Overview The patches/series file defines the order in which patches are applied to the Chromium source code. This is critical because patches must be applied in the correct sequence to avoid conflicts and ensure proper functionality.
The order of patches matters. Changing the order can cause patch application failures or runtime issues.
The file is a simple text file with one patch path per line:
path/to/patch.patch another/patch.patch # Comment lines start with # # Blank lines are ignored yet/another.patch
Each line specifies a patch file relative to the patches/ directory
Comments start with # and are ignored
Blank lines are ignored and can be used for organization
Patch Organization Helium’s patches are organized into several categories:
Upstream Fixes upstream-fixes/missing-dependencies.patch upstream-fixes/vertical/r1568708-fix-crash-during-collapsed-tabgroup-drag.patch upstream-fixes/vertical/r1568929-animate-cross-collection-operations.patch # ... 46 more vertical tab patches
Backports of fixes from newer Chromium versions, particularly for vertical tab functionality. These patches:
Fix crashes and rendering issues
Improve drag-and-drop behavior
Enhance performance and animations
Are prefixed with revision numbers (e.g., r1568708)
Vertical tab patches are upstream improvements backported to ensure stable tab management.
Privacy Patchsets Patches from privacy-focused Chromium forks:
Inox
Iridium
ungoogled-chromium
Bromite
inox-patchset/fix-building-without-safebrowsing.patch inox-patchset/disable-autofill-download-manager.patch inox-patchset/disable-update-pings.patch inox-patchset/disable-rlz.patch inox-patchset/modify-default-prefs.patch inox-patchset/disable-battery-status-service.patch
Removes telemetry, RLZ tracking, and privacy-invasive features. iridium-browser/safe-browsing-disable-reporting.patch iridium-browser/all-add-trk-prefixes-to-possibly-evil-connections.patch iridium-browser/updater-disable-auto-update.patch iridium-browser/browser-disable-profile-auto-import-on-first-run.patch
Adds “trk:” prefixes to tracking connections and disables auto-updates. ungoogled-chromium/disable-crash-reporter.patch ungoogled-chromium/disable-google-host-detection.patch ungoogled-chromium/disable-gcm.patch ungoogled-chromium/disable-gaia.patch ungoogled-chromium/block-trk-and-subdomains.patch # ... 58 more patches
Largest privacy patchset. Removes Google dependencies, adds privacy flags, and enhances customization. bromite/disable-fetching-field-trials.patch bromite/fingerprinting-flags-client-rects-and-measuretext.patch bromite/flag-max-connections-per-host.patch
Adds fingerprinting protection and connection limits. Brave Patches brave/chrome-importer-files.patch brave/custom-importer.patch brave/fix-component-content-settings-store.patch brave/tab-cycling-mru-impl.patch
Imports functionality from Brave browser:
Custom profile importer
MRU (Most Recently Used) tab cycling
Component content settings fixes
Debian Patches debian/disable-google-api-warning.patch
Disables warning messages about missing Google API keys.
Helium Core Patches Helium’s main functionality patches, organized by category:
helium/core/add-zen-importer.patch helium/core/disable-unsupported-importers.patch helium/core/services-prefs.patch helium/core/override-chrome-protocol.patch helium/core/onboarding-page.patch helium/core/change-chromium-branding.patch # ... more core patches
Zen Browser profile importer
Onboarding page integration
Branding changes
Native messaging host scanning
helium/core/search/restore-google.patch helium/core/search/engine-defaults.patch helium/core/search/fix-search-engine-icons.patch helium/core/search/force-eu-search-features.patch helium/core/search/omnibox-default-search-icon.patch
Search engine configuration and icon handling.
helium/core/noise/core.patch helium/core/noise/canvas.patch helium/core/noise/audio.patch helium/core/noise/hardware-concurrency.patch helium/core/reduce-accept-language-headers.patch helium/core/disable-ad-topics-and-etc.patch
Fingerprinting protection through canvas/audio noise and reduced headers.
helium/core/ublock-setup-sources.patch helium/core/ublock-install-as-component.patch helium/core/ublock-reconfigure-defaults.patch helium/core/ublock-helium-services.patch
Integrates uBlock Origin as a built-in component extension.
helium/core/flags-setup.patch helium/core/add-low-power-framerate-flag.patch helium/core/add-update-channel-flag.patch helium/core/add-updater-preference.patch helium/core/add-disable-ech-flag.patch
Custom chrome://flags entries and preferences.
helium/core/keyboard-shortcuts.patch helium/core/update-default-browser-prefs.patch helium/core/add-native-bangs.patch helium/core/prefer-https-by-default.patch helium/core/memory-saving-by-default.patch helium/core/enable-parallel-downloading.patch helium/core/infinite-tab-freezing.patch
Changes default behavior: HTTPS by default, memory saving, parallel downloads, etc.
helium/core/add-component-l10n-support.patch helium/core/add-component-managed-schema-support.patch helium/core/component-updates.patch helium/core/fixups-component-setup.patch
Enhanced component extension system with localization and managed policies. Helium Settings helium/settings/setup-behavior-settings-page.patch helium/settings/settings-page-icons.patch helium/settings/remove-autofill.patch helium/settings/privacy-page-tweaks.patch helium/settings/about-page-tweaks.patch # ... 18 settings patches
Customizes the Settings UI:
Removes unwanted sections (autofill, Safety Hub, translate)
Reorders menu items
Updates page icons and text
Adds custom options
Helium HOP (Helium Onboarding Page) helium/hop/setup.patch helium/hop/disable-password-manager.patch
Configures the first-run onboarding experience.
Helium UI Extensive UI customization patches:
Core UI
Components
Theming
Layout Modes
Cleanup
helium/ui/layout-constants.patch helium/ui/layout-provider.patch helium/ui/tabs.patch helium/ui/toolbar.patch helium/ui/omnibox.patch helium/ui/app-menu-style.patch
Core layout, toolbar, tabs, and menu styling. helium/ui/location-bar.patch helium/ui/side-panel.patch helium/ui/find-bar.patch helium/ui/status-bubble.patch helium/ui/pdf-viewer.patch
Individual component styling and behavior. helium/ui/helium-color-scheme.patch helium/ui/set-gray-as-default-theme.patch helium/ui/helium-logo-icons.patch helium/ui/top-container-background.patch helium/ui/enable-fluent-scrollbar.patch
Color scheme, icons, and visual theming. helium/ui/layout/core.patch helium/ui/layout/settings.patch helium/ui/layout/context-menu.patch helium/ui/layout/compact.patch helium/ui/layout/vertical.patch
Different layout modes including vertical tabs. helium/ui/remove-toolbar-corners.patch helium/ui/remove-dead-toolbar-actions.patch helium/ui/remove-layout-separators.patch helium/ui/remove-reading-list-from-app-menu.patch helium/ui/clean-context-menu.patch
Removes unwanted UI elements and cleans up menus. Patch Statistics
Total Patches 327 patches applied in sequence
Largest Category Helium UI with 78 patches
Privacy Patches 69 patches from ungoogled-chromium, Inox, Iridium, Bromite
Upstream Fixes 47 patches backported from newer Chromium
Patch Naming Convention Patches follow these naming patterns:
Upstream : rREVISION-description.patch (e.g., r1568708-fix-crash.patch)Feature : add-feature-name.patchRemoval : remove-feature-name.patch or disable-feature-name.patchFix : fix-issue-description.patchUI : component-name.patch (e.g., toolbar.patch, omnibox.patch)
Applying Patches Patches are typically applied using the patch or git apply command:
# Apply all patches in order while read -r patch ; do # Skip comments and blank lines [[ " $patch " =~ ^#. * $ || -z " $patch " ]] && continue patch -p1 < "patches/ $patch " done < patches/series
Maintaining Patches
Create a new patch
Make changes to the Chromium source and create a patch: git diff > patches/helium/core/my-new-feature.patch
Add to series file
Insert the patch path in the appropriate location in patches/series. Consider dependencies:
Place after patches it depends on
Place before patches that depend on it
Test patch application
Apply all patches from a clean Chromium source to ensure no conflicts.
Document the patch
Add a descriptive comment above the patch in series if needed: # Adds support for custom protocol handlers helium/core/custom-protocol-handlers.patch
Troubleshooting
Check if the patch was created against the correct Chromium version
Verify the patch is in unified diff format
Look for line ending issues (CRLF vs LF)
Check if a previous patch modified the same code
Patch applies but build fails
The patch may be outdated for the current Chromium version
Check for missing dependencies or header files
Review the patch for syntax errors or incomplete changes
Runtime issues after patching
Some patches may conflict at runtime even if they apply cleanly
Try applying patches in smaller groups to isolate the issue
Check patch order - some patches must be applied in sequence
flags.gn - Build flags that work with patchesdeps.ini - Dependencies that may be affected by patchesdownloads.ini - Source code that patches are applied to