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I know that some Windows applications are stand-alone in the sense that you can just start the EXE directly and it works - no installation required. Can Google Chrome do this?

I'd like to run Google Chrome, but I am looking for a way to run it on a Windows XP system without having to install it first. I thought I was looking for a portable version but that still needs to be installed. So "portable" is not the keyword I'm looking for, while "stand-alone" doesn't yield any results.

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I used Chrome Plus before, it's portable. You can download the portable version, just unzip and use. – wliao Nov 29 '10 at 15:20
You mean unzip the portableapps installer.paf.exe and then run the launcher from inside there? I haven't been around portableapps much lately, but i think that should work. – alpha1 Nov 29 '10 at 17:02
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6 Answers

up vote 2 down vote accepted

How about Chromium? Take the latest snapshot, download the zip file, then extract and run! Perfect for me.

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Quote from the PortableApps website:

Standalone Installation - To install a portable app by itself, or manually, just browse to the location of the [AppName]_Portable_x.x.paf.exe file you downloaded. Double-click the file to start the installation. Follow the on-screen prompts and select the location you'd like to install to. Within the directory you select, an [AppName]Portable directory will be created containing the portable app.

All you need to do is install it once and then use the .exe in the folder the installer creates to run the app as a stand-alone.

Good luck!

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I was clearly asking for no installation required. – Torben Gundtofte-Bruun Nov 30 '10 at 7:45
You only need to perform the "install" once so it creates a folder. It is like extracting a ZIP file. Once you've gone through the process you end up with a folder with Chrome which you can use anywhere without installing anything making a completely stand-alone app. – akseli Nov 30 '10 at 11:52
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up vote 0 down vote

Installation usually consists of two actions (loosely speaking)

  • extract a bunch of files from an archive somewhere and copy them to local storage.
  • creating entries in the Windows registry (or equivalent on other platforms)

Usually, it's the second part that people wish to avoid.

The main way to avoid both parts is to run web-based applications - but that would be rather self-defeating in this case.

The idea of a portable app is that you install it on a removable storage device such as a USB flash memory drive. It can then be run on any number of PCs with performing any additional installation for each PC.

If this does not meet your needs, I suggest you revise your question to clarify your specific objectives.

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I haven't tried this, but if you have installed Chrome on other PC, try copying the Chrome folder from \Documents and Settings\<user-name>\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome

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Use http://portableapps.com/apps/internet/google_chrome_portable its not a stand alone app but it wont leave settings behind. Download google chrome portable run it, install it to your desktop, open the "GoogleChromePortable" folder and run "GoogleChromePortable.exe". When your done just delete the folder "GoogleChromePortable". Or you can use either vmware thinapp or cameyo.

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up vote -1 down vote

Here you you can find all kind of portable apps, including Google Chrome: http://portableappz.blogspot.com

You can find the latest (2010.11.29.) version of chrome here: http://portableappz.blogspot.com/2010/11/google-chrome-80552210-beta-chromium.html

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