A few days ago, I posed a series of questions about Flash in Chrome. Since then, I’ve done some digging, and I’m now able to answer most of those questions.
Q: What is the ‘component updater’?
A: It’s a process used by Chrome to silently and automatically update certain specific components of the browser. The new, integrated Flash component falls into that category, so Flash in Chrome is updated automatically and without any notification to the user. When new versions of Chrome are released, Google may or may not refer to Flash updates in the release notes.
Q: How does the component updater affect the version number of Chrome in Windows?
A: It doesn’t. Component updates are distinct from new versions of the browser itself. You can, however, find the versions of Chrome’s components by browsing to special addresses in Chrome, as follows:
chrome://plugins/ – lists all plugins, along with their versions, including the integrated Flash.
chrome://flash/ – shows details of the integrated Flash component, including its version.
chrome://version/ – shows a version summary for Chrome and its major components, including the integrated Flash.
Q: Has Flash been updated in my version of Chrome or not?
A: You can’t depend on Google to announce new versions of the integrated Flash, regardless of whether the new version is packaged along with a new version of Chrome, or updated separately via the component updater. Use one of the special URLs listed above to check the version you’re using.
Q: How can I determine what version of Flash is running in Chrome?
A: Use one of the special URLs listed above.
Q: What is “Windows Standalone Enterprise”?
A: This remains a mystery. The Chrome release channels page doesn’t mention it. Perhaps it’s only available to enterprise (corporate) clients. Or possibly the Chrome announcement that referred to this channel was in error. In any case, you can’t really depend on Google’s announcements to mention new Flash versions; use one of the specials URLs above, along with Flash announcements from Adobe, to determine what version of Flash you have, and what version you need.
On February 26, Adobe announced version 11.6.602.171 of the Flash player. As usual, Adobe says: “These updates address vulnerabilities that could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system.” The technical details are available in Adobe Security Bulletin APSB13-08.
Microsoft simultaneously announced a Flash update for Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8, which will be delivered via Windows Update.
Google will no doubt release a new version of Chrome that includes the Flash updates in the next day or so.
Anyone who uses Flash in their web browser should install the appropriate update as soon as possible. That includes anyone who uses Youtube. So basically just about everyone.
No mention of Java is made in the announcement linked above, but presumably the most recent Java security fixes found their way into this Chrome release.
Version 24.0.1312.70 of Google’s web browser contains the latest version of Adobe Flash.
Update: Something funny going on here. The announcement linked above states that version 24.0.1312.70 is actually for the Linux platform. It goes on to say: “This release contains an update to Flash (11.6.602.167). This Flash update has been pushed to Windows, Mac, and Chrome Frame platforms through component updater.” But what is the ‘component updater’, and how will it affect the version number of Chrome in Windows? There’s nothing on the Chrome support site about it. My own Chrome installation reports itself as being up to date at version 24.0.1312.57. Has Flash been updated in my installation or not? How can I determine what version of Flash is running in Chrome? Comments below the announcement linked above show other users similarly confused. Meanwhile, another new version was announced on Feb 14: “The Stable channel has been updated to 24.0.1312.71 for Windows Standalone Enterprise. This build contains an updated Flash (11.6.602.167).” That version at least seems to be targeted at Windows, but what is “Windows Standalone Enterprise”? It contains the same version of Flash as 24.0.1312.70, but again my version of Chrome reports that it is up to date at 24.0.1312.57. Not much we can do at this point except wait for Google to sort out this mess.
A new version of Google’s Chrome web browser was announced today. Version 24.0.1312.52 fixes a number of security vulnerabilities, and improves speed and stability. It also includes the security fixes for Flash recently announced by Adobe. The version of Flash embedded in this new version of Chrome is 11.5.31.137.
The latest version of Google’s web browser has a few minor fixes, including one for a bug that caused the browser to crash in certain situations. Several security issues are also addressed in this version.
Anyone accustomed to using Google’s Chrome browser, seeing Google search in their browser and having other Google tools handy in previous versions of Windows will notice their absence in Windows 8. Google noticed as well, and has instructions for bringing Chrome and Google search tools to the new O/S.
Google’s aptly-titled Get Your Google Back page provides users with a simple wizard-based process for returning the missing features.
Rants and musings on topics of interest. Sometimes about Windows, Linux, security and cool software.
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