Installing the recorder

Updated 2026-07-19

The Dockable Recorder is a lightweight macOS menu-bar app. It sits idle until you press record, and sends finished recordings straight into your workspace.

Note: The recorder is currently in private beta. There's no public download yet — access is provided directly during the beta. The rest of Dockable works fully without it: you can upload or import videos from the dashboard any time.

Connect it to your workspace

The recorder needs to know who you are. That's done with a one-time device key:

  1. In the dashboard, go to Settings → Recorder Devices and click Connect a device.
  2. Copy the enrollment link (or the vd_ device key).
  3. Open the enrollment link — the recorder's Settings window opens with everything pre-filled — and click Save.

Your device now appears in Recorder Devices with its last-seen time. You can revoke a device there at any point; a revoked device can't upload anything.

Warning: Treat the device key like a password. Anyone with it can upload recordings into your workspace. If a key leaks, revoke the device and enroll again.

Grant screen recording permission

macOS requires explicit permission before any app can capture the screen:

  1. On first run, the recorder shows a permission explainer. Click Open System Settings.
  2. In Privacy & Security → Screen & System Audio Recording, add Dockable Recorder to the top list (screen recording — not the audio-only list below it) and switch it on.
  3. Quit and reopen the recorder. macOS only applies this permission after a full restart of the app.

Microphone and camera permissions are simpler — macOS asks with a normal popup the first time you record with each turned on, and no restart is needed.

FAQ

Where did the app go? I clicked Quit.

Quit fully exits it, like any Mac app. Relaunch with Spotlight (Cmd+Space, type "Dockable Recorder") and the icon returns to your menu bar.

Can I enroll the same Mac in two workspaces?

A device is enrolled in one workspace at a time. Re-enrolling with a different workspace's key switches it.

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