5 Ways to Lock Your Chromebook Screen

Picture it: you’re doing something private on your Chromebook and someone walks in and you don’t want to see what you’re doing. Instead of shutting down your Chromebook, you can quickly lock your Chromebook without closing the lid. Check out different ways to lock your Chromebook screen.

Please note that when you lock your Chromebook, your Chromebook won’t sign you out of your account. Signing out will close all open apps on your account. However, when you lock your Chromebook, your apps stay open in the background, but they’re protected or hidden by the lock screen.

Method 1: Use the Lock button on the Keyboard

On most Chromebook keyboards, you’ll find a lock button. At times, you may wonder, “What is the lock button on a Chromebook?” Well, the lock button, as the name suggests, allows you to quickly lock your Chromebook without closing the lid. All you need to do is press and hold the button. This will lock you out of your account.

You will be taken to a lock screen where you need to enter your password or PIN to get it back, or you can click the Sign Out button to sign out of your account.

Tip: Are you a student? Check out these affordable student Chromebooks under $300.

Method 2: Use keyboard shortcuts

If your Chromebook doesn’t have a Lock button or you want to use a keyboard shortcut, you can also lock your Chromebook screen with a keyboard shortcut. Just use the keyboard shortcut Search + L to lock your Chromebook. On some newer Chromebooks, you may have to press the Launcher + L button.

Note: In case this method does not work, make sure the Search function is assigned to the Search key in the keyboard settings. Basically, you may have remapped the Search key to some other function. Go to Chromebook Settings > Devices > Keyboard. Check the function assigned to the Search key.

Method 3: From the Quick Settings Panel

Another way to lock your Chromebook is from the Quick Settings panel as shown below:

Step 1: Click the time in the bottom right corner of your Chromebook to open the Quick Settings panel.

Step 2: Click the Lock icon next to the Power icon to lock your account on your Chromebook.

Tip: From the Quick Settings panel, you can also enable dark mode on your Chromebook.

Method 4: Use the power button

Usually, the above methods will work to lock your Chromebook. However, if you find the Power button more convenient, you can also use it to lock your Chromebook.

Press and hold the Power button on your Chromebook. A pop-up window will show up on your screen. Select the Lock option to lock your ChromeOS device.

Method 5: Lock Chromebook when lid is closed or in sleep mode

In general, your Chromebook won’t lock or log you out of your Chromebook if you close the lid of your Chromebook or if your Chromebook goes to sleep. To change this behavior and have your Chromebook lock your account when the lid is closed, follow these steps:

Step 1: Click the time in the bottom right corner of your Chromebook.

Step 2: Click the Settings icon to open Chromebook Settings.

Step 3: Go to Security and Privacy, then select ‘Lock screen and sign in’.

Step 4: Enter your Google account password when asked and press the Confirm button.

Step 5: Turn on the switch next to “Lock when sleeping or close the lid”.

Step 6: Now, whenever you want to lock your Chromebook, just close its lid.

Note: When your Chromebook is connected to a power source, your Chromebook goes to sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity. And when it’s not plugged in, it goes to sleep in 10 minutes.

Extra Tip: Use a PIN instead of a Google Account Password to unlock your Chromebook

By default, you’ll have to enter your Google account’s password to sign in to your Chromebook account. However, not everyone likes that. Thankfully, you can use a PIN instead of a Google account password on your Chromebook as shown below:

Step 1: Open Settings on your Chromebook.

Step 2: Go to Security and Privacy, then select ‘Lock screen and sign in’.

Step 3: Enter your Google account password and click Confirm.

Step 4: Select Pin or password and click Set up PIN.

Step 5: Enter the six-digit PIN twice when asked. That’s it. You can now easily sign in with your PIN after signing out or locking your Chromebook.

Chromebook Key FAQ

1. How do I lock my Chromebook with Ctrl?

You can’t lock your Chromebook with the Ctrl key. However, you can use the keyboard shortcut Shift + Ctrl + q (twice) to sign out of your account on your Chromebook.

2. How do I sign in with a password instead of a PIN?

If you forget your Chromebook’s PIN, you can also sign in with your Google account password. On the login screen, click Switch to password just below the numeric keypad.

3. How do I unlock my Chromebook if I forgot my password?

Since your Chromebook’s password is your Google account password, you can easily retrieve your Google password from the Google account recovery page by resetting your password. Enter your email ID and then click Forgot my password or I don’t know my password. Follow the onscreen instructions to reset your password. After resetting your password, use the new password to unlock your Chromebook.

4. How do I remove my password when I turn on my Chromebook?

You can’t completely remove the password or lock screen from your Chromebook. You can only remove this device when the lid is closed or after your Chromebook restarts from sleep mode.

Protect your privacy

Now that you know how to lock your Chromebook, it’s time to know how to make Chrome secure and private because Chrome plays an important role. Also know what Guest mode in Chromebooks are and whether you should disable Chrome’s sign-in feature.

Categories: How to
Source: thpttranhungdao.edu.vn/en/