Permissions Guide

Permissions

The macOS privacy dance: every permission OwnClip asks for, exactly what it's for, and where to find each one in System Settings.

Screen RecordingCameraMicrophoneSpeechAccessibilityTroubleshooting

What we use & where it lives

Click any path to copy it
Screen Recording
Required

Capture full screen, a window, or a region. The only permission OwnClip cannot work without.

Microphone
Optional

Record voice narration over your screen. Skip it for silent recordings or system-audio-only.

Camera
Optional

Power the floating webcam bubble and every Camera AI effect: blur, virtual backgrounds, Smart Framing, Auto-Light.

Speech Recognition
Optional

Transcribe recordings on-device using Apple's Speech framework. Powers transcript-driven cuts and SRT export.

Accessibility
Optional

Receive global hotkeys (⌘⇧R / ⌘⇧P / ⌘⇧S — or ⌃⇧R / ⌃⇧P / ⌃⇧S on a PC keyboard) and drive scroll capture. Without it, hotkeys silently no-op and scroll capture refuses to start.

OwnClip runs a 2-second permission watchdog whenever you record. If you grant or revoke a permission while the app is running, OwnClip notices automatically. There is no need to restart unless noted below.

Step-by-step

Screen Recording — the only one OwnClip can't live without

Required to capture your screen, a window, or a region. macOS asks the first time you start a recording. If you miss the prompt, open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen & System Audio Recording and toggle OwnClip on. No app restart is needed afterward. OwnClip's permission monitor picks up the change within 2 seconds.

Tips
  • Without this, every capture mode fails; there is no fallback
  • OwnClip never restarts itself; just toggle in System Settings and try again
  • On current macOS, the pane is called "Screen & System Audio Recording"
Screen & System Audio Recording
System Settings
Screen & System Audio Recording

Allow apps to record the contents of your screen and listen to system audio while in use.

OC
OwnClip
Required to capture screen, windows, and regions

Click the toggle to simulate granting the permission.

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Troubleshooting

9 common issues
macOS occasionally caches the old TCC state. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Screen & System Audio Recording, toggle OwnClip off and back on. OwnClip's permission monitor polls every 2 seconds and picks up the new state without a restart.