How to Record an Online Meeting and Keep the Video Private

Sometimes a meeting needs a record. A colleague was away. A client wants to review what was agreed. A teacher wants students to revisit the lesson. Recording solves all of that, and also creates a file with everyone's faces and voices in it, so it deserves some care. The safest place for such a file is your own device, in a folder you control, and shared only with the people who need it.

How recording works in PeerFlow

In a PeerFlow meeting, choose Record meeting from the More menu. PeerFlow records the shared screen, or the people in the meeting if nobody is presenting, and mixes everyone's voices into one video. A red Recording bar with a timer is shown on your screen, and the meeting chat announces that recording has started, so nobody is surprised. When you press Stop recording, the file is saved in the Recordings folder inside your PeerFlow folder, and a note offers to show you the folder.

Where the file goes

The recording is made on your device and saved there. It is not sent to a PeerFlow server. That means two things. First, you are responsible for the file: where it lives, who gets a copy and when it is deleted. Second, if you close the app before you stop recording, you may lose part of it, so always stop the recording before leaving.

Ask first, always

Rules about recording conversations differ from country to country. In many places, everyone in the conversation has to agree. Even where it is legal, it is basic courtesy. Tell people at the start: "I would like to record this so that Ravi, who is away, can watch it. Is that all right?" If someone says no, do not record, or record only the parts that do not involve them.

A good routine

1. Before the meeting, mention in the invitation that you intend to record, and why.
2. At the start, repeat it and give people the chance to object.
3. Start recording only after everyone who matters has agreed.
4. Stop recording when the discussion becomes sensitive, then resume.
5. After the meeting, check the file plays and note who should receive it.
6. Share it through a private channel, to the people involved only.
7. Delete it when it has done its job.

Making recordings useful

• Share the screen when you present, so the video shows what people saw.
• Speak clearly and name people who talk, as the recording does not label voices.
• Keep sessions short. A 20-minute video gets watched; a 2-hour one does not.
• Write notes anyway. A short summary is quicker than watching, and searchable.

What to avoid

Storage and size

Video files are large. An hour of meeting can be a few hundred megabytes up to over a gigabyte, depending on what is shown. Check your free space before a long recording, and move old files to storage you trust. To send a recording to someone, use direct file transfer, which avoids uploading it to another server.

Recording remote sessions and lessons

The same ideas apply to remote-support sessions and online lessons. Tell the other person, record only what you need, and keep the result safe. Read the remote IT support checklist for a fuller routine.

Your folder, your files

Keep recordings, screenshots and received files in one place, the PeerFlow folder, and you always know where to look. Install the Windows or Android app to record from your own device.