How to enable permissions in Tella’s web app and Chrome extension
Before recording videos in Tella, you need to grant permission for Tella to access your camera, microphone, and potentially your screen. These permissions ensure that Tella can use your devices to create videos, whether you’re recording with the web app, Chrome extension, or macOS app.
Why permissions are necessary
When you first try to record in Tella, you’ll be prompted to give the app permission to access your camera and microphone. This is a necessary step to allow Tella to use your devices for recording, even if you don’t plan on using your camera or microphone during your video. Without these permissions, Tella won’t be able to start the recording process.
If you don’t wish to use your camera or microphone, you can turn them off after giving permission, but the initial access is still required.
How to enable permissions in the web app and Chrome extension
If you’re using Tella’s web app or Chrome extension, here’s how to enable the necessary permissions:
-
When you try to record for the first time, you’ll receive a prompt asking for permission to access your camera and microphone.
-
Click Allow to grant access. This will let Tella control your devices.
-
After allowing access through Tella, your web browser (such as Chrome, Firefox, or Safari) will display a second prompt asking for confirmation.
-
Again, click Allow in the browser prompt to finalize the process.
-
Once permissions are granted, you can choose which microphone and camera you want to use. Click on the small arrow near the camera and microphone icons in the Tella recorder to select from available devices.
If you don’t want to use your camera or microphone, simply turn them off after this step. You’ll still be able to record your screen.
Screen sharing permissions
For screen sharing, you generally won’t need to provide separate permissions to Tella itself. Your web browser manages those permissions with your operating system.
-
If you’re using Google Chrome, it likely already has permission to share your screen. Just click Share Screen in Tella, and you can select which screen or window to share.
-
If you encounter issues where you cannot share your screen or don’t see the option to select a screen, it’s possible that your browser doesn’t have screen-sharing permissions enabled.
How to manually enable screen sharing permissions
If your browser doesn’t have screen-sharing permissions, you’ll need to manually adjust your settings in your computer’s operating system.
On macOS:
-
Open System Preferences and go to Privacy & Security.
-
Find the Screen Recording or System Audio Recording section.
-
Ensure that the browser you’re using (Chrome, Safari, Firefox) is allowed to record your screen.
On Windows:
-
Go to Settings, then open the Privacy section.
-
Under App Permissions, find Screen Recording and make sure the browser you’re using is allowed access.
If these permissions are set up correctly, you’ll be able to share your screen seamlessly in Tella.
If Tella is blocked in the Chrome extension
If you’ve previously blocked camera or microphone access for the extension, opening Tella shows a “Tella is blocked” empty state with an Open browser settings button. The button deep-links to your browser’s site-permissions page for the extension (Chrome, Arc, Edge, Opera, and Brave are detected automatically), where you can reset or re-grant camera and microphone access.
You can also reach the same settings page any time from the more menu in the popup — choose Browser settings at the bottom of the dropdown.
When the permission prompt appears, choose “Allow while visiting the site” (or Allow on browsers that label it that way). Picking “Allow this time” only grants access for the current session, and you’ll be asked again the next time you open Tella.
Tella Mac app permissions
If you’re using Tella’s macOS app, the process for enabling permissions is slightly different. Watch the dedicated video on getting started with the Mac app, which covers the permission settings specific to macOS users. 
