Offscreen Chrome Launcher

⚠️ M1 Mac Only: This tool is specifically designed for M1 Macs and may not work correctly on Intel Macs or other systems. The script uses M1-specific paths and optimizations.

A lightweight Chrome launcher designed for running sweeps casino games in the background with minimal resource usage. This tool automatically configures Chrome with anti-throttling flags to keep games running smoothly even when the browser is minimized or in the background.

What It Does

  • Kills Brave Browser processes to free up CPU/RAM resources
  • Installs Chrome automatically via Homebrew if not present
  • Launches Chrome with optimized flags for background gaming
  • Keeps your Mac awake using caffeinate to prevent sleep
  • Uses isolated profile to avoid conflicts with your main Chrome

Key Features

Anti-Throttling Configuration

  • Disables background timer throttling
  • Prevents renderer backgrounding
  • Disables frame rate limits
  • Keeps games running at full speed when minimized

Resource Optimization

  • Lightweight window size (480x360)
  • Muted audio by default
  • Limited renderer processes
  • Disabled extensions for minimal overhead

M1 Mac Optimizations

  • Uses /opt/homebrew paths for M1 Homebrew
  • Optimized for Apple Silicon performance
  • Proper Launch Services integration

Installation & Usage

Prerequisites

  • M1 Mac (Apple Silicon)
  • Terminal access
  • Internet connection for Chrome installation

Quick Start

  1. Download the script: 
    curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/your-repo/run-offscreen-chrome.sh
chmod +x run-offscreen-chrome.sh
  2. Run the launcher: 
    ./run-offscreen-chrome.sh
  3. Navigate to your game - Chrome opens to Google, then navigate to your sweeps casino

Custom Profile Directory

Set a custom Chrome profile location:

export BG_CHROME_PROFILE="/path/to/custom/profile"
./run-offscreen-chrome.sh

Technical Details

Chrome Flags Used

--disable-background-timer-throttling
--disable-renderer-backgrounding
--disable-backgrounding-occluded-windows
--disable-features=CalculateNativeWinOcclusion,TabFreezing,TabDiscarding,UseEcoQoSForBackgroundProcess
--disable-frame-rate-limit
--disable-gpu-vsync
--disable-extensions
--process-per-site
--renderer-process-limit=4
--window-size=480,360
--mute-audio

What Gets Killed

The script terminates these Brave Browser processes:

  • Brave Browser (stable, beta, nightly)
  • Brave Browser Helper processes
  • All related crashpad handlers

Troubleshooting

Chrome Won’t Launch

# Reinstall Chrome via Homebrew
brew reinstall --cask google-chrome

Script Permission Denied

chmod +x run-offscreen-chrome.sh

Homebrew Not Found

The script will automatically install Homebrew if missing, but you can also install manually:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Use Cases

  • Background grinding on sweeps casino games
  • Automated gameplay that needs to run while you do other tasks
  • Resource-efficient gaming when you want to minimize browser overhead
  • Multi-account management with isolated Chrome profiles

Important Notes

  • M1 Mac Required - This tool uses M1-specific optimizations and paths
  • Chrome Profile - Uses isolated profile to avoid conflicts
  • Background Gaming - Designed for games that need to run when minimized
  • Resource Management - Automatically frees up resources from other browsers

This tool is part of my sweeps casino automation toolkit. Use responsibly and ensure you’re following all platform terms of service.