Google working on feature to sync Wi-Fi passwords between Chromebooks, Android phones

New code in the Chromium project suggests Google is working on a Wi-Fi passwords sync option between Chromebooks and Android phones.

As spotted by 9to5Google, some code changes related to Wi-Fi sync were submitted to the Chromium Gerrit, an online tool for collaborating on code for the Chromium open-source project. The first involves a new Chrome OS flag — semi-hidden settings for testing out new features. Available by typing ‘chrome://flags’ into the address bar and search for ‘Sync Wi-Fi,’ the ‘Sync Wi-Fi network configurations with Android’ flag will enable that option for users.

9to5Google points out that comments on a second Gerrit submission from Chrome OS developers suggests that the Wi-Fi sync feature works “both ways.” In other words, when users connect to a new network on their Chromebook, it syncs the password with their Android phone and vice versa.

It’s worth noting this isn’t the first time Google tried implementing a Wi-Fi sync feature in Chrome OS. Last year, Google worked on a feature to sync Wi-Fi passwords between Chromebooks and Chrome OS tablets, but the feature didn’t widely roll out.

Unlike that feature, the new Wi-Fi sync looks to work with Chrome OS’ ‘Connected Devices’ settings. Connected Devices also handles features like Smart Lock and the upcoming ‘Phone Hub‘ capabilities. Likely, that means Wi-Fi passwords will sync between devices using Bluetooth instead of the internet, which should prove helpful when your device isn’t connected to a given Wi-Fi network.

Unfortunately, as with all early development features like this, there’s a chance it won’t rollout to most users. The original Wi-Fi sync feature didn’t, so there’s a chance this one won’t either. 9to5Google suggests the earliest Wi-Fi sync could roll out would be Chrome OS 87, due to release in December.

Source: Chromium Gerrit (2), Via: 9to5Google