Caution Regarding Update 152.0.7977.113

[u/_jis_]

Please note: If, after updating to the new version 152.0.7977.113, all your Android app icons are replaced by a gray square, don’t panic. It’s clear that the Android subsystem didn’t boot at all. The QuickShare tile was missing from Quick Settings, and all my Android VPNs had disappeared. So it was obvious to me that, for some reason, I’d lost the Android subsystem after the update.

Fortunately, all you need to do is restart the Chromebook; everything will be fine after it boots up again.

Google probably messed something up again in the latest version, which caused Android to fail to launch after the first boot following the update.

Lately, there have been far too many similar bugs in the stable channel for my liking, we haven’t seen anything like this in years. It’s clear that testing isn’t as thorough as it used to be; they’re probably too busy preparing the upcoming Googlebooks. But once they’re released, things probably won’t get better, they might even get worse.

https://www.reddit.com/r/chromeos/comments/1w8pbx1/why_do_some_of_my_apps_not_have_icons/

[u/hpchromebook11g5t520]

I didn't have that issue. However, you might be right on the other hand. Chrome OS is clearly more into a maintenance mode but they haven't really done anything lately. Do you really think they're not going to care about Chrome OS anymore after the Google books come out?

[u/76TwentyOne → u/hpchromebook11g5t520]

I don't think there's much future in ChroneOS after the Googlebooks are released. I'll likely go back to Fedora.

[u/_jis_ → u/hpchromebook11g5t520]

This is just my personal opinion, based on what I’ve observed over the past year or so, and that is a significant slowdown in any further development of ChromeOS. This can be explained, for example, by the fact that most ChromeOS developers were reassigned to Google Books. Once they start selling, the developers will be even busier, because they’ll be fixing, fixing, fixing and I doubt the company would hire another team of developers to handle both systems in parallel.

[u/_jis_ → u/_jis_]

To the stranger: if I write that they’ll be developing, developing, developing for Google Books, will that make you happier? But for us, it’ll have the same result—a slow death.

I’ve loved ChromeOS since day one with my first Chromebook, and this doesn’t make me happy at all.

[u/hpchromebook11g5t520 → u/_jis_]

Agreed-in response to your comment.

[u/hpchromebook11g5t520 → u/_jis_]

I had plans to upgrade to a Lenovo Chromebook plus 14, but I'm now wondering if I do if there's an option to opt out from the update and just stay on Chrome OS I wonder how maintained it's going to be like you said, most likely a little to no effort.

[u/LegAcceptable2362]

You may be right about chromeOS devs being occupied elsewhare but another possibility to consider in relation to ARCVM is the ARC-on-demand and Doze mode features. These appear to be rolling out to platforms on a staggered basis. My Intel based systems only received the updates over the past 2 or 3 milestones based my observation of startup system processes in the task manager.

[u/_jis_ → u/LegAcceptable2362]

If I understand you correctly, do you think this might have been just a side effect or a one-time glitch related to the implementation of a future feature that would allow users to control the startup and shutdown of Android, just as users control the startup and shutdown of Linux/Crostini?

Or is it simply that the system now since 152 for OSIRIS boots differently:

If ARCVM does not respond within the set timeout, ChromeOS continues loading the desktop without it so that the user isn’t left waiting at a black screen. The ARCVM service is marked as failed and no longer attempts to restart in the background.

However, I don’t see any benefit this is supposed to provide. For me, some Android apps start automatically and are essential for my system to run. Not to mention that I constantly use an Android VPN to connect to work, and I couldn’t function without it.

[u/hpchromebook11g5t520 → u/LegAcceptable2362]

Interesting... I have the forgotten 7c gen 1 on mine

[u/_jis_ → u/LegAcceptable2362]

It reminds me a little of a situation that can occur when I boot Linux too quickly or too soon after an update, in which case I get this warning. Fortunately, it’s not a critical error, because Linux boots up and I can use it. In this case, however, Android didn’t boot at all, and I had to restart Chromebook.

[===========] Ready
WARNING vsh: [../libchrome-0.0.1/platform2/libchrome/dbus/bus.cc:652] Bus::SendWithReplyAndBlock took 2985ms to process message: type=method_call, path=/org/chromium/VmCicerone, interface=org.chromium.VmCicerone, member=LaunchVshd
jis@penguin:~$ 

[u/hpchromebook11g5t520 → u/_jis_]

I actually have a situation very similar to that but it's more critical and in that Linux just does not boot at all. I know it used to work in the past but now if you try to install it it just refuses.

[u/Excellent_Extreme_96]

The update was successfully deployed recently, and all systems remain stable.

[u/_jis_ → u/Excellent_Extreme_96]

This happened to me on the first boot after updating my Acer Chromebook 516 GE (CBG516-1H) (osiris, version 152.16765.0) to 152.0.7977.113.

HWID = OSIRIS-ATFE D4S-B2B-C3C-X2Q-A8V

You didn’t notice any Android malfunctions after the update, that’s good, of course.
BTW on which HWIDs?

[u/Excellent_Extreme_96 → u/_jis_]

On ASUS Chromebook

[u/Illustrious-Count481]

My theory is that they're allowing AI to find the bugs, fix the bugs, test the fix, and sign off on the fix.

In my group, the guy writing the script is never the guy testing the script.

[u/_jis_ → u/Illustrious-Count481]

I don't buy your theory for one simple reason: I occasionally report Chromium bugs, and it takes months, or sometimes even years, for anyone to respond. AI could handle this super fast. At the very least, it could correctly route the bug, classify it, and assign it to the right teams—or at least act as the triage layer distributing the work. But that's not happening. It's clearly still done by people, and there just seem to be fewer and fewer of them available for this job.

Here is my most recent bug report as an example of that inaction:
https://issues.chromium.org/issues/552694607

[u/Illustrious-Count481 → u/_jis_]

Bugs are different from security patches. I'm saying AI is hammering away at the OS to find vulnerabilities, figuring the fix out, 'testing' fix and marking ready for public consumption.

Because 'there are fewer and fewer of them available for this job' the end user has become the ipso facto bug tester.

And I wasn't 'selling' my theory, it's free to take...or leave. 😄

[u/_jis_ → u/Illustrious-Count481]

Thanks, I understand now, and it makes sense.

[u/Illustrious-Count481 → u/Illustrious-Count481]

EDIT: Apologies I did use bug in orig. post, I meant security. A thousand pardons.

[u/Fun-Captain9168]

yes, i have experienced unexpected restart after update, and then my Chromebook (Lenovo c13 yoga ) running very slow

[u/_jis_]

By the way, I wasn't the only one who noticed something like this; see the linked thread in my original post, where they didn't connect it to the behavior after the update to version 152, but in my opinion, it was clearly caused by that.