How to Remove Linux from Your Chromebook

Crostini and Crouton versions covered here

Is Linux crashing yourlow-end or budget Chromebook? Does running Linux apps slow your Chromebook’s performance or cause other glitches? Removing Linux from your Chromebook might resolve the issue.

You might also want to remove Linux from your Chromebook if you’re giving it away or trying to free up storage space. This tutorial covers steps for removingdifferent Linux distros from Chromebooks.

Note:Removing the Linux development environment will uninstall Linux applications and delete data (files and folders) from your Chromebook. Back up any important file to Google Drive or an external drive before removing Linux.

How to Remove Linux Beta (Crostini) from Chromebook

If you installed Google’s Linux environment (Crostini) through your Chromebook’s settings menu, follow the steps below to turn it off.

Reduce Linux Beta Storage

ChromeOS allows you to allocate or adjust how much disk space the Linux environment consumes on your Chromebook. If you intend to remove Linux from your Chromebook to free up storage space, reducing the storage allocation is a better workaround.

You can also access this page throughSettings>Advanced>Developers>Linux development environment>Change.

Wait 1-2 minutes for ChromeOS to load your Chromebook’s Linux data.

Reboot your Chromebook and repeat these steps if you get an “Error loading data” error message.

How to Remove Ubuntu Linux (Crouton) on Your Chromebook

If you installed Ubuntu using a Crouton file, follow the steps below to remove the Linux environment from your Chromebook.

Running these commands will delete all Crouton chroot environments from your Chromebook.

Powerwash or Factory Reset Your Chromebook

Factory reset your Chromebookif you can’t remove Linux using the methods above. Performing a factory reset erases everything on your Chromebook, including any Linux distribution/environment. We recommend backing up important files to Google Drive before resetting your Chromebook.

Use Chromebook Recovery Utility to recover your Chromebook if it glitches after removing Linux and performing a factory reset. Recovering your Chromebook reinstalls ChromeOS and removes Linux and other operating systems. Refer to ourtutorial on using the Chromebook Recovery Utilityfor step-by-step instructions.

Sodiq has written thousands of tutorials, guides, and explainers over the past 4 years to help people solve problems with Android, iOS, Mac, and Windows devices. He also enjoys reviewing consumer tech products (smartphones, smart home devices, accessories, etc.) and binge-watching comedy series in his spare time.Read Sodiq’s Full Bio

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