How To Update Google Chrome Flash Player

Adobe Wink is going away. Google drove another boom into its coffin with Chrome 76, which blocks all Flash content on websites by default. If you still use Flash, you can re-enable it for now—but Chrome makes it annoying.

Flash Is Going Away at the Cease of 2020

"Flash Player will no longer be supported after December 2020" banner message in Google Chrome.

Update: As of January 2021, Flash is no longer officially supported. Do you yet demand Flash content? Here are some tips for how yous can still run Flash, in 2021 and into the futurity.

RELATED: How to Use Adobe Flash in 2021 and Across

Flash isn't completely gone—yet. Instead, Chrome blocks Flash by default with the message "Wink was blocked on this page." If y'all re-enable Wink in Chrome, you lot run across a message that says, "Wink Histrion will no longer be supported later on December 2020," with a button to turn off Flash.

As Google explains, when the ball drops on New year's day's Eve, 2020, the inaugural volition also be counting down to the stop of Flash.

This isn't but a Google Chrome matter. Adobe will also end support for Flash at the finish of 2020. Mozilla is even more aggressive—it volition remove Flash support entirely in early 2020.

If yous use Flash, you still have nigh 1 and a half years until information technology'due south gone. Chrome'due south increasingly ambitious moves are supposed to encourage websites to move away from Flash while they yet have plenty of time to do so.

How to Run Flash on a Website

When you visit a website that uses Flash, you lot see a "Plugin blocked" bulletin at the right side of Chrome'due south Omnibox or accost bar.

"Plugin blocked" message in Google Chrome.

To enable Flash for the site, click the lock icon at the left side of the Omnibox (address bar), click the "Flash" box, and so click "Allow."

Chrome prompts you to reload the page—click "Reload."

Click "Reload."

Even subsequently you reload the page, any Flash content won't be loaded—you take to click information technology to load it.

To run an individual Flash object, click its Play button. To run all Flash objects on the page—including any subconscious Flash objects running in the background—click the blocked plugin icon at the correct side of the Omnibox and click "Run Flash this time."

Click the Play button to run an individual Flash object, and click "Run Flash this time" to load all Flash content.

Whenever you allow Wink for a website, it's added to the allow list—click the blocked plugin icon and click "Manage" to run across it. Alternatively, you lot can head to chrome://settings/content/flash to view it.

Hither's the bad news: whenever you restart your browser, Chrome erases this list. If you use Wink ofttimes on a detail website, you'll accept to do this repeatedly. Google seriously wants Chrome users to stop using Wink, and so information technology'due south making the Flash process annoying on purpose.

How to Enable Click-to-Play Flash

Rather than Chrome automatically blocking Flash on all websites, you can set up Chrome to ask earlier displaying Wink content. (No, there'due south no way to accept Chrome automatically play Flash anymore.)

Unlike the above preference, Chrome will remember this setting. However, it will display a "Flash Actor will no longer be supported afterwards Dec 2020" banner every time y'all reopen your browser. At that place's no way to disable this bulletin without disabling Flash.

When Wink is blocked, click the blocked plugin icon in Chrome's Omnibox and click "Manage." This takes you lot to the Flash settings page, which yous tin also access from Settings > Advanced > Privacy & Security > Site Settings > Wink.

Click the toggle here to set Chrome to "Ask first" rather than the default "Block sites from running Flash (recommended.)"

Toggle-On the "Ask first" option.

Now, when you visit a website with Flash, you can click a Flash object on the spider web page and click "Permit" to view it.

Click the Flash object and click "Allow."

You yet accept to click to play the Flash content afterward. Withal, it's a flake more streamlined than clicking the lock icon to open the website's settings menu.

Of course, Wink won't vanish completely at the stop of 2020. Former browsers, like Internet Explorer, will still support old versions of the Flash plug-in. It should exist possible to run Flash content if yous really need it, merely the plug-in will no longer be updated with security fixes.