Video call settings

Configure guest defaults, room UI, branding, and recording behavior for video calls.

The Settings → Video Call page is the central place to configure how your live video call rooms behave. Use it to control guest defaults, in-call UI, room branding, and recording behavior.

Plan availability

Video call settings are available on Pro and Enterprise plans. The Recordings tab is available on all plans.

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Only workspace administrators can change these settings. Personal host preferences are configured separately in Personal video call preferences.


Guest Defaults

Guest Defaults control what happens when a guest joins a call — before they're inside the room.

Guest joins muted

When enabled, guests enter the call with their microphone muted. They can unmute themselves at any time using the in-call controls. Useful if you want to avoid background noise at the start of a call.

Guest joins with camera off

When enabled, guests enter the call with their camera turned off. They can turn it on once they're in the call. Useful for customers who may not be ready to appear on camera right away.

Pre-call review

Shows guests a device check screen before they enter the room. They can test their camera, microphone, and speaker and confirm everything is working. This reduces the chance of audio or video issues at the start of the call.

When Pre-call review is enabled, two additional options become available:

Connectivity & device test — Runs a technical check on the guest's connection quality, not just their devices. Recommended if your customers commonly join from unreliable networks.

Allow skip pre-call test — If enabled, guests can choose to skip the pre-call screen and join immediately. If disabled, they must complete the check before proceeding.

If a guest's browser blocks camera or microphone access, Screendesk can display a help link pointing them to a page that explains how to grant permissions. Enter the URL of your help article or documentation page in this field. Leave it blank to disable the link.

1

Go to Video Call settings

Navigate to Settings → Video Call in your Screendesk workspace.

2

Select the Guest Defaults tab

This tab is selected by default when you open the page.

3

Enable the options you want

Toggle each setting on or off. Changes save automatically.


In-call UI

In-call UI controls which interface elements are visible inside the room. Hiding elements you don't use keeps the call interface cleaner, especially for 1-on-1 support sessions.

Setting
What it hides

Hide people panel button

The button that opens the participant list sidebar

Hide participant count

The number shown next to the participant list button

Hide picture-in-picture button

The PiP button that pops video into a floating window

Hide settings button

The gear icon that lets participants change device settings

Hide chat

The in-call text chat panel

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These settings apply to all guests and hosts joining your rooms. If you use a separate messaging channel for support conversations, hiding the in-call chat avoids confusion about where customers should type.


Branding

Use branding settings to make your video rooms look more like your product.

Upload a company logo to show at the top of the video room.

Use a transparent PNG when possible.

Logo specs:

  • Supported formats: PNG, JPEG

  • Maximum file size: 5 MB

  • Maximum dimensions: 800 × 500 px

  • Recommended dimensions: 200 × 100 px

Background color

Choose the background color shown behind participant tiles and in empty room areas.

Use a hex color value such as #404040.

The default color is #404040.

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Branding settings apply to all new video rooms created by your workspace.


Clarity & Guidance

Highlight active speaker

When enabled, a visual ring highlights the participant who is currently speaking. This helps guests follow conversations in calls with multiple participants.

Participant labels in subgrid

When enabled, participant names appear below their video tiles in the subgrid layout. Useful when you regularly host calls with several participants who may not know each other.


Recordings

The Recordings tab consolidates all recording-related settings for live video calls.

Setting
Description

Enable live recordings

Allow video calls to be recorded and saved to your workspace

Auto-start recording

Automatically begin recording when the host joins

Enable live transcription

Generate a transcript of the call in real time

Recording consent

Show a consent notice to guests before they join

When recording consent is enabled, guests see a consent modal on the join page before entering the room. The modal shows your logo, an auto-generated notice describing that the call may be recorded, your custom consent message, and a link to your privacy policy.

Guests can click Accept to join or Decline to exit. Guests who decline are not blocked from the room — they can still join, but the host is notified via an in-call banner and auto-recording stops if it was active.

To configure recording consent:

1

Open the Recordings tab

Go to Settings → Video Call and click the Recordings tab.

2

Turn the toggle on. A live preview card appears showing what guests will see.

3

Enter your consent message in the text field. For example: "This call may be recorded for quality and training purposes."

4

Fill in Link text (for example, "Privacy Policy") and the URL pointing to your privacy policy. The link appears inside the consent card on the join page.

5

Add translations (optional)

If your workspace serves customers in multiple languages, locale tabs appear at the top of the preview. Switch to a locale tab and enter a translated consent message and link text for that language. Guests whose browser locale matches will see the translated version automatically.

6

Save

Click Save. The consent modal is now active for all guests joining your video rooms.

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