In order for Bromite SystemWebView to be installed, it must be one of the supported webviews hardcoded in the framework package. Since ROMs typically don't include Bromite SystemWebView among them, the community has developed some methods that allow the framework to be patched in order to include it.
This package makes use of a resource overlay to replace the list of hardcoded webviews with one that also includes the Bromite WebView. I personally find this method more straightforward and elegant, as it does not require root access nor the tedious process of installing Magisk modules or patching the system framework itself manually — if anything breaks the package can simply be removed. Moreover, the WebView itself does not need to be installed as a system app and has no potential risk of breaking SafetyNet.
adb- Support for rooted debugging (enabled via Settings > Developer options > Rooted debugging) or a recovery that supports ADB
Although this method should work on all Android versions that support Bromite and it's WebView, currently testing has only been done on LineageOS 19.1 for MicroG based on Android 12.1.
Restart ADB with root privileges
adb root
Mount the vendor folder as read-write
adb shell mount -o rw,remount /vendor
Copy the required package to the overlay folder
adb push treble-overlay-bromite-webview.apk /vendor/overlay
Verify if the correct permissions are set (optional)
adb shell stat /vendor/overlay/treble-overlay-bromite-webview.apk | grep "0644"
Mount the system as read-write
adb shell mount -o rw,remount /
Copy the OTA survival script to the appropriate location
adb push 99-bromite-webview.sh /system/addon.d
Make the script executable
adb shell chmod 755 /system/addon.d/99-bromite-webview.sh
Verify if the correct permissions are set (optional)
adb shell stat /system/addon.d/99-bromite-webview.sh | grep "0755"
After all the files have been copied, reboot the device
adb reboot
After rebooting you can verify if the overlay has been successfully installed (optional)
adb shell dumpsys webviewupdate
If everything is ok, you should see the following message:
org.bromite.webview is NOT installed.
Download the latest Bromite SystemWebView release and install it as you would a regular app.
Lastly, navigate to Settings > Developer options > WebView implementation and select the appropriate package.
Be aware that if you have a work profile enabled you also need to install the package from the work profile a second time (usually via de Work Files app), otherwise work apps that rely on the WebView component will refuse to work or crash altogether.
To ensure that the package is installed for both profiles install the package via ADB.
adb install <package-name>.apk
On newer Android versions the overlay package can also be installed to the system partition.
adb push treble-overlay-bromite-webview.apk /system/product/overlay
Verify if the correct permissions are set (optional)
adb shell stat /system/product/overlay/treble-overlay-bromite-webview.apk | grep "0644"
Installing the overlay to the system partition will also list it as an installed package when running the following command:
adb shell pm list packages | grep com.arovlad.bromite.webview.overlay
The following dependencies are required:
gitxmlstarletaaptapktool
To build the overlay, simply run the build script
./build.sh
Alternatively, you can read a more in-depth guide here.
- Pierre-Hugues Husson for the guide and toolkit