Permissions

Recorded requires certain system permissions to capture your screen, audio, and camera. The permissions differ between macOS and Windows.

macOS Permissions

macOS requires explicit user consent for screen recording and media access. On first launch, Recorded shows a permission screen that asks for Screen Recording and Accessibility; the main window opens once both are granted.

Screen Recording

This is the most important permission. Without it, Recorded cannot capture your screen content or system audio.

  1. On the permission screen, click Grant Permission next to Screen Recording
  2. In System Settings, go to Privacy & Security > Screen Recording
  3. Enable the toggle for Recorded
  4. If Recorded doesn’t detect the change, quit and reopen it — macOS sometimes requires a restart for this permission to take effect

Screen Recording permission also controls system audio capture on macOS (system audio requires macOS 13 Ventura or later). If you can capture video but not system audio, this permission may need to be reset.

Accessibility

Recorded needs Accessibility permission to display the window selection overlay on top of full-screen apps.

  1. On the permission screen, click Grant Permission next to Accessibility
  2. In System Settings, go to Privacy & Security > Accessibility
  3. Enable the toggle for Recorded

Microphone

Required if you want to record voice narration.

  1. When prompted, click Allow
  2. Or go to Privacy & Security > Microphone and enable Recorded

Camera

Required if you want to use the webcam overlay.

  1. When prompted, click Allow
  2. Or go to Privacy & Security > Camera and enable Recorded

Windows Permissions

Windows generally requires fewer explicit permissions for screen recording.

Screen Capture

Windows does not show a screen recording permission prompt. Recorded captures your screen with the Windows Graphics Capture API (available on Windows 10 version 1903 and later), which any desktop application can use. System audio is captured with WASAPI loopback, which also needs no permission.

Microphone

  1. When Windows prompts for microphone access, click Yes
  2. Or go to Settings > Privacy > Microphone and ensure Recorded has access

Camera

  1. When Windows prompts for camera access, click Yes
  2. Or go to Settings > Privacy > Camera and ensure Recorded has access

Troubleshooting Permissions

Black Screen on macOS

If you see a black screen during recording, Screen Recording permission is likely not granted or has become stale:

  1. Open System Settings > Privacy & Security > Screen Recording
  2. Remove Recorded from the list (click the minus button)
  3. Relaunch Recorded to trigger the permission prompt again
  4. Grant the permission and restart Recorded

macOS sometimes requires removing and re-adding the app to refresh the permission, especially after app updates.

No System Audio on macOS

System audio capture on macOS is tied to the Screen Recording permission. If screen recording works but system audio is silent:

  1. Try the same steps as “Black Screen” above — remove and re-add the Screen Recording permission
  2. Restart Recorded after changing the permission

No Audio Capture on Windows

If system audio isn’t being recorded on Windows:

  • Check that your audio output device is set correctly in Windows sound settings
  • Recorded uses WASAPI loopback to capture system audio — no “Stereo Mix” device needs to be enabled
  • Ensure the system audio toggle is enabled in Recorded’s main window before recording

Permission Prompts Not Appearing

If you’re not seeing permission prompts on first launch:

  • macOS: Open System Settings > Privacy & Security and manually add Recorded to the relevant permission categories
  • Windows: Go to Settings > Privacy and check the relevant categories (Microphone, Camera)