How to enable Chrome Extension blocked by Administrator?

You may have come across a situation where you try to enable a Chrome extension but receive the following message: “This extension is blocked by your administrator.”

It can be really frustrating when you can’t enable an essential Chrome extension because it’s been blocked by the administrator. However, there is a way to get around this and enable the extension anyway.

In this blog post, we will walk you through the steps on how to do it. Keep in mind that you will need administrative privileges to enable the extension.

Chrome Extension blocked by Administrator

If you try to download or install a Chrome Extension into Google Chrome, you may see the following error message:

Ooops

Extension Name (extension ID “bmhcbmnbenmcecpmpepghooflbehcack”) is blocked by the administrator.

This implies that the extension is blocked by the system administrator who controls your system(s). Due to Chrome stability and security concerns, Google Chrome Extensions can be disabled by the system admin. If you’re the system admin, you can allow the extensions by changing the registry settings.

Why is the Chrome extension blocked by the Administrator?

Here are the reasons why the administrator has blocked a Chrome extension:

• It is possible that the extension poses a security risk to the computer or all the devices connected to the same network.
• The extension may be malicious and can be used to collect sensitive data from the user.
• It is possible that the extension is not licensed and the administrator wants to prevent its use.
• The extension blocked by the administrator might be causing conflicts with other essential extensions or software on the computer.
• There is also a possibility that an extension is blocked by the admin because it does not follow the policies of the organization.

How to enable Chrome Extension blocked by Administrator?

If you’re the system administrator, you can follow these steps to enable a blocked Chrome extension.

Step 1: Find the Extension ID

Every Chrome Web Store app and extension has its own distinct ID (ID) that does not change across versions. The length of each ID is 32 characters long. To unblock an extension from the registry editor, you need to find its ID. Here is how to do that:

1. Launch Google Chrome and navigate to the Chrome Web Store.
2. Search for the extension of which you want to know the ID.
3. Open the extension and check its URL. The long string with random characters at the end is the extension ID.
4. Copy and save this extension to use it to unblock the extension.

Step 2: Launch Registry Editor to enable the Chrome Extension blocked by Administrator

Now that you have the extension ID, you need to launch the Registry Editor. Follow these steps:

1. Press the “Windows + R” keys on your keyboard to open the Run dialogue box.
2. In the Run box, type “regedit” and press Enter. This will open the Registry Editor.
3. Now, you need to go to the following location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Chrome.
4. On the left pane, find the key with the name ExtensionInstallWhitelist and double-click to enter it.
5. Under ExtensionInstallWhitelist create a new String Value.
6. Double-click on the newly created String Value and under Value data, paste the extension ID that you searched in the previous section.
7. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

You should now be able to install or enable the extension that was previously blocked by the administrator.

Step 3: Install the Chrome Extension blocked by Administrator

Now that you have made the changes in the Registry Editor, you should be able to install the extension from Chrome’s Extensions page. Here is how to do that:

1. Open Google Chrome and type chrome://extensions in the address bar and press Enter.
2. On the Extensions page, find the extension that you want to enable and click on the Add to Chrome button.
3. The extension will now be enabled in your Google Chrome browser.

Summing Up

Enabling a Chrome extension that has been blocked by the administrator is a simple process if you’re the system admin. You just need to find the extension ID and then make some changes in the Registry Editor. Once you’ve made the changes, you can install the extension from Chrome’s Extensions page. I hope this article was helpful and that you were able to enable the extension that was previously blocked by the administrator.