The tray menu
Everything in crowd-cast is controlled from its icon, in the menu bar on macOS, or the system tray on Windows and Linux. Click the icon to open the menu.
Status
Section titled “Status”The top of the menu shows the current status (it’s a display line, not a button). You’ll see one of:
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Idle | Not currently recording. |
| Capturing (N events) | Recording; N input events captured in the current segment. |
| Idle (paused) | Auto-paused because you stepped away. Resumes on activity. |
| Recording (no capture sources) | Recording was requested but nothing can be captured, usually a missing Screen Recording permission (macOS). See troubleshooting. |
| Waiting for OBS… | The capture engine is still starting up. |
| Uploading … | A finished segment is being uploaded. |
| Error: … | Something went wrong; the message gives the reason. |
When you’re signed in, the menu also shows Signed in as <your email>.
Controls
Section titled “Controls”Start / Stop Recording
Section titled “Start / Stop Recording”Starts or stops recording. A green tray icon means recording is active. Recording also starts automatically when the app launches (you don’t normally need to press Start).
Delete last 10 minutes
Section titled “Delete last 10 minutes”The panic button, for when you accidentally record something sensitive. It deletes the recent footage straight from your disk and then resumes recording.
This is a guarantee, not a best effort. Completed recordings are held on your device for 10 minutes before anything is uploaded, and this button deletes everything still in that hold, with no server request involved. So whatever happened in roughly the last 10 minutes is always still on your machine when you press it, and it is deleted before it ever leaves the device. (Footage older than that window has already been uploaded, so the button covers exactly the recent 10-minute hold, which is the window it can still guarantee.)
Pause Uploads / Resume Uploads
Section titled “Pause Uploads / Resume Uploads”Temporarily holds completed segments on disk instead of uploading them. Click again to resume. This is useful on a metered or slow connection. The pause state is remembered across restarts. (Recording continues regardless; this only affects uploading.)
Settings
Section titled “Settings”Opens a window where you choose which apps are recorded: either Capture all applications, or a specific set ticked from a list. On macOS and Linux the list shows the apps currently running (on Wayland, apps that have an open window); to capture one that isn’t running, launch it first, then open Settings. Saving restarts the agent so capture is rebuilt with the new selection (recording resumes automatically on relaunch); Cancel changes nothing. For everything else that lives in the config file, see Configuration.
Sign in with Google / Sign out
Section titled “Sign in with Google / Sign out”Signs you in (or out). Signing in links your recordings to your account on the dashboard. See Account, uploads & dashboard.
Check for Updates
Section titled “Check for Updates”Checks for and installs a newer version. Updates also install automatically in the background.
Stops recording and exits the agent. (Because crowd-cast normally starts at login, it’ll be back next time you log in unless you also disable start-at-login.)