Before you change anything
- Open Settings > About and record the installed BetterScreenShot version.
- Check whether a recording, export, scrolling capture, autosave, or recovery action is active.
- Preserve or recover unfinished work.
- Reproduce the problem once and note the time.
- Change one setting at a time.
Do not manually delete BetterScreenShot application-data folders. Do not uninstall or end the app from Task Manager while work is active.
The window closed but BetterScreenShot is still running
This is normally expected. Closing the main window hides the app to the Windows system tray so global shortcuts continue working.
To reopen it, use the BetterScreenShot tray icon. To exit completely, choose Quit from the tray menu.
BetterScreenShot does not appear to open
- Check the Windows system tray and hidden icons.
- If the app is already running, open it from the tray.
- If no capture or recording work is active, choose Quit and reopen it from Start.
- Check whether Windows opened an older separately installed edition.
- If it repeatedly disappears, export diagnostics after the next successful launch and contact support.
Print Screen or a shortcut does nothing
- Open Settings > Shortcuts.
- Confirm the shortcut is enabled and has no duplicate assignment.
- Try the equivalent button in the main toolbar.
- Close or reconfigure another screenshot app using the same key.
- Remember that Windows owns Win+Shift+S on many systems.
- Use a configurable BetterScreenShot shortcut if Print Screen cannot be registered.
If the toolbar action works but the shortcut does not, the issue is shortcut registration rather than capture itself.
The area selector is blank, delayed, or on the wrong display
- Wait for the selection overlay to finish appearing before dragging.
- Cancel and try once more.
- Check whether a display was connected, disconnected, rotated, or had its scale changed.
- Test Current Display capture.
- If only Previous Area is wrong, make one fresh Area capture to store new geometry.
- Record the display resolution, Windows scale, HDR state, and monitor arrangement for support.
Do not repeatedly launch captures while one selection is still active.
The capture contains BetterScreenShot controls
BetterScreenShot marks its capture overlays, camera preview, recording controls, and area boundary for capture exclusion where Windows supports it.
If one appears in output:
- Record which control appeared.
- Note the capture or recording source.
- Make a short reproducible sample without private content.
- Contact support with your Windows and BetterScreenShot versions.
Do not crop it out and treat the issue as resolved if capture protection is important to your workflow.
The captured image is black or incomplete
Possible causes include protected video content, browser or application DRM, secure desktop, graphics-driver behavior, HDR, remote-desktop restrictions, or an application using a protected rendering surface.
Try:
- Capturing a normal desktop window to compare.
- Switching between Area, Window, and Display capture.
- Updating Windows and the graphics driver.
- Testing with HDR temporarily changed only if it is safe for your workflow.
BetterScreenShot cannot bypass protected content or the Windows secure desktop.
Quick Access closed too quickly
Hover the pointer over Quick Access or move keyboard focus into it. Either action pauses its automatic close timer. Review Settings > Quick Access if you want a longer delay or different post-capture behavior.
Copy works in one app but not another
- Paste into Paint to confirm the clipboard image exists.
- Try Save and attach the file.
- Confirm the destination supports image or file paste.
- Check clipboard-management or security software.
- Capture a small test image and try again.
Do not clear History as a clipboard fix.
I cannot find a screenshot or recording
- Search History by type and date.
- Check the Saved and Unsaved filters.
- Review the screenshot or recording folder in Settings.
- Look for an unavailable item that needs relinking.
- Open Recovery Center for interrupted work.
History is temporary working storage. A permanent file exists only when Save or configured automatic saving created it.
Delete is not available or does not complete
The item may still be in use by Quick Access, a floating reference, the media editor, an active recording, or a recovery operation.
Close the relevant surface or finish the operation, then try again. If the image is open only in the main annotation workspace, current releases close it and return to the empty screen during confirmed deletion.
Do not delete the backing files manually.
A saved or external item says unavailable
The file was probably moved, renamed, disconnected, or deleted outside BetterScreenShot. If you still have it, use Relink and choose the matching file. Relinking should point to the existing original, not a newly created empty file.
The editor or presentation background uses high CPU or GPU
Short spikes while opening media, applying a background, zooming, or redrawing are expected. Sustained activity after the editor is idle is not.
- Record the workflow that caused the rise.
- Close the active image or media document without quitting the tray app.
- Wait several minutes and compare usage.
- Reopen the same item without the background or effect.
- Export diagnostics and contact support if high use remains.
Do not judge Electron by total process count alone. Multiple processes are normal. Focus on sustained CPU/GPU, growing memory, poor responsiveness, or incorrect output.
Recording has no microphone audio
- Confirm a microphone is selected in Audio & input options.
- Check the input meter.
- Allow microphone access in Windows Privacy & security.
- Check mute controls and exclusive use by another app.
- Reconnect the device and reselect it.
- Make a short test recording.
Recording has no computer audio
- Select Current Windows output before recording.
- Confirm Windows is playing through the expected device.
- Recheck after connecting Bluetooth, USB, HDMI, or a dock.
- Make a short test and inspect the audio track in the media editor.
The camera preview is blank or busy
- Allow camera access in Windows Privacy & security.
- Close Teams, Zoom, browser tabs, or camera apps that may own the device.
- Disable and re-enable Camera bubble.
- Select the camera again.
- Reconnect an external camera.
- Test with the Windows Camera app, then close it before returning to BetterScreenShot.
Recording stops but finalization takes time
Finalization can take longer for high resolution, high frame rate, Very high quality, MP4 conversion, multiple audio tracks, camera overlays, or slower storage.
Wait for completion. Do not force-close the app. If finalization fails, open Recovery Center before changing settings or removing files.
MP4 or GIF export fails
- Confirm enough free disk space.
- Try a shorter range.
- Use WebM to determine whether the problem is format-specific.
- For MP4, allow automatic or software encoding if hardware encoding is unavailable.
- Remember that GIF is silent and can become very large for long or high-resolution content.
- Preserve the media project and export diagnostics before retrying repeatedly.
OCR text is inaccurate
- Use a higher-resolution source.
- Crop to the text region.
- Increase contrast and remove distortion.
- Select the correct recognition language or automatic detection.
- Compare Preserve visual line breaks with Compact text.
- Type or verify sensitive values manually. OCR should not be trusted for passwords, account numbers, or critical legal or medical text without review.
QR is not detected
- Crop close to the code while keeping its full border.
- Use a sharp, front-facing image.
- Avoid glare and heavy compression.
- Increase the displayed QR size.
- Confirm the code is not partly hidden.
BetterScreenShot opens only recognized HTTP or HTTPS links after showing the destination.
Scrolling capture repeats toolbars or misses content
Desktop scrolling can be disrupted by sticky headers, animations, virtualized lists, changing content, and nested scroll containers.
- Stop animations and close floating banners.
- Use slower manual advancement.
- Capture a stable region.
- For webpages, use the BetterScreenShot browser extension.
- For extremely dynamic content, take several normal screenshots instead.
Browser capture cannot connect
- Confirm BetterScreenShot is running.
- Open Settings > Advanced > Browser Integration.
- Select the install button for your browser again to repair the local connection.
- Confirm the extension is enabled.
- Restart the browser.
- Test a simple public webpage.
An update is not offered
- Open Settings > About > Check now.
- Open the Microsoft Store page and check the Store Library for updates.
- Confirm the device meets the Windows requirement.
- Check whether Store updates are controlled by work or school policy.
- Remember that an announced or uploaded version is not available until Microsoft publishes it for your device and market.
Do not install an unverified package from a third-party website.
An existing image does not open
- Confirm the file still exists and is not zero bytes.
- Try opening it in Windows Photos.
- Copy it to a normal local folder if it is on a disconnected or restricted location.
- Install the required Windows HEIC/HEIF decoder when needed.
- Check whether the file extension matches the actual format.
When to contact support
Contact support when:
- Work appears lost or corrupted.
- Recovery fails.
- A protected BetterScreenShot control appears in output.
- Recording loses audio or cannot finalize.
- The app repeatedly crashes or becomes unresponsive.
- CPU, GPU, or memory continues rising after the active workflow closes.
- Microsoft Store or browser integration reports a repeatable error.
- The same focused problem returns after a safe restart and update check.
Use the Contact Support checklist and attach a privacy-reviewed diagnostic report when possible.