chromium

Open a specific URL or file

$ chromium [https://example.com|path/to/file.html]

$ chromium --incognito [example.com]

$ chromium --new-window [example.com]

$ chromium --app=[https://example.com]

$ chromium --proxy-server="[socks5://hostname:66]" [example.com]

$ chromium --user-data-dir=[path/to/directory]

$ chromium --user-data-dir=[path/to/directory] --disable-web-security

$ chromium --auto-open-devtools-for-tabs

chromium [options] [URL]

--help
    Display available options and exit.

--version
    Print the browser version.

--incognito
    Launch in incognito/private mode; no history or cookies saved.

--new-window
    Open URL in a new browser window.

--app=<URL>
    Run URL in application mode (no tabs/UI).

--no-sandbox
    Disable sandboxing for security (use only when necessary; insecure).

--disable-gpu
    Disable GPU hardware acceleration.

--user-data-dir=<DIR>
    Use specified directory for user data/profile.

--proxy-server=<PROXY>
    Specify proxy server (e.g., http://proxy:8080).

--headless
    Run in headless mode without UI (newer versions).

--enable-logging
    Enable verbose logging to console.

--no-first-run
    Skip first-run welcome screen.

--kiosk
    Full-screen kiosk mode.

Chromium is the open-source web browser project primarily developed by Google, serving as the foundation for Google Chrome. It offers blazing-fast performance, robust security features like sandboxing, and extensive support for modern web standards including HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript engines such as V8.

Key features include tabbed browsing, built-in PDF viewer, developer tools, extension support via the Chrome Web Store (with some limitations), and automatic updates on supported platforms. On Linux, the chromium command launches the browser, allowing users to specify profiles, proxies, or rendering options. Unlike proprietary Chrome, Chromium excludes certain codecs (e.g., H.264), auto-update mechanisms, and Google branding.

It is highly customizable via command-line flags for developers, sysadmins, and power users, enabling headless mode for automation, kiosk setups, or GPU tweaking. Widely packaged in Linux distributions like Ubuntu, Fedora, and Arch, it provides a privacy-focused, resource-efficient browsing experience without telemetry.

Many flags are experimental and may change; --no-sandbox poses security risks and is often needed in containers. No built-in proprietary media codecs; install separately if required. Command name varies (e.g., chromium-browser on Ubuntu).

Run chromium --help or visit chromium.org for complete documentation.

Install via package manager: e.g., sudo apt install chromium (Debian/Ubuntu), sudo dnf install chromium (Fedora).

Announced by Google on September 2, 2008, as open-source base for Chrome. Initial Linux builds released in 2009. Evolved with Blink rendering engine fork from WebKit in 2013. Actively maintained with versions syncing closely to Chrome stable channel.

firefox(1), google-chrome(1), qutebrowser(1), lynx(1)