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Respondus Lockdown Browser

This page has the latest links and information about the Respondus Lockdown Browser, which is required for all students when taking assessments within VA courses. Please review each section of information we have below, to familiarize yourself with some of the known issues, best practices, etc. associated with Respondus Lockdown Browser. We may periodically add to this information, as we continually troubleshoot issues and help find ways to resolve them for our partner school districts.

Installing the Respondus Lockdown Browser for Virtual Arkansas Users

Operating System
Links (School-Owned Devices)
Links (Student-Owned Devices)

Windows           (v. 2.1.2.06)

Updated 05/03/24

 Please submit a ticket to techsupport@virtualarkansas.org if you need this download.

Software

NOTE: This is not the download for school devices. Tech directors, please see the instructions to the left for school devices.

macOS              (v. 2.1.2.05)

Updated 05/20/24

 Please submit a ticket to techsupport@virtualarkansas.org if you need this download.

Software

NOTE: This is not the download for school devices. Tech directors, please see the instructions to the left for school devices.
chromeOS Instructions – For District Tech Teams (Google Admin Console)

NOTE: You must be logged onto your personal-owned Chromebook with a personal Google account, beforehand.

Download Lockdown Browser for your Chromebook

 

How It Works After Installation
School Chromebooks:

Students log in to the Chromebook and log in to Virtual Arkansas, and when they click to take the test, the LDB extension will open for them.

School Windows or Mac Computers:

The installation will place an LDB icon on the desktop. Students double-click and launch the LDB software, login using their VA credentials, and proceed to the exam.

Before Testing with Lockdown Browser for Chromebooks
There are a few steps that students must take before taking an exam in LDB on a Chromebook. Respondus hopes to issue an update that will negate the need for this, but for now, this must be done and is out of our control. Please ensure that students take these steps before they take an exam in LDB.
  1. Log the student completely out of the Virtual Arkansas Portal / Dashboard.
  2. Ensure that the Chromebook is updated (https://support.google.com/chromebook/answer/177889?hl=en)
    Chromebooks that are beyond the auto-update period, especially, will have issues with LDB.
  3. Clear the student’s browser data for all time (https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/32050?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop)
    1. Make sure you’re logged out of Virtual Arkansas
    2. Top Right Corner > Three vertical dots
    3. More Tools
    4. Clear browsing data
    5. Set “Time Range” to “All Time”
    6. Make sure at least the two bottom checkboxes are checked (cookies and cached images) of the three that are available there. You can check all three, if able.
    7. Click “Clear Data”
  4. Close Google Chrome Then the student can open Chrome, login, and attempt the exam. He/She should be prompted for the start code at the beginning.
Checking Your Lockdown Browser Version

Windows: Check your version by launching the lockdown browser, and clicking the “i” icon in the top menu bar within the Lockdown Browser.

macOS: Check your version by launching the lockdown browser, and clicking the “globe” icon in the top menu bar within the Lockdown Browser.

LockDown Browser for Mac, version 2.1.2.04, has been released. This release includes a modification to the search feature and security improvements.

Existing installs of LockDown Browser will NOT be auto-updated. To obtain the latest version (2.1.2.04) use the “Check for Update” feature or run the full installation program.

Complete version history for LockDown Browser can be obtained at Respondus.com > Customer Login > LockDown Browser > Additional Resources > Version Information.

Using Zoom while testing in Lockdown Browser for Chromebooks

If you have students who enter a Zoom meeting with the teacher, proctor, etc. but are then kicked out of the session when they click to take the exam and launch the Lockdown Browser, the Chromebook may not have the new “Zoom for Chrome PWA” installed which has replaced the traditional ChomeOS Zoom app. Please refer to our site at https://virtualarkansas.org/zoom for more information.

Using Accent Marks in Lockdown Browser for Chromebooks (On-Screen Keyboard)

In collaboration with Respondus Support and one of our partner school districts, we’ve put together a guide for using accent marks in Lockdown Browser for Chromebook that can avoid the issue of students being kicked out of the session as they press certain keys or key combinations. This method utilizes the “English (US) with International Keyboard” Input Method and the “On-Screen Keyboard” Accessibility feature. Please review the step-by-step guide, Using Accent Marks In Respondus Lockdown Browser (Chromebooks using On-Screen Keyboard).

Resolve the “Stuck in LDB” issue for Chromebooks

We have seen rare instances where the lockdown browser is engaged, even after an exam has been completed. It can prevent students from being able to do anything else on their Chromebook. If this happens, have the student do the following:

* click the refresh key one time. This should remove the banner.
* log out of Canvas, then log back in.

If the above steps do not resolve the “locked state” issue, we have found that district tech admins can use Google Admin Console to do the following while the Chromebook is powered on and connected to wifi:

  1. Find the student’s device in Google Admin Console by the serial number
  2. On the menu for that device, select “Reset”
  3. Choose the option for “Clear User Profiles”
  4. Checkmark the “I agree” box
  5. Click Reset

The Chromebook will restart, and the user will need to sign in to it again. Based on our testing and that of partner districts, this works for clearing the “locked state”, even when students are at home or otherwise off-campus, so long as they are connected to the internet.

School District Filters and Respondus Lockdown Browser

Some specific domains may get blocked by your district filter and cause issues with LDB. According to Respondus support, here is the information on that:

*.smc-service-cloud.respondus2.com

Other essential domains are:
Server profiles: server-profiles-respondus-com.s3-external-1.amazonaws.com
Update server: static-public-downloads-cloud.respondus.com
Installs/Downloads: *.respondus.com
Help Center: help-center-respondus-com.s3.amazonaws.com