When the Note Taker joins a Zoom call, it will wait for the host to approve its recording request before starting.
Once approved, it will begin recording and send a chat message confirming that it's recording and who requested it.
If the Note Taker is unable to record for any reason, it will send a chat message explaining why and then leave the call. This article covers each error message and how to resolve it.
Host denied the recording permission request
When the Note Taker joins a Zoom call, the host will see a popup asking them to allow it to record. If the host clicks Deny, you'll receive an error message in the chat.
To resolve this, invite the Note Taker again and ask the meeting host to click Allow when the permission prompt appears.
Record to computer files is disabled
If Record to computer files is not enabled in the host's Zoom account, the Note Taker will send an error message in the chat.
To resolve this, the meeting host should follow these steps:
Sign in to the Zoom web portal.
Navigate to Settings > Recording.
Enable Record to computer files and External meeting participants.
Optionally, enable Auto approve their permission requests.
If any of these settings are greyed out, contact your Zoom administrator.
Zoom administrators: You can enable these settings for all users by going to Account Management > Account Settings > Recording.
Record to computer files permission requests are disabled
If the Hosts can give meeting participants permission to record locally option is disabled in your Zoom settings, the Note Taker will send an error message stating it cannot record this meeting.
To resolve this, enable Hosts can give meeting participants permission to record locally in the Recording tab of your Zoom settings — the same place where you enabled local recording.
Meeting requires sign-in
If your Zoom meeting requires attendees to be signed into a Zoom account, the Note Taker will not be able to join, as it cannot sign in.
To resolve this, turn off the sign-in requirement at both the account level and the meeting level. For account-level instructions, refer to the Zoom help documentation.
To turn it off at the meeting level:
Open the settings for the specific meeting.
Go to Meeting Security.
Uncheck Only authenticated users can join: Sign in to Zoom.
Host is using the Zoom web client instead of the desktop app
The Zoom web client does not support the recording permission prompt. If the host is using the web client, the Note Taker will send an error message in the chat.
To resolve this, the host should join using the Zoom desktop app. Alternatively, install the Fellow Zoom app to integrate Fellow with Zoom directly — once set up, the Note Taker will join calls automatically without requiring a manual permission prompt.
If you already have the Zoom app connected and are still seeing this error:
Go to User Settings > Apps & integrations.
Update your Zoom connection in Fellow.
If the issue persists, you may have end-to-end encryption (E2EE) enabled on your Zoom workspace. E2EE must be turned off for meetings you want to record. This can be done at the account, group, or user level in Zoom — refer to Zoom's E2EE documentation for steps.
Recording permission requests are disabled in the meeting
This error occurs when either:
The host previously denied a recording request and saved that setting for the rest of the meeting, or
The host disabled the Request Recording Permission option in the Security menu within the call
You will receive the following error message in the chat:
To resolve this:
Open the Security menu in the Zoom call.
Enable Request Recording Permission.
Invite the Note Taker again
Other errors
For any other uncommon errors not listed above, the Note Taker will send a general error message in the chat. In most cases, re-inviting the Note Taker will resolve the issue.