Chrome Remote Desktop host setup instructions not showing for Ubuntu 18.04

Question

I'm currently trying to set up chrome remote desktop on a new computer with Ubuntu 18.04. But whenever I try to follow the instructions on https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/1649523#linux-crd, it skips the setup stage and goes straight to "Set up another device for remote access".

To clarify, the steps are:

1. Install chrome extension
2. Install Debian file https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/chrome-remote-desktop_current_amd64.deb
3. Checked that it was successful using systemctl status chrome-remote-desktop
4. The blue setup button on https://remotedesktop.google.com/access/ gets stuck forever
5. If I try to open it up in a new tab or refresh, the only option I have is to "Set up another device for remote access" or remote into a device I've setup already.

I've gotten this to work on a virtual machine earlier this year and it works fine on my windows computer. But it seems to only fail on my Ubuntu 18.04 computer. I've also tried reinstalling google-chrome, chrome-remote-desktop chrome extension and chrome-remote-desktop Debian file installation.

Does anyone have suggestions on what might be going on?

Solution 1

Just checked again and looks like they've fixed it so it works again! If anyone else has this issue, an update should do!

Solution 2

If anyone else has this issue, try this:

mkdir ~/.config/chrome-remote-desktop

Comments

[Channing Mao]

Same symptoms and I found it is because askubuntu.com/a/1261797

[Admin]

same boat on Ubuntu 20.04. I used to make it work before.

[Gabriel Fair]

This helped me. Thank you

[rogergo]

Works like a charm, thanks a lot!

[Larry Cai]

Worked for me in that session to add this computer to my Google Remote Devices, and it remains functional that way. BUT, a few days later, now I want to share this computer's "access code" so that someone else can take control, and that box at the bottom went back to prompting me to set up remote access. Same in the "Remote Support" tab: "To let someone else access and control this computer, click the download button." As if I no longer have remote desktop set up. Running the mkdir command again returns error cannot create directory ..... File already exists.

[Pizza]

Thank you for your contribution - for future documentation purposes, please edit your answer and add your full Ubuntu version, not "Ubuntu 20+".

[Arka Ghosh]

This should be the accepted answer.

[Yorbjörn]

Did the trick! Thank you!

[Admin]

Thank you. It worked perfectly.