Troubleshooting Tip: FortiClient Webfilter plugin is not installed on Chrome and is successfully installed on Firefox and Edge

Description

This article describes an issue where the FortiClient Webfilter plugin is enabled on the Webfilter profile on EMS, the profile synchronizes with FortiClient, and the plugin is installed in Edge and Firefox, but is not installed on Chrome

Scope

FortiClient v7.2, v7.4.

Solution

Review the Windows Event Viewer ->  Applications, and look for a warning message similar to the one shown below:

Your administrator has blocked this app by location with policy rule {xxxxx} located in path C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\Microsoft.WindowsStore

This message in Windows Event Viewer (Event ID 8002 or 8005) shows when:

• A Group Policy is preventing background tasks from running.

• An AppLocker rule is blocking a background process required for Microsoft Store apps to function.

Another message that can also be observed in the Windows Event Viewer>  Applications related to the plugin block is:

INFO:chrome\browser\extensions\extension_garbage_collector.cc:188] Garbage collection for extensions on file thread is complete

There are specific Google Chrome Group Policy Object (GPO) policies that directly trigger this garbage collection process.

While garbage collection is a standard Chrome mechanism, specific policies force the browser to dynamically add, remove, or modify extension files.

Every time Chrome detects a change driven by these policies, it triggers extension_garbage_collector.cc to wipe out old or unauthorized extension data from the local drive.

The primary GPO policies that cause this event log to appear include:

Configure the list of force-installed apps and extensions.

Policy Name: ExtensionInstallForcelist.

How it triggers GC: If an administrator adds a new extension ID or updates this policy list, Chrome immediately pulls down the new files. It then triggers the garbage collector to sweep away the old versions or leftover cache files from the previous deployment.

Configure extension installation blocklist.

Policy Name: ExtensionInstallBlocklist.

How it triggers GC: Organizations often use a wildcard (*) to block users from installing any unapproved extensions.
If a user tries to install an extension, or if an extension is removed from an approved list, Chrome instantly blocks it and uses the garbage collector to shred and delete its local directories.

Extension management settings.

Policy Name: ExtensionSettings.

How it triggers GC: This complex policy dictates granular permissions, runtime allowed hosts, and update URLs for all extensions. If a change is made to this policy, or if the JSON formatting contains an error, Chrome may drop and re-initialize the extensions, triggering a rapid disk cleanup.

To solve the web filter plugin installation issue, the IT Administrator must review and modify the rule that is causing this block and preventing the plugin from being installed.