As school technology budgets face increasing scrutiny, administrators seek innovative and cost-effective solutions for their existing device fleets. ChromeOS Flex has emerged as a powerful problem-solver, offering a way to revitalize aging PCs and Macs by extending their lifespan and bringing the benefits of ChromeOS to familiar hardware.
Schools may find themselves with a number of Windows 10 laptops that will be losing security updates in October 2025. ChromeOS Flex provides a compelling alternative: a cloud-first operating system that can transform these end-of-life devices into fast, secure, and easy-to-manage laptops. If you’re interested in trying ChromeOS Flex, request a completely complimentary ChromeOS Flex kit here.
At Prairie Spirit School Division in Manitoba, Canada, IT Director Troy Sigvaldason says ChromeOS Flex allowed the district to extend several hundred newly acquired laptops to students who otherwise would be using older devices—all with the same operating system and with the same tools. “Talk about an opportunity!” says Sigvaldason. “This was a big learning boost for students who needed new Chromebooks, and ChromeOS Flex making the process easy was huge for us. Flex was our ace in the hole.”
The benefits of deploying ChromeOS Flex are many:
- Cost savings: By repurposing existing hardware, schools can significantly reduce the need for immediate large-scale device replacements, freeing up budget for other crucial educational resources.
- Enhanced security: ChromeOS is renowned for its robust security features, and ChromeOS Flex brings these same protections to revitalized devices. Features like built-in virus protection, automatic security updates, data encryption, and sandboxing help to create a safer learning environment and protect against malware and ransomware. Notably, there has never been a successful reported ransomware attack on any ChromeOS device — ever.
- Simplified management: After installing via USB or industry standard mass deployment tools, districts can couple the device with Chrome Education Upgrade, enabling seamless integration with the Google Admin console. This enables IT teams to centrally manage their entire fleet, configure device policies, control user access, and deploy updates efficiently, saving valuable time and resources. “ChromeOS Flex is easy to install,” says Douglas Baker, Manager of the Technology Service Center at Cypress Fairbanks School District. “I can put Flex on 30 flash drives, set up a wall of devices, get people in the room, and we can create 1,500 Flex devices in a couple of weeks.”
- Sustainability: Extending the lifespan of devices directly contributes to a school’s sustainability initiatives by reducing electronic waste. By upgrading aging devices with ChromeOS Flex, schools don’t have to throw them away; instead, the devices last longer and reduce the amount of e-waste headed to landfills.
By implementing ChromeOS Flex, schools can save valuable resources while supporting their users with a secure and efficient environment on devices they already own.
If you’re interested in adopting ChromeOS Flex for your school, submit a request for a free ChromeOS Flex kit here.