Installing and configuring NetSupport School on Google Chrome

NetSupport School delivers the tools you need to help maximise the effectiveness of computer-led teaching in a Google Chrome environment.

The NetSupport School Student for Chrome extension can be installed on each student machine running Google Chrome OS. From the teacher's machine (Windows or Chrome OS), you can then connect to each Chromebook system, enabling you to monitor the screens and interact with each student quickly and efficiently.

Planning an installation

For a teacher to be able to monitor and interact with their students using Google Chromebooks, the NetSupport Connectivity Server must be installed on a Windows Server; the NetSupport School Tutor must be installed on either a Windows computer or on a Google Chrome device, and the NetSupport School Student for Google Chrome extension must be installed onto each of the students' Chromebooks.

Note: The NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome can only connect to Google Chrome Students.

Installing the NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome

Download the NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome from the Google Chrome store.
Locate the NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome and launch this.
The NetSupport School Chrome Tutor will start and the Enter Licence dialog will appear.
Enter the licence details you have been provided with and click Licence or, click Evaluate to use the software for up to five student Chromebooks for 30 days.
The Connect dialog will appear.
Enter the Gateway address, port number and security key. This must be the same as set in the Name and Connectivity Server.
Choose whether to connect to your Google Chrome Students using Room name, User mode, Browse mode or SIS mode.
Click Connect.

Note: You can use the Google Admin Console to centrally configure and deploy the NetSupport School Tutor app to the required teacher Chrome accounts. For full instructions, refer to technical document: Centrally configuring and deploying the NetSupport School Tutor app for Google Chrome.

Configure NetSupport School Windows Tutor to connect to Google Chrome Students

Click Options in the Tutor Console and select Network Settings from the drop-down menu.
Select Network and Wireless Settings.
Under TCP/IP settings, select Include Chromebooks and click Settings.
Enter the Gateway The NetSupport Connectivity Server (Gateway) is a component in NetSupport School which provides a stable and secure method for connecting Students and Tutors via the internet using HTTP and delivers web-based remote control without the need for modifications to existing firewall configurations. address, port number and security key. This must be the same as set in the Name and Connectivity Server. Ensure that Connect by Hostname is not selected.
Click OK.
You can now browse for Google Chrome Students in Room mode, User mode, using the Fixed List or SIS mode.

Installing and configuring the NetSupport School Student for Google Chrome extension

If your organisation uses Google Apps for Domains, you can centrally manage the NetSupport School settings within the Google Admin Console. For full instructions, refer to technical document: Centrally configuring and deploying the NetSupport School Student extension for Google Chrome.

Note: Starting in June 2024, Chrome extensions are changing behaviour following Google’s migration from Manifest V2 to V3. We are working on updates to our Student extensions to meet the new requirements. In the meantime, to ensure the changes don’t impact the behaviour of your installed extensions, we recommend extending the use of Manifest V2 in the Google Admin Console using the steps outlined in the following technical article: NetSupport ChromeOS extensions and Manifest V3.

Download the NetSupport School Student for Google Chrome extension from the Google Chrome store.
Enter the URL chrome://settings/extensions to access the 'Extensions' configuration page.
Locate the NetSupport School Student for Google Chrome extension and click Options.
Enter the Gateway address and port number of the Name and Connectivity Server.
If connecting to Students using Room mode Allows you to connect to Students in a specified room., decide what room the Student is going to be assigned to.
Optionally, enter a name that identifies this Student.
Once you have entered the required student configuration options, it is recommended that you protect the settings by entering a password.
Click Save to store the configuration.
Rather than having to manually configure each Chromebook, multiple installations using the stored options can be centrally managed in the Google Admin Console. Click Export As File to create a configuration file containing the settings. Before the file is generated, you have the option to allow changes to the Client name and MAC address fields on the Options page. By default, the generated file will disable these two settings.
Click Generate File. By default, the file will be named Config.json. This file can then be uploaded in the Google Admin Console in order to centrally apply the NetSupport School Student configuration to the required devices. If you require any assistance with this, our Support team will be happy to help.

A connection status indicator is displayed at the Student, showing the current connection state between the Student device and Tutor machine. The indicator colours are:

Red = no connection.

Yellow = attempting a connection.

Orange = connected to the NetSupport School Name & Connectivity Server.

Green = connected to NetSupport School Tutor/current class.

Note: To ensure you retain full visibility of your students' internet use, it is recommended that you 'disallow' Incognito Mode in the Chrome OS User Settings via Google Apps for Education.

If you selected the 'Non-Windows' licence type during installation, the Tutor Console has a cut-down set of features.

Feature highlights

Note: The feature set available in the NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome OS is a subset of the Windows version:

View a real-time thumbnail of each student Chromebook in a single view.
Zoom in to view a larger thumbnail of any selected student Chromebook.
Open a separate view session to discreetly monitor a selected student's screen and take a closer look at activity - perfect for ensuring students are on task with their learning activities. (The open browser activity can be viewed in Thumbnail and View modes, along with the option to view the full desktop if required.)*
The teacher can set objectives and expected outcomes for the current lesson.
Ask students to register at the start of each lesson.
Show the teacher's screen. Ensure student attention and focus when presenting by 'showing' the teacher's desktop to selected student Chromebooks.*
Multi-monitor support. If the teacher is using multiple monitors, select an individual screen to show to students or show all.*
Show an application to selected students.*
Lock the student's mouse and keyboard when instructing.
Send an instant survey or request for feedback to each student and display results in real-time.
Open a discussion session with selected or all students, enter their comments and share with the rest of the class.
Send an attention-grabbing message or instruction to each student Chromebook.
Request help facility - students can send a request for help to the teacher.
Block unauthorised websites.
Use approved websites only.
Block all internet access.
Launch a website on the Student Chromebook.
Copy the content of the clipboard between teacher and student machines during a view session.
See details of the website that students are currently viewing.

* Features are not available when using the NetSupport School Tutor app for Chrome.

Note: To view the full desktop of a Student (Windows Tutor only), the Student needs to acknowledge an on-screen prompt. If you prefer not to offer this option and only want to view the Student's open browser window, the prompt can be disabled. For further information, refer to technical document: Behaviour when viewing Student Chromebooks from a NetSupport School Windows Tutor.