Veilshot

Giving it screen access

macOS only lets an app see the screen once you allow it. The first time you open VeilShot, its welcome window explains this. Click Continue and macOS asks.

If you clicked Don't Allow, or screenshots stopped working:

1. Open System Settings, Privacy & Security, Screen & System Audio Recording.
2. Turn on VeilShot.
3. If macOS asks, quit and reopen VeilShot.

macOS asks again from time to time whether VeilShot may keep this access. Settings, Privacy in VeilShot shows whether it has it.

If a shortcut doesn't work

VeilShot sets no shortcuts until you choose them. Record your own in Settings, Shortcuts, or click Use Suggested Shortcuts for ⇧⌘1 full screen, ⇧⌘2 scrolling, ⇧⌘3 window and ⇧⌘4 area. If one does nothing, something else is holding the keys:

• macOS itself. ⇧⌘3, ⇧⌘4 and ⇧⌘5 belong to the Mac's own screenshot tool until you turn them off in System Settings, Keyboard, Keyboard Shortcuts, Screenshots. Open Keyboard Settings in VeilShot's Shortcuts settings takes you there.
• Another screenshot app. Shottr, CleanShot X and similar apps keep their shortcuts while they're running, even in the background. Quit the other app, or give one of them different keys. VeilShot warns you when it sees one running.
• Anything else with global shortcuts, such as a launcher or a window manager. Try a different combination.

Every kind of capture is also in VeilShot's menu in the menu bar, with or without a shortcut.

Where screenshots go

By default a screenshot is copied to the clipboard and a thumbnail appears in the corner of the screen. Click the thumbnail to edit, or drag it into another app. Nothing is saved to disk unless you ask: click Save in the editor or on the thumbnail, or turn on Save to folder in Settings, General.

Saved screenshots go to Pictures/Screenshots in your home folder, which VeilShot creates if it's missing. To use another folder, click Choose in Settings, General. Show in Finder opens it. File format, in the same place, picks PNG, JPEG or HEIC.

Screenshots come out at the size you see on screen, so one from a Retina display isn't twice as big as you expect. For full resolution, turn off Downscale Retina screenshots in Settings, Capture.

What blur suggestions can miss

Blur suggestions can miss things. Always look a screenshot over before you share it.

• They only find text that macOS's text recognition can read. Very small, blurry, rotated or decorative text can be missed or misread.
• They look for known shapes: an email address, an IBAN or card number with a valid checksum, a long key or token. A password, a customer number or anything in an unusual format isn't recognised. Names are off by default because they give many false matches; you can turn them on in Settings, Privacy.
• Small faces, or faces seen from the side, can be missed.
• Something harmless can be suggested too. Leave it as it is.

Blur, Pixelate and Redact are part of the image you copy or save. The original pixels underneath aren't kept.

Recording steps

Choose Record Steps in the menu bar menu, then pick a window or an area, or choose Full Screen. Each left or right click inside it adds a step. Pause stops counting clicks until you resume. Stop, or Esc, ends the recording and opens the Steps window. A guide holds up to 100 steps.

Captions are read from the screen, so check them before you share the guide. A step marked Not checked for sensitive info couldn't be checked by auto-blur; double-click its screenshot to look it over in the editor.

If capturing doesn't work

• If the welcome window opens instead of a capture, VeilShot doesn't have screen access. See above.
• Scrolling capture says "Too fast" when you scroll more than a screen at once. Scroll back up a little and it picks up again.

Refunds

Apple handles purchases and refunds for the Mac App Store. Ask for a refund at reportaproblem.apple.com.

Get in touch

Email veilshot@pureidle.dev with your macOS version, what you did and what happened. A screenshot helps, but blur anything private first.