This article covers the essentials – what the extension does, what you need before you start, which edition to choose, and how the roll-out works. When you're ready to deploy, follow the guide for your management tool.
What the extension does
✅ Discovery | Matches visited URLs against Viio's Discovery Engine to identify browser-based SaaS applications in use. |
✅ App Usage | Attributes usage to individual employees so you can see who is using which application. |
The extension only tracks browser-based applications. For desktop applications (e.g. Microsoft Project, Visio, Adobe Creative Cloud), deploy the Desktop Agent as well.
Prerequisites
Supported browsers: Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and other Chromium-based browsers
Minimum version: Chromium 132 or newer (the base version released January 2025). This applies to Chrome, Edge, and other Chromium-based browsers, which share the same version numbering.
A device management tool for centralized roll-out — Microsoft Intune, Windows Group Policy, an MDM such as Jamf, or any other MDM solution of your choice.
Your Viio customer key — available in Viio under Integrations → Browser Extension. It's always required for a centralized roll-out (it tells the extension which Viio organization to report to). See How the extension recognizes employees.
For questions about browser compatibility, contact [email protected].
Choosing an edition
Viio offers two editions of the extension. Pick one before you deploy.
| Silent Edition (recommended) | Interactive Edition |
Extension ID |
|
|
User interaction | None — runs entirely in the background | User-facing, with manual login/logout |
Best for | Enterprise-wide, zero-touch deployment | Smaller teams or opt-in scenarios |
Recommendation: Use the Silent Edition for managed enterprise deployments. It requires no user interaction and is designed to be pushed to every browser via your management tool.
Use the same edition consistently across your fleet. Deploying both editions to the same users leads to duplicate reporting.
How the extension recognizes employees
Two values drive recognition. One is always required; the other depends on how your browsers are managed.
customerKey – always required
Your organization's Viio customer key (the same value for everyone). It tells the extension which Viio organization to report to, so it must be deployed to every browser in a centralized roll-out.
employeeEmail – the employee's identity
This is how usage is attributed to an individual. There are two ways to provide it:
Automatic – managed browser profiles: if employees are signed into their work browser profile with their company email (fully managed Chrome/Edge profiles), the extension picks up the email from the profile. You don't set
employeeEmailyourself – but you still deploycustomerKey.Manual – set
employeeEmail: if browsers aren't centrally managed (or only partially), supply each employee's work email alongsidecustomerKey.
How you deliver these values depends on your management tool – see the guides below.
The roll-out process
At a high level, every deployment follows the same three phases:
Choose your edition — Silent (recommended) or Interactive.
Install the extension — force-install it to every managed browser (Chrome and Edge) using your management tool.
Configure employee recognition — deploy your
customerKeyto every browser, and provideemployeeEmail(automatically via managed browser profiles, or explicitly per user).
After roll-out, data typically takes up to 24 hours to appear in Viio.
Deployment guides
Choose the guide that matches how you manage your devices:
Tool | Platforms | Guide |
Microsoft Intune | Windows + macOS | |
Windows Group Policy | Windows | |
MDM/Configuration Profile (Jamf, manual) | macOS |
Using a different MDM? The extension works with any MDM that can force-install browser extensions and push managed policies. If you don't see instructions for your MDM above, reach out to [email protected] and we'll help you deploy it.
Manual / individual install (for testing or small teams). Pick the edition you chose – both are on the Chrome Web Store and install the same way in Chrome and Edge:
Silent Edition (recommended): Viio Extension (Silent) → Add to Chrome / Get
Interactive Edition: Viio → Add to Chrome / Get
Verifying deployment
In Viio, go to Integrations → Browser Extension to check status:
🟢 Installed | Extension installed and transmitting data. |
⚪️ Not - installed | Extension not yet deployed on this device. |
🔴 No Data Received | Extension installed but not reporting data. |
If a device shows No Data Received or data isn't appearing after 24 hours, see Troubleshooting: Data Not Appearing in Viio.
Documentation & Technical Details
For detailed documentation and technical details, please review the full browser extension documentation: