Hi guys, here are some guidelines to get your company defined home page, and other tabs in Edge, Chrome and Firefox with Microsoft Intune, also i will describe how to set some managed bookmarks for these browsers.

Additionally, utilizing Managed Bookmarks can enhance your browsing experience by keeping your favorite sites accessible.

Egde Configuration Profiles

Managed Bookmarks in Edge Configuration Profiles

Create the Edge home page and new tab page

• Login on Microsoft Intune Admin Center
• Click on Devices – Configuration Profiles
• Click on + Create Profile
• Select Platform as Windows 10 and later
• Select Profile type as Templates
• Select Template Name as Administrative Templates

Provide a Name and/or Description of the Policy.

From the Configuration settings, click on Computer Configuration, click on the Microsoft Edge folder – Startup, home page and new tab page folder. Click on it to open the folder that contains the Microsoft Edge browser settings you can configure.

Managed Bookmarks allow for a streamlined method of accessing frequently visited sites across devices.

We will enable and configure below 5 settings in the policy:

Implementing Managed Bookmarks is a crucial step in your browser configuration.

• Action to take on startup
• Configure the new tab page URL
• Set the new tab page as the home page
• Sites to open when the browser starts
• Show the home button on the toolbar

Action to take on Startup

Enable this policy and Set it to Open a List of URLs. Whenever Microsoft Edge opens, a list of URLs / Websites specified under the setting Sites to open when the browser starts will automatically open. You can also specify just one URL / website as well.

The Managed Bookmarks feature makes it easy for users to navigate to important links quickly.

Configure the new tab page page URL

Set it to Enabled and Provide New tab page URL. You can set this to any website you want. When you click on New Tab in Microsoft Edge, a website set here will automatically open.

 Set the new tab page as the home page

Enable this option. It will set new tab page as your homepage. When you click the Home Button in Microsoft Edge, it will use the new tab page. Please keep in mind that clicking on the home page setting will not open a new tab. We’ll explore the user experience of clicking the home page in the later section of this blog post.

Sites to open when the browser starts

Ensure that your settings for Managed Bookmarks are properly configured for optimal performance.

Enable this option and define the sites you want to open when the browser starts. You can input one or multiple website URLs in the list by entering them in the text boxes.

Show Home button on toolbar

Shows the Home button on Microsoft Edge’s toolbar. Enable this policy to always show the Home button. Disable it to never show the button.

To wrap up. In total, there are 5 settings configured which should complete what we need for this task.

• • We have set up our Home Page as new Tab Page.

Managed Bookmarks provide a reliable way to keep track of essential web resources.

• We’ve configured the New Tab URL to be the same as the Home Page URL since we want the home page to open the new tab page. However, if you prefer to set a different website for the home page, you can disable the “Set the new tab page as the home page” option and enable the “Configure the home page URL” setting. For now, we’re keeping the home page redirection to the new tab page URL.
• We have set up “Action to take on startup” -> We are configuring Microsoft Edge to open a list of URLs.
• We have set up “Sites to open when the browser starts” – Configure the list of Sites that you want to open whenever Microsoft Edge is launched.
• We have set up that the home button appears on the toolbar.

Save the policy and assign it to a device group of your choice.

User Experience on Edge

The user experience improves significantly with Managed Bookmarks in place.

When I open Edge you will see that the home page is set to https://intunestuff.com and that the new tab page is set to https://www.google.com as we have set this in our policy. Also you will notice that the home page button is visible on the toolbar.

If you go into the settings of the browser by typing edge://settings/profiles, the 1st thing you will notice is that in the middle of the page a message stating “Your browser is managed by your organization” is there.

Now if we look for the settings in the browser, e.g. the home button you can see that the option to change it is greyed out and that there is an icon next to it stating that this is a managed setting. As an end user you cannot change these settings. Also notice the greyed out section of the new tab page.

If we search for the when edge starts setting you will see the same behavior for the home page settings.

Set the Managed Bookmark profile for Edge

Setting up Managed Bookmarks is straightforward and enhances accessibility.

To set the managed bookmark profile:

• Login on Microsoft Intune Admin Center
• Click on Devices – Configuration Profiles
• Click on + Create Profile
• Select Platform as Windows 10 and later
• Select Profile type as Templates
• Select Template Name as Administrative Templates

Provide a Name and/or Description of the Policy.

Consider how Managed Bookmarks can simplify user navigation in Chrome.

From the Configuration settings, click on Computer Configuration, click on the Microsoft Edge folder, here search for these settings:

• Enable Favorites Bar
• Configure favorites

For the Enable Bookmark Bar select the 1st option if you don’t want your users to override your settings.

For the Configure favorites you only have 1 setting.

Enable Favorites Bar

Enables or disables the favorites bar. If you enable this policy, users will see the favorites bar.

Managed Bookmarks are a key feature in ensuring users have quick access to their preferred sites.

Configure favorites

Configures a list of managed favorites.

The policy creates a list of favorites. Each favorite contains the keys “name” and “url,” which hold the favorite’s name and its target. You can configure a subfolder by defining a favorites without an “url” key but with an additional “children” key that contains a list of favorites as defined above (some of which may be folders again). Microsoft Edge amends incomplete URLs as if they were submitted via the Address Bar, for example “microsoft.com” becomes “https://microsoft.com/”.

This policy needs to be configured in the correct formatting. You can copy the example that is giving in the policy or you can use mine and edit it as you see fit.

[
  {
    "toplevel_name": "AzureDemo Bookmarks"
  },
  {
    "name": "IntuneStuff",
    "url": "https://intunestuff.com"
  },
  {
    "name": "Arxus",
    "url": "https://www.arxus.eu"
  },
{
    "name": "Microsoft",
    "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/"
  } 
]

This is how the policy looks:

Save the policy and assign it to a device group of your choice.

User Experience on Edge

With Managed Bookmarks implemented, users will find their browsing experience more efficient.

If you open your browser you can see that the bookmark bar is enabled and that the AzureDemo Bookmarks folder is present with the defined bookmarks in place.

ADMX files download & import for Chrome and Firefox

For Chrome and Firefox there is a different approach, we need to import the necessary administrative template files in Intune before we can make a configuration profile for these browsers. Below you can find a detailed how to to perform these actions in order to enable the needed settings to create the different configuration profiles.

Download & Import the Windows 11 23H2 ADMX files

You need the Windows 11 Administrative Templates for Windows 11 23H2, you can download them from here. The supported operating systems for these templates are as followed:

• • Windows 11
  • Windows 10
  • Windows 8
  • Windows 8.1
  • Windows 7
  • Windows Server 2022
  • Windows Server 2019
  • Windows Server 2016
  • Windows Server 2012
  • Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Windows Server 2008 R2

Utilizing Managed Bookmarks is essential for effective browser management across devices.

Save the file (Administrative Templates (.admx) for Windows 11 October 2023 Update.msi) somewhere on your machine e.g. C;\temp.

Open the downloaded msi file and change the install folder to e.g. C:\Temp\win11ADMXTemplates and click next & install.

After the extraction of the msi you can find all files in the folder you have selected.

 

Now go to your Intune Portal. Navigate to Devices – Windows – Configuration Profiles and click on Import ADMX.

click on Import.

To maximize usability, configure Managed Bookmarks for all users.

We need to import the Windows.admx file and the Windows.adml files.

Follow the steps below to do this. The Windows.admx file is in the C:\Temp\win11ADMXTemplates directory the Windows.adml file is in the C:\Temp\Win11ADMXTemplates\en-US directory. Browse to both files to import them.

At the bottom of the page click next, and create.

Now the upload of the files begins.

On the import ADMX page you can see the progress, feel free to refresh this page.

After the refresh you will see that the files are uploaded with a status of available.

Download & Import the Google Chrome ADMX files

In order to do the same for the Chrome browser you will need to upload the ADMX and ADML files for chrome. You can find the download here.

Managed Bookmarks will help in organizing frequently visited pages.

You can choose the channel, file type and architecture.

The download consists of a zip file, GoogleChromeEnterpriseBundle64.zip. Extract this file somewhere on your machine, e.g. C:\temp\GoogleADMXFiles

After extracting you will find 3 folders, the files you need are in the configuration – ADMX folder.

We need to import 2 ADMX files and 2 ADML files in order to get this working. First we need to import the google files and 2nd the Chrome files.

Follow the steps below to do this.

Browse to your Google ADMX file first.

Ensure that Managed Bookmarks are a part of your browser setup for improved efficiency.

 

Now browse to your Google ADML file, this is the language file of your policy set. I’m using en-us.

 

At the bottom of the page click next, and create.

Now the upload of the files begins.

On the import ADMX page you can see the progress, feel free to refresh this page.

After the refresh you will see that the files are uploaded with a status of available.

Managing your bookmarks using Managed Bookmarks will save time for users.

Now browse to your Chrome ADMX file first.

Now browse to your Chrome ADML file, this is the language file of your policy set. I’m using en-us.

At the bottom of the page click next, and create.

Now the upload of the files begins.

On the import ADMX page you can see the progress, feel free to refresh this page.

Download & Import the Firefox ADMX files

Benefits of Managed Bookmarks

Download the Firefox ADMX template from the Github page to e.g. C:\temp\FirefoxADMXTemplate and extract the file (policy_templates_v5.5.zip) in the same directory. Also here we will need to upload 2 ADMX files and 2 ADML files.

First import the mozilla.admx and mozilla.adml file. Browse to the ADMX file first. The file is in C:\temp\FirefoxADMXTemplate\Windows directory.

Now browse to the mozilla.adml file. The file is in C:\temp\FirefoxADMXTemplate\Windows\en-US directory. This is the language file of your policy set. I’m using en-us.

At the bottom of the page click next, and create.

Now the upload of the file begins.

On the import ADMX page you can see the progress, feel free to refresh this page.

Now import the firefox.admx and firefox.adml file. Browse to the ADMX file first. The file is in C:\temp\FirefoxADMXTemplate\Windows directory.

Implementing Managed Bookmarks can significantly boost user satisfaction.

Now browse to the firefox.adml file. The file is in C:\temp\FirefoxADMXTemplate\Windows\en-US directory. This is the language file of your policy set. I’m using en-us.

 

At the bottom of the page click next, and create.

Now the upload of the file begins.

On the import ADMX page you can see the progress, feel free to refresh this page.

 

Make sure to leverage the advantages of Managed Bookmarks in your settings.

When all the files are imported you will see this result:

Set the Configuration profiles for Chrome

For Chrome we will setup 2 different policies, 1 that sets the home page and the new tab page and 1 that enables the bookmark bar and adds managed favourites. It is basically the same as the Edge setup so fairly easy to setup.

Create the Chrome home page and new tab page

• • Login on Microsoft Intune Admin Center
  • Click on Devices – Configuration Profiles
  • Click on + Create Profile
  • Select Platform as Windows 10 and later

Using Managed Bookmarks effectively organizes the user experience.

• Select Profile type as Templates
• Select Template Name as Administrative Templates

Provide a Name and/or Description of the Policy.

From the Configuration settings, click on Computer Configuration, click on the Google folder then Google Chrome –> Startup, home page and new tab page folder. Click on it to open the folder that contains the Chrome browser settings you can configure.

 

We will enable and configure below 5 settings in the policy:

• • Action on startup
  • Configure the new tab page URL
  • Set the new tab page as the home page

Strategically implemented Managed Bookmarks provide seamless navigation.

• URLs to open on startup
• Show the home button on the toolbar

Action on Startup

Enable this policy and Set it to Open a List of URLs. Whenever Chrome opens, a list of URLs / Websites specified under the setting sites to open when the browser starts will automatically open. You can also specify just one URL / website as well.

Configure the new tab page page URL

Set it to Enabled and Provide New tab page URL. You can set this to any website you want. When you click on New Tab in Chrome, a website set here will automatically open.

Managed Bookmarks enhance the overall productivity of users.

Use the new tab page as the home page

Enable this option. It will set new tab page as your homepage. When you click the Home Button in Chrome, it will use the new tab page. Please keep in mind that clicking on the home page setting will not open a new tab. We’ll explore the user experience of clicking the home page in the later section of this blog post.

URLs to open on startup

Enable this option and define the sites you want to open when the browser starts. You can input one or multiple website URLs in the list by entering them in the text boxes.

Show Home Button on toolbar

Setting the policy to Enabled shows the Home button on Google Chrome’s toolbar. Setting the policy to Disabled keeps the Home button from appearing.

 

With Managed Bookmarks, the organization of web resources becomes hassle-free.

To wrap up. In total, there are 5 settings configured which should complete what we need for this task.

• We have set up our Home Page as new Tab Page.
• We’ve configured the New Tab URL to be the same as the Home Page URL since we want the home page to open the new tab page. However, if you prefer to set a different website for the home page, you can disable the “Set the new tab page as the home page” option and enable the “Configure the home page URL” setting. For now, we’re keeping the home page redirection to the new tab page URL.
• We have set up “Action on startup” -> We are configuring Chrome to open a list of URLs.
• We have set up “URLs to open when the browser starts” – Configure the list of Sites that you want to open whenever Chrome is launched.
• We have set up that the home button appears on the toolbar.

 

Save the policy and assign it to a device group of your choice.

Utilizing Managed Bookmarks is a strategic advantage in browser management.

User Experience on Chrome

When I open Chrome you will see that the home page is set to https://intunestuff.com and that the new tab page is set to https://www.google.com as we have set this in our policy. Also you will notice that the home page button is visible on the toolbar.

If you go into the settings of the browser by typing chrome://settings, the 1st thing you will notice is that in the middle of the page a message stating “Your browser is managed by your organization” is there.

Now if we look for the settings in the browser, e.g. the home button you can see that the option to change it is greyed out and that there is an icon next to it stating that this is a managed setting. As an end user you cannot change these settings. Also notice the greyed out section of the new tab page.

If we search for the startup setting you will see the same behavior for the home page settings.

 

Ensure that every user understands the value of Managed Bookmarks.

Set the Managed Bookmark profile for Chrome

To set the managed bookmark profile:

• Login on Microsoft Intune Admin Center
• Click on Devices – Configuration Profiles
• Click on + Create Profile
• Select Platform as Windows 10 and later
• Select Profile type as Templates
• Select Template Name as Administrative Templates

Provide a Name and/or Description of the Policy.

Having Managed Bookmarks can greatly reduce the time spent searching for websites.

From the Configuration settings, click on Computer Configuration, click on the Google folder – Google Chrome here search for these settings:

• Enable Bookmark Bar
• Managed Bookmarks

For the Enable Bookmark Bar select the 1st option if you don’t want your users to override your settings.

For the Managed Bookmarks you only have 1 setting.

Enable Bookmark Bar

Setting the policy to True displays a bookmark bar in Google Chrome. Setting the policy to False means users never see the bookmark bar.

Managed Bookmarks simplify the process of organizing web resources.

Managed Bookmarks

Setting the policy sets up a list of bookmarks where each one is a dictionary with the keys “name” and “url”. These keys hold the bookmark’s name and target. Admins can set up a subfolder by defining a bookmark without a “url” key, but with an additional “children” key. This key also has a list of bookmarks, some of which can also be folders. Chrome amends incomplete URLs as if they were submitted through the address bar. For example, “google.com” becomes “https://google.com/”.

This policy needs to be configured in the correct formatting. You can copy the example that is giving in the policy or you can use mine and edit it as you see fit.

[
  {
    "toplevel_name": "AzureDemo Bookmarks"
  },
  {
    "name": "IntuneStuff",
    "url": "https://intunestuff.com"
  },
  {
    "name": "Arxus",
    "url": "https://www.arxus.eu"
  },
{
    "name": "Microsoft",
    "url": "https://www.microsoft.com/"
  } 
]

This is how the policy looks:

Save the policy and assign it to a device group of your choice.

User Experience on Chrome

Be sure to take advantage of the benefits that Managed Bookmarks provide.

If you open your browser you can see that the bookmark bar is enabled and that the AzureDemo Bookmarks folder is present with the defined bookmarks in place.

 

Firefox Configuration Profile

Create the Firefox configuration settings

For Firefox i will be using a different approach, i will setup all settings in the same configuration profile. You can split up the settings in to separate profiles if you want.

• • Login on Microsoft Intune Admin Center
  • Click on Devices – Configuration Profiles
  • Click on + Create Profile

Managed Bookmarks play a critical role in user satisfaction.

• Select Platform as Windows 10 and later
• Select Profile type as Templates
• Select Template Name as Administrative Templates

Provide a Name and/or Description of the Policy.

From the Configuration settings, click on Computer Configuration, click on the Mozilla folder – Firefox folder. Here search for these settings:

• • Additional Homepages
  • Display Bookmarks Toolbar
  • New Tab Page
  • Show Home button on toolbar
  • Start Page

Making use of Managed Bookmarks can enhance the user experience significantly.

• URL for Home page
• Bookmark 01, 02, 03, …. as much bookmarks you want to implement.

Additional Homepages

If this policy is enabled, you can have additional home pages. They are opened in multiple tabs. If this policy is disabled or not configured, there is only one home page.

Display Bookmarks Toolbar

If this policy is enabled, the default bokmarks toolbar display can be configured. If this policy is disabled or not configured, the bookmarks toolbar is displayed on the new tab page by default.

New Tab Page

If this policy is disabled, the new tab page will be blank. If this policy is enabled or not configured, the new tab page will be the default.

Ensure Managed Bookmarks are properly set up to streamline user navigation.

Show Home button on toolbar

If this policy is enabled, the home button will appear on the toolbar by default. If this policy is disabled, the home button will not appear on the toolbar by default.

Start Page

If this policy is enabled, you can change what is displayed when Firefox starts. It can be the homepage, the previous session, or a blank page. If this policy is disabled or not configured, the start page defaults to the previous session.

URL for Home page

If this policy is enabled, you can set a default home page. You can also lock the home page. If this policy is disabled or not configured, the user can set and change the home page.

Utilizing Managed Bookmarks is essential for efficient browser management.

Bookmark 01, 02, 03, …

In this policy you can configure your different managed bookmarks, fill in your details as in the screenshot. And repeat this for each bookmark you want to have managed.

With all settings configured the policy looks like this:

Save and assign the policy to a device group of your choice.

User Experience on Firefox

When I open Firefox you will see that the home page is set to https://intunestuff.com and that the new tab page is set to https://www.google.com as we have set this in our policy. Also you will notice that the home page button is visible on the toolbar.

Managed Bookmarks create a more efficient browsing experience for users.

If you open your browser you can also see that the bookmark bar is enabled and that the AzureDemo Bookmarks folder is present with the defined bookmarks in place.

If you go into the settings of the browser by typing about:preferences, the 1st thing you will notice is that in the middle of the page a message stating “Your browser is managed by your organization” is there.

Now if we look for the settings in the browser, e.g. the New Window and Tabs you can see that the option to change it is greyed out. As an end user you cannot change these settings. Also notice the greyed out section of the new tab page.