The key advantage of using the Google Admin console for managing Chrome updates in a multi-platform environment is its ability to apply policies consistently across Windows, macOS, and Linux devices. Group Policy (GPMC) is a Windows-specific tool and cannot natively manage Chrome updates on other operating systems. The Google Admin console provides a centralized and platform-agnostic approach to Chrome management.

Given that the MV2 extensions are not critical, and the requirement is to either block or upgrade, the most direct and efficient approach is to configure the "Manifest V2 availability" policy. This policy allows administrators to control the usage of Manifest V2 extensions, including blocking them entirely or allowing them until a specified date. Option A involves manually collecting and blocking each extension, which is less efficient. Option C ("removed") is not a standard installation mode policy. Option D is not a policy that an administrator can directly configure; the upgrade to MV3 is a developer-driven process.

The Chrome release cycle for the Stable channel is approximately every four weeks. This consistent schedule allows administrators to anticipate and plan for new feature deployments and potential compatibility testing.
While security updates can occur more frequently and are often released on Tuesdays, major version updates follow this roughly monthly cadence.

Organizational Units (OUs) in the Google Admin console allow administrators to apply different Chrome policies to different groups of devices or users based on their organizational structure. By creating separate OUs for Engineering and HR (and potentially other departments), the administrator can configure different Chrome update policies for each OU, ensuring Engineering gets rapid updates while HR stays on a more stable release. User groups primarily manage access to services, and device policies are generally applied at the device level, not necessarily tied to departmental needs for update cadences. Active Directory forests are a Microsoft concept and not directly used for managing Chrome update policies in the Google Admin console.

Chrome checks for extension updates periodically when the browser is running. This check typically happens within the first few minutes of launching Chrome and then again every few hours. While updates are triggered by developers publishing to the Chrome Web Store, the actual update on the user's browser happens when Chrome is active and performs these periodic checks. Option A is incorrect as extensions generally don't update when Chrome is not running. Option C describes a manual update process, which is not the default behavior. Option D is incorrect because the update on the user's end is dependent on Chrome being active and checking for updates.