Install the app

The CaptureFlow recorder is a native macOS app (it relies on macOS screen, window, and cursor APIs via bundled Swift helpers). Apple Silicon and Intel are both supported.

NOTE

Windows/Linux recorders aren't shipped yet. The web backend, dashboard, and share pages are fully cross-platform — anyone can view and manage recordings in a browser on any OS.

Option A — download a release

If your instance publishes builds, grab the latest .dmg from the Releases page, open it, and drag CaptureFlow into /Applications. The app auto-updates via electron-updater when new releases are published.

Option B — build it yourself

From a checkout of the repo:

pnpm install
pnpm --filter @captureflow/desktop dev     # run the recorder in dev
# or produce a packaged build:
pnpm --filter @captureflow/desktop build

See Build from source for prerequisites (Node 24, pnpm 10).

Grant macOS permissions

On first launch macOS will ask for a few permissions. CaptureFlow can't capture without them — grant each, then relaunch if prompted:

Permission	Why it's needed
Screen & System Audio Recording	Capture the screen (and system audio). Required.
Accessibility	Track the cursor and global hotkeys for smooth cursor + controls.
Camera	Only if you enable the webcam bubble.
Microphone	Only if you record your voice.

You can review or re-grant these any time under System Settings → Privacy & Security. If a toggle was already on but capture fails, toggle it off and on again (a known macOS quirk) and restart the app.

Sign in

The recorder needs an account on a CaptureFlow backend to upload and create share links.

• Managed hosting: sign in with the account from your provider.
• Self-hosted: the desktop app points at https://captureflow.xyz by default. To target your own deployment, see Point the desktop app at your backend.

Signing in happens through your browser and hands the session back to the app via a captureflow:// deep link.

Next: Record your screen.