. Or type
chrome://managementin Chrome’s address bar: “This device is managed by…” means your school controls it.Schools turn Linux off on the Chromebooks they manage, and on school Google accounts. Silent Student can’t run there, so please don’t try to get around your school’s settings. Use a personal Chromebook, a Mac or a Windows PC instead.
Turn on Linux
Go to Settings → About ChromeOS → Developers, find Linux development environment and choose Set up. On older ChromeOS versions it’s under Settings → Advanced → Developers. Accept the suggested username, give it at least 10 GB of disk, and wait a few minutes. A Terminal window opens when it’s done.
Check which processor it has
In the Terminal window, type this and press Enter:
uname -mx86_64: an Intel or AMD Chromebook. Use the amd64 file.aarch64: an ARM Chromebook (MediaTek, Snapdragon and similar). Use the arm64 file.- Anything else, such as
armv7l: this beta doesn’t run on that Chromebook.
Download the right .deb file
Pick the file that matches what
uname -msaid. Then open the Files app and drag the downloaded file into Linux files.Intel or AMD
uname -msaysx86_64File:
Download for Intel/AMD (amd64)silent-student_<version>_amd64.debARM
uname -msaysaarch64File:
silent-student_<version>_arm64.debBeta: not yet tested on a real ARM ChromebookDownload for ARM (arm64)Downloads come with a plan. Signed out, these buttons take you to sign up first.
Install it
Stay connected to the internet: Linux downloads the parts the app needs while it installs. If you’ve never installed anything in Linux before, first run this once in Terminal:
sudo apt updateThen, in Files → Linux files, double-click the .deb file and choose Install. Or, in Terminal:
sudo apt install ./silent-student_*_amd64.deb(use
_arm64.debon an ARM Chromebook). Linux downloads everything else the app needs, including the keyring that protects your passwords. When it finishes, Silent Student is in the Launcher’s Linux apps folder. You can also start it from Terminal by typingSilentStudent.If Terminal says “held broken packages” or “Unable to fetch some archives”, Linux couldn’t download those parts. Nothing is half-installed. Connect to the internet, run
sudo apt update, then install again.Open it and set up the keyring
Open Silent Student from the Launcher’s Linux apps folder. The first time it opens, it shows a short “Opening SilentStudent” note and Linux shows Choose password for new keyring (for the “Default keyring”). Type a password twice and choose Continue. Silent Student keeps your sign-in in that keyring, locked by its password. Pick one you’ll remember, and don’t leave it blank: a blank keyring password leaves the keyring unprotected.
On a 4 GB Chromebook, a “Memory is tight on this Chromebook” message comes next, when the app’s window opens. Read it and choose OK.
After every Chromebook restart, Linux asks once for that password when Silent Student opens, in a window asking you to unlock the keyring. Type it and choose Unlock.
If you choose Cancel, or Linux never shows a keyring window, Silent Student still works and still saves your sign-in. It closes and opens again by itself once, then keeps your sign-in in its own folder on the Chromebook instead of the keyring, in a file only your Linux account can open. That’s less protected than the keyring, but there’s nothing you have to fix. The next time it opens with a working keyring, it moves your sign-in into the keyring by itself (see What if the keyring doesn’t work?).
Sign in
When the app’s window opens, sign in with your Silent Student email and password. It stays signed in after that, with or without the keyring.
Continue with Google opens in Chrome and comes back to the app by itself. If Chrome shows “This site can’t be reached” on
127.0.0.1, close that tab and sign in with your email and password instead.Sign in to Canvas in the app’s own browser
When you start a run, Silent Student opens its own browser in a separate window. It isn’t your Chrome, and your tabs, passwords and extensions aren’t touched. Sign in to Canvas there once, and to each homework site your classes use (like WebAssign or McGraw Hill Connect) the first time it opens. It remembers them after that.
The first time, the app downloads that browser, which takes a few minutes.
Keep the window open while it works
There’s no tray icon on a Chromebook, so closing the Silent Student window quits the app. While a run is going, it asks first: choose Keep running to minimize it to the shelf, or Quit and stop the run. To come back, open Silent Student again from the Launcher; it returns to the same window.
Chromebook questions
Will it work on my school Chromebook?
No. School-issued and school-managed Chromebooks, and school Google accounts, have Linux turned off by the school. Silent Student needs Linux, so it can’t run there. Don’t try to change a school’s settings; use a personal device.
I don’t see Linux in Settings
Either the Chromebook or the Google account is managed, or the model is too old for Linux. Check chrome://management. Every Chromebook launched in 2019 or later supports Linux.
How much memory does it need?
4 GB at least, and 8 GB is better. ChromeOS keeps part of the memory for itself, so on a 4 GB Chromebook Linux gets under 3 GB, and the app shows a one-time “Memory is tight on this Chromebook” note. Silent Student works with that, but busy Chrome tabs take memory away from Linux, and then a run can slow down or the app’s browser can close partway through. Before you start a run, close the Chrome tabs and Linux apps you don’t need. While it works, the app and its browser use about 1.2 to 1.4 GB inside Linux. If the note says memory is very low (Linux has under 2 GB), runs are more likely to stop partway. To check your Chromebook’s memory, open the Diagnostics app and look at Memory.
How do updates work?
This beta doesn’t update itself yet. When a new version is out, the app shows Update available, and Get the update opens this page. Quit Silent Student, download the new .deb and install it the same way (double-click, or sudo apt install). Your sign-in and settings stay.
What if the keyring doesn’t work?
Your sign-in is still saved. Silent Student uses the Linux keyring when it works. When it doesn’t (you chose Cancel, it stayed locked, or Linux didn’t start it), the app closes and opens again by itself once and saves your sign-in in its own folder, in a file only your Linux account can open. You stay signed in either way. To put it back in the keyring, which is optional:
- You chose Cancel: quit and reopen Silent Student. Choose a keyring password (not blank) or type yours when Linux asks.
- No keyring window appears: restart Linux. Right-click Terminal in the shelf and choose Shut down Linux, then open Silent Student again.
- Still no keyring window: in Terminal run
sudo apt install --reinstall gnome-keyring libsecret-1-0then quit and reopen Silent Student.
Once the keyring works, the app moves your sign-in into it by itself. If your sign-in is already in the keyring and you choose Cancel on the unlock window, the app opens signed out: quit and reopen it and type your keyring password, or sign in again.
How do I remove it?
Right-click Silent Student in the Launcher and choose Uninstall. Or, in Terminal, run sudo apt remove silent-student.
Who do I ask for help?
Email support@silentstudent.com and say it’s the Chromebook beta, with what uname -m printed. Never send your school password.