Bake Brave into the image as the default browser #8

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opened 2026-07-15 09:44:48 +00:00 by james.oates · 1 comment
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Product decision (2026-07-15): the initial release ships one browser baked into the OS image — Brave. Privacy-first, Chromium-based (best web compat + DRM out of the box, built-in ad/tracker blocking that non-technical users benefit from without installing anything), not Google/Microsoft. Replaces the first-boot picker (#3, deferred to polish) as the answer to "immediately usable, browser minimum".

Work:

  • Layer Brave via its official RPM repository in the Containerfile (rpm-ostree install from brave-browser repo; verify current repo URL/key against Brave's docs — do not trust from memory)
  • Managed policy file disabling Brave Rewards, sponsored new-tab content, and the crypto wallet by default (/etc/brave/policies/managed/ — verify exact path/keys against Brave/Chromium enterprise policy docs)
  • Set Brave as default browser system-wide (xdg-settings / KDE default-apps config baked into the image)
  • Drop Chrome from config/flatpaks.list — the live demo inherits Brave from the image, so the demo set becomes Steam + Heroic only
  • Verify in the live ISO VM rig: Brave present, opens, policies applied (brave://policy)

Related: #3 (picker, deferred), pipeline priority (Easy Install / Simple Safe Updates).

Product decision (2026-07-15): the initial release ships one browser baked into the OS image — Brave. Privacy-first, Chromium-based (best web compat + DRM out of the box, built-in ad/tracker blocking that non-technical users benefit from without installing anything), not Google/Microsoft. Replaces the first-boot picker (#3, deferred to polish) as the answer to \"immediately usable, browser minimum\". Work: - [ ] Layer Brave via its official RPM repository in the Containerfile (`rpm-ostree install` from brave-browser repo; verify current repo URL/key against Brave's docs — do not trust from memory) - [ ] Managed policy file disabling Brave Rewards, sponsored new-tab content, and the crypto wallet by default (`/etc/brave/policies/managed/` — verify exact path/keys against Brave/Chromium enterprise policy docs) - [ ] Set Brave as default browser system-wide (xdg-settings / KDE default-apps config baked into the image) - [ ] Drop Chrome from `config/flatpaks.list` — the live demo inherits Brave from the image, so the demo set becomes Steam + Heroic only - [ ] Verify in the live ISO VM rig: Brave present, opens, policies applied (brave://policy) Related: #3 (picker, deferred), pipeline priority (Easy Install / Simple Safe Updates).
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Correction from installed-system testing (2026-07-15): the base image does ship Firefox — the earlier claim that ublue kinoite-main strips it was wrong; a fresh install has a working browser today. This issue's scope is therefore replace Firefox with Brave, not fill a gap: add rpm-ostree override remove firefox firefox-langpacks (verify exact package names in the base) alongside the Brave install, or a clean install ships two browsers. The urgency drops accordingly — this is product preference, not a rescue.

Correction from installed-system testing (2026-07-15): the base image **does ship Firefox** — the earlier claim that ublue kinoite-main strips it was wrong; a fresh install has a working browser today. This issue's scope is therefore *replace* Firefox with Brave, not fill a gap: add `rpm-ostree override remove firefox firefox-langpacks` (verify exact package names in the base) alongside the Brave install, or a clean install ships two browsers. The urgency drops accordingly — this is product preference, not a rescue.
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Glarion/glarion#8
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