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Just one week ago, Chrome OS 68 was released to users around the globe. In what has become an expected rollout, many devices were left out of the initial launch for reasons that only the Chromium developers know.
While frustrating, the staggered release of new versions of Chrome OS is pretty much par for the course and just a couple of days later, almost every other device received the latest update to 68.
The few devices still stuck on Chrome OS 67 covered a fairly wide range of processors and the reason for the delay is still unknown. Tonight, however, it looks like Chrome OS 68 may not have been as ready for primetime as developers had hoped.
Pixelbook owner Adam S. has been keeping a close watch on the Chromium bug tracker in hopes to find some clues as to why he and others had been left behind. The Pixelbook, in particular, has been reported as having some minor issues when extending to multiple displays but that hardly seems a reason to withhold and update as the userbase utilizing multiple monitors is likely very small.
Still, Adam kept digging and in the process discovered a much more alarming bug report that is affecting a large number of users.
We are getting reports from customers that WiFi connections stop working after updating to Chrome OS 68. Downgrading to 67 resolves the issue.
CR Bug Tracker
The report goes on to specify that a number of enterprise users are having the WIFI connectivity issue and there are a few mentions of reverting Chrome OS until the problem can be isolated and resolved.
As Adam pointed out, the Chrome OS update website that contains current versions for each channel on every device now lists Chrome OS 67 for all Chrome devices sans those that have reached End of Life.
A quick cross-check of my dynamic Chrome OS Omaha proxy spreadsheet confirms that fact. If you have received the update to Chrome OS 68 it is likely you have or will soon see another update arrow in your system tray.
Update
I received an email this morning from a colleague who is familiar with the issue addressed above. He has informed me that Chrome devices will, in fact, not be rolled back. In my haste, I did not read the bug report carefully enough. What has actually happened here is that the update server has been reverted back to Chrome OS 67 meaning version 68 is no longer being pushed out while developers work on a fix for the WIFI bug.
If you have received the update to 68 and are experiencing no issues, you are good to go. If you are having connectivity issues or any other problems for the matter, you can attempt to roll back your device manually. Below you will find the steps but keep in mind that this will powerwash your Chromebook so make sure you back up and data you don’t want to lose!
- Reboot your device
- While rebooting, press and hold Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R
- When the Powerwash screen pops up, press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+R again and you should see a new screen that says “Powerwash and Revert.”
- Click the Powerwash button to begin the rollback.
If successful, your device should roll back to Chrome OS 67. The bug has been given the highest priority level possible in the tracker and it’s all hands on deck to get it fixed so I would expect a new update very soon.
For more details on the bug and the progress of the repairs, check out the link below and star the issue to receive updates as they arrive. I will continue to update this article as details come down the pike and hopefully, we’ll see you all soon on Chrome OS 68.
