Installing Google Chrome on a Windows server using a ready-made recipe

Windows Server images don't include Google Chrome out of the box — just Internet Explorer/Edge. Instead of connecting over RDP, manually downloading the installer, and clicking through "Next", VMmanager 6 has a ready-made recipe for this: it downloads and installs Chrome for you. And you can run it right on a live server — no reinstall, no data loss.

Diagram: running a VMmanager 6 recipe — find the server, open its ⋮ menu, Run script, pick the recipe, done

What you'll need

A Windows server on one of these templates: windows2022, windows2019, windows2016, windows2012r2, windows11, windows10, or windows. The "Google Chrome" recipe is only available for these OS templates.
Access to the VMmanager 6 panel — if you haven't logged in yet, start with the "How to log in to VMmanager 6" article.

Tip: the "Google Chrome" recipe (ID 18) is available to all mHost clients — access level "Everyone" — so there's nothing to search for or enable separately, it's already in the shared recipe list. For the full list of ready-made recipes, see "Ready-made VMmanager 6 recipes".

Step 1. Log in to VMmanager 6

Open the panel using one of the two methods described in the "How to log in to VMmanager 6" article: with the username and password from your activation email, or without a password — via my.mhost.ee → "Services" → "Virtual servers" → the "Log in" button.

Step 2. Run the "Google Chrome" recipe

The recipe runs right on your live server — no need to reinstall the OS or lose any data.

In the list of virtual machines, find your server and click the "⋮" (three dots) icon next to it.
Select "Run script".
In the list of scripts that opens, select "Google Chrome".
Start the recipe and wait for it to finish.

Tip: "Google Chrome" only shows up in the script list for Windows servers. If you don't see it, check that your server is on one of the Windows templates listed above.

Another option: you can select the same recipe when ordering a server or reinstalling the OS (in the pre-installed software section). But for a server you already have up and running, it's easier to run it the way described above — without a reinstall.

📷 screenshot: the "⋮" menu on a server with the "Run script" option and the "Google Chrome" recipe selected

Step 3. Check the result

While the recipe is running, the server's status in the VM list may differ from the usual "Active" (for example, "Running script"). Wait for it to go back to ready, then:

Connect to the server over RDP using your administrator account.
Open the Start menu — you should see a Google Chrome shortcut there.

📷 screenshot: the Windows server desktop with the Google Chrome shortcut

Done: if Chrome launches, the recipe ran successfully and you can go on using the server as usual.

What's next

The "Google Chrome" recipe is just one of the ready-made set in VMmanager 6: there are control panels, web stacks, VPN, monitoring, and more. For the full list, see "Ready-made VMmanager 6 recipes".

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