To use desktop applications like browsers in the Ubuntu container, you need to enable the connection to the ChromeOS desktop using Sommelier. Sommelier acts as a bridge, enabling seamless integration and smooth operation of Linux apps within the ChromeOS environment.
Install a minimal desktop environment to provide the necessary libraries for graphical applications:
sudo apt install -y xubuntu-desktop-minimal
Install a test application:
sudo apt install -y terminator
Configure the display environment variables so GUI applications know where to render their windows:
echo 'export DISPLAY=:0' >> ~/.bashrc
Install the necessary tools to build Sommelier:
sudo apt install -y clang meson libwayland-dev cmake pkg-config libgbm-dev libdrm-dev libxpm-dev libpixman-1-dev libx11-xcb-dev libxcb-composite0-dev libxkbcommon-dev libgtest-dev python3-jinja2
Build Sommelier from source code because it is not available in Ubuntu repositories:
git clone https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromiumos/platform2
cd platform2/vm_tools/sommelier
meson build
cd build
ninja
sudo ninja install
Sommelier is now installed in /usr/local/bin/.
Create a systemd user unit file for X11 support:
mkdir -p ~/.config/systemd/user
Use a text editor to create the file ~/.config/systemd/user/sommelier@.service with the following contents:
[Unit]
Description=Sommelier X11 bridge instance %i
[Service]
Environment=DISPLAY=:0
ExecStart=/usr/local/bin/sommelier -X --scale=1 --no-exit-with-child -- /bin/true
Restart=on-failure
[Install]
WantedBy=default.target
Reload the systemd user manager and start the Sommelier service:
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now sommelier@0.service
Confirm the Sommelier service is running:
systemctl --user status sommelier@0.service
Test a graphical application. You can pick any application you installed, such as Terminator:
terminator &
You should see a new terminal open on your ChromeOS desktop.
If needed, you can restart Sommelier:
sudo systemctl restart sommelier@0