# Provision directory and packaging

> Lay out the browser customization package, distribute default files and plugins, and distinguish installation data from instance data.

Source: https://console.getchrovia.com/en/docs/sdk-provision

**Provision** is the browser's installation-side customization package. It supplies built-in plugins, package metadata, optional default authorization/configuration files, and fixed network rules. Each capability requires its [License entitlement](https://console.getchrovia.com/en/docs/sdk-capabilities).

## Find the root

| Platform | Standard Chrovia location |
| --- | --- |
| Windows | `Chrovia` beside the browser executable |
| macOS | `Chrovia.app/Contents/Chrovia` |
| Linux | `Chrovia` beside the browser executable, when that distribution is available |

Custom distributions may use a different directory name. Use the directory supplied with your actual distribution, not a guessed folder based on the user-data directory. On macOS it is under `Contents`, not under `Contents/MacOS`.

```text
Chrovia/
  manifest.json
  Chrovia License
  Extended Preferences
  dnr_rules.json
  Extensions/
    chrovia-infra/
      manifest.json
      background.js
    my-plugin/
      manifest.json
      background.js
      index.html
```

The License, EP seed, and DNR file are optional according to your deployment. Keep existing plugin assets intact; the tree above shows roles, not every shipped file.

## What each file does

| File | Format and behavior |
| --- | --- |
| `manifest.json` | JSON object containing release metadata; not a Chrome extension manifest and not a plugin selection list |
| `Chrovia License` | Read-only fallback only when the user-data License is absent |
| `Extended Preferences` | Copied once into a user-data directory that has no EP file; never overwrites an existing instance file |
| `dnr_rules.json` | JSON array of fixed rules; requires `declarativeNetRequest` |
| `Extensions/<directory>/manifest.json` | Chrome extension manifest for one built-in plugin |

A minimal package manifest is:

```json
{
  "version": "1.0.0"
}
```

With `instanceMetadata`, authorized code can read it through `chrovia.instanceMetadata?.provision?.manifest`. Changing the package version does not change a plugin's version, License, or an existing EP file.

## Shared installation, separate instances

Each `--user-data-dir` gets its own browser data. Instances launched from the same executable share the same Provision package. Putting a plugin in that installation makes it available to those instances; putting it inside a particular user-data directory does not install it as a Provision plugin.

For different plugin sets, prepare separate browser installations. Include only plugins supported by your SDK distribution.

Without Provision, the browser has no Provision plugins or Provision customization. A user-data License can still authorize kernel features, but a lease-based deployment also needs its working renewal integration.

## URLs for built-in pages

Configuration that supports Provision URLs, such as [navigation redirect](https://console.getchrovia.com/en/docs/sdk-navigation-redirect), can refer to a plugin by directory name:

```text
provision-extension://my-plugin/index.html
```

Use this form only in configuration that explicitly supports it. Other browser APIs may require an ordinary `chrome-extension://` URL; obtain that URL from the installed extension. Keep the plugin directory name stable, and do not reuse an extension ID copied from another platform.

## Package and update

1. Prepare the complete Provision tree for the intended product.
2. Copy it beside the executable or into the macOS bundle's `Contents` directory.
3. Install a valid License and, if required, a correctly signed EP file.
4. Fully restart the browser and verify installed plugins and configuration.

Changing the EP seed does not migrate existing user-data directories. Update their instance files explicitly and re-sign signed fields. Changing a fallback License does not replace a higher-priority user-data License.

Before replacing a package, back up your custom plugins and configuration. Verify that the final installed tree contains every intended plugin and, when used, `dnr_rules.json` at the root. Do not assume an update preserves files you added to an earlier installation.

Continue with [installing and developing built-in plugins](https://console.getchrovia.com/en/docs/sdk-plugins).