Chromebook Troubleshooting - ZOOM
Chromebook issues with Zoom.
We are continuing to experience intermittent problems with some student Chromebooks while on Zoom meetings. Issues may include dropped video, dropped audio, lag, connection time out, High CPU utilization error message, etc. Signing out of the meeting and signing back in will often help resolve the issue. In addition, some or all of the following steps may help mitigate the problems:
- Verify the Zoom app is updated to 5.0.0 (4183.0920) or higher. To check the version, launch Zoom and click on the "gear" icon at the "join" screen to access the settings. Then click the "About" tab to check the version number.
- Turn off the camera when not needed. Click the "Stop Video" icon in the lower left corner of the Zoom window.
- Disable Bluetooth. Click on the time icon in the task bar and click the Bluetooth icon to turn Bluetooth off.
- Take Zoom out of full screen mode on the Chromebook. Click the "Exit full screen" button in the upper right corner of the Zoom window.
- Use Zoom in "Speaker View" instead of "Gallery View". To toggle, click the Gallery View / Speaker View button in the upper right corner of the Zoom window.
- Close any unnecessary open tabs in the Chrome browser.
- Disconnect from any external monitors or other connected devices.
- Connect the Chromebook to the AC power adapter instead of running off of battery power.
- Make sure you have a solid internet connection. Run a network speed test (at https://testmy.net or others) to verify you have at least 5 Mbps for both upload and download speed per connected user. Click "Test My Internet" and then click "Combined" to test both upload and download speed. Record these speeds as district iT staff may ask for it when troubleshooting network or connection issues.
- It may help to move closer to wireless access point if wi-fi speed or signal strength is not satisfactory.
- Verify you are running the current version of ChromeOS (currently 86). Go to chrome://settings/help in the browser and check for updates. Updates will require a restart.
- Restart the Chromebook. Click the time icon in the ChromeOS task bar and press the shut down button. Press the power button to power back on.
- Restart home wireless access point and/or router.
If still having trouble with the Zoom app, you can try using the web version of Zoom instead. To join a Zoom meeting from the browser, please follow these steps:
- Click on the meeting link and the Zoom app should launch as normal.
- Close the Zoom app (click the X in the upper right corner) before joining the meeting.
- Behind Zoom you should see an open Chrome window with an option in small blue text to “Join from your browser”. Click on that link.
- Enter your name and click the “I'm not a robot” CAPTCHA and then click “join”.
- When you turn on the mic and camera, Chrome will prompt to allow Zoom access to them. You must click “Allow” for both or they will not work.
If continuing to have Zoom connection issues, you may try the additional steps below:
Note: Try each section and test before moving to the next.
Clear Cache and Cookies:
- Click on the “3 dots” icon in the upper right of Chrome.
- Select “More Tools” and then “Clear Browsing Data” from the menus.
- Select Cookies and Cache and then click “Clear Data”.
Reset Chrome:
- Click on the “3 dots” icon in Chrome and select “Settings”
- Scroll down to the bottom and click “Advanced”
- Scroll down again and click “Reset Settings”
Delete and re-add the User Account:
- Log out of the Chromebook.
- At the login window click the triangle icon next to the user profile picture.
- Click “Remove this user” from the drop-down menu and confirm.
- Once the user is removed, log back in again using the students Shoreline Google account to recreate the account on the Chromebook.