Windows says it protected your PC

The Windows installer, Recordist_<version>_x64-setup.exe (the download page shows the version), is not Authenticode-signed. Windows therefore has no publisher name to show and no download history to trust, so it warns. The warning does not mean the file is damaged or altered. It means Windows cannot tell who made it. The Mac build is different: it is signed with our Apple Developer ID (Team ID JNC57WQK69) and notarised by Apple.

We never ask you to turn Windows protection off. Where Windows offers a way to continue for one file, the steps are below. Where it offers none, the answer is to wait for the signed build.

Check the file first

The download page shows the installer’s SHA-256 next to the Windows button, and so does the email if you asked for the link. In PowerShell, in the folder you downloaded to:

Get-FileHash .\Recordist_*_x64-setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256

The long string it prints should match the one on the download page exactly. If it does not, delete the file and download it again.

In Edge: “isn’t commonly downloaded”

1. Open the downloads list in Edge and find the file.
2. Click the … menu beside it, then Keep.
3. Click Show more, then Keep anyway.

In SmartScreen: “Windows protected your PC”

1. Click More info.
2. Click Run anyway.

If there is no Run anyway button, Smart App Control or your organisation’s policy is blocking the file. See the next two sections.

Smart App Control

On some Windows 11 PCs, Smart App Control (Windows Security, App & browser control) blocks unsigned programs that have no good reputation. It offers no override for a single file. The only way past it is to turn Smart App Control off. We do not ask anyone to do that. If your PC has it on, wait for the signed build. We will say so here and on the download page when it exists.

Managed PCs

A work PC that allows only signed software will refuse the installer. Ask whoever manages the PC to allow it, and give them the file’s SHA-256 from the download page. If they would rather not, that is a reasonable answer; the signed build will be easier for them.

The two microphone switches

Windows has two switches for the microphone, and both must be on. In Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone, turn on Microphone access and Let desktop apps access your microphone. On Windows 10 they read Allow apps to access your microphone and Allow desktop apps to access your microphone. See Which permissions Recordist needs on Windows.

When the build is signed

When the Windows installer is signed, Windows will show the publisher named in our Terms. If you see a different name on a file that claims to be Recordist, do not run it, and tell us.

Updates

Once Recordist is installed, updates come through the app, not through your browser. They are signed with Recordist’s own updater key, so they do not trigger these warnings. See How updates work.