App Settings

The Settings page is organized into sections you can open from the left sidebar: Sync & Storage, Screenshots & Recording, Security, Notifications, Billing, Appearance, Updates, and Customize RPC. Screenshots & Recording only shows on a computer that can take captures. Billing has its own page. Each section has a short description and an info (ⓘ) tooltip next to its title.

Sync & Storage

The Sync & Storage section lets you set your device name, manage the folders you sync from this device, and sync folders shared from your other devices.

Device Name

Your device name appears at the top of the section under Device Name. By default it matches your computer's name. It's the label other devices see, so you can tell which device a folder was synced from (it's shown on remote folder cards and when choosing a sync destination).

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Sync & Storage.
2. Click Edit Name under Device Name.
3. Type a new name (for example, "Work MacBook"), then click Save (or Cancel to keep the current one).

Local Sync Folders

The Local Sync Folders section lists every folder you sync from this device. Each folder syncs independently and shows its own status.

Adding a Folder

1. In Local Sync Folders, click + Add Folder.
2. Choose a folder on your device.
3. Confirm to add it. Syncing starts automatically.

Each local folder card shows:

• Folder name and a status badge: Syncing (green), Paused (grey), or Error (red)
• Total size, file count, and the last-synced time
• The full local path
• A three-dot (⋮) menu of folder actions

If you haven't added anything yet, the section reads "No Folder Syncing Yet", with a line underneath: "Add a folder to get started with encrypted sync."

Per-Folder Actions

Click the three-dot (⋮) menu on any local folder card (or right-click the card) for these options:

• Browse Contents: open a browser to inspect the folder's files.
• Pause Sync / Resume Sync: pause syncing for this folder, or resume a paused one. Pausing asks you to confirm first.
• Open in Finder / Open in Explorer: reveal the folder in your operating system's file manager.
• Remove from Sync: stop syncing this folder. Your local files stay on your device, and remote files remain on the server.
• Delete from Server: permanently delete all remote files for this folder. You must type the folder name to confirm.

Deleting from Server is permanent

Delete from Server permanently removes all remote files for that folder and cannot be undone. You'll be required to type the exact folder name, then click Delete Permanently, to confirm.

Syncing from Other Devices

Folders you sync on your other devices appear under Sync from Other Devices. Each remote folder card shows the folder name, its total size, file count, last-modified date, and the device it was synced from. From here you can pull a folder down to this device.

1. In Sync from Other Devices, find the folder you want.
2. Open its three-dot (⋮) menu and choose Sync to This Device.
3. In the Choose Destination dialog, click Choose Destination Folder and pick a local location.
4. Click Start Syncing to begin downloading and keeping the folder in sync.

The remote folder ⋮ menu also offers Browse Contents and Delete from Server.

Finder

On a Mac, the Finder card at the bottom of the section has a switch, Show "Share with Hippius" in Finder. Turn it on to share files straight from Finder's right-click menu (see Share from Finder), or off to take the item out of the menu. If macOS doesn't let Hippius turn the Finder extension on, the app tells you.

Screenshots & Recording

Set your capture shortcuts, choose where captures are saved, and decide what happens after each one. This section appears on computers where Hippius can take screenshots and recordings.

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Screenshots & Recording.

If this computer can take screenshots but not recordings, a note at the bottom of the section says why. On Linux with Wayland, a note explains that screenshots go through your desktop's own screenshot tool.

Shortcuts

Two keyboard shortcuts work from any app while Hippius is running, even with its window closed:

• Recording shortcut: Option Shift Command 2 on a Mac, Ctrl Alt Shift 2 on Windows and Linux. It opens the capture bar ready to record. Shown on computers where Hippius can record.
• Screenshot shortcut: Command Shift 2 on a Mac, Ctrl Shift 2 on Windows and Linux. Drag over an area and let go, and the screenshot is saved and its link copied, in one step.

Press either one during a recording to stop it. To pick other keys, click Change on a card and press the new keys (Esc cancels). Reset puts the original keys back, and Turn off and Turn on do what they say. Hippius won't let both shortcuts use the same keys, and it refuses keys your system already uses for its own screenshots, such as Command Shift 3 to Command Shift 6 on a Mac or the Print Screen keys.

On Linux with Wayland

Apps can't grab keys there on their own, so each card shows a short command to add as a custom shortcut in your desktop's keyboard settings. The shortcut then works even when Hippius is closed: Hippius starts and opens the capture as soon as you're signed in. On the beta channel, Hippius can also ask desktops that support it to set up the screenshot shortcut for you, and your desktop may ask you to confirm.

Capture folder

Shows where your screenshots and recordings are kept on this computer. That folder is backed up as your captures drive, the same drive the console uses. Click Show in Finder (Show in folder on Windows and Linux) to open it.

Click Change to save new captures somewhere else, any folder with any name, including a folder inside one of your drives. The captures you already took stay where they are.

Your first capture asks where to keep captures and suggests a folder called hippius-captures in Documents. If you haven't taken one yet, Set up lets you choose now. See Choose where captures are saved.

After a capture

All of these start on except Record system audio, and most are also in the capture bar's Options menu. Changing them in either place changes both.

• Copy a share link after capture: each screenshot and recording gets a public link that is copied once it's uploaded. Turn it off and captures are only saved to your drive, so you can share them later. See Share links for captures.
• Open the link in your browser, while links are being made: opens each capture's link as soon as it's ready, so you can check it.
• Show a preview in chats: when you paste a capture's link into a chat, it shows the screenshot or the recording's first frame. The preview picture and file name aren't encrypted. See chat previews.
• Track views, comments and reactions: links to your screenshots and recordings count views and watch time and let viewers comment and react. You can still turn any of it off for a single link. On the Free plan it's marked as a paid feature and starts off. See Insights, comments and reactions.
• Recording countdown: none, 3 seconds or 5 seconds between pressing Record and the recording starting.
• Record system audio: adds what your computer plays to recordings, where your computer supports it. With speakers your voice may be recorded twice, and headphones avoid that.

When saving an edited image

What Save does in the screenshot editor: Ask each time, always Save a copy next to the original, or always Replace the original.

Security

The Security section lets you back up your mnemonic seed and set or change your unlock password: "Backup your mnemonic seed and set an unlock password to access your encrypted files on other devices."

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Security.

Mnemonic Seed Backup

Your mnemonic seed is the only way to restore access to your wallet and encrypted files. Click Backup Mnemonic Seed to start the backup.

Keep your mnemonic key secure

If you lose your mnemonic seed, you will permanently lose access to your encrypted files. There is no way to recover it.

Backup Flow

The backup runs in two steps:

1. Secure Your Mnemonic Seed: review the best-practice tips (write it on paper, store it somewhere safe, never share it, keep copies in multiple secure locations, and never store it in email, cloud, or screenshots). Click I Understand, Show My Mnemonic Seed.
2. Your Mnemonic Seed: your seed phrase is shown (blurred until you click Show). You can Copy it (the clipboard is auto-cleared after 30 seconds) or click Download Encrypted Backup to save a password-protected ZIP. When you're done, click I Have Written It Down.

Encrypted backup

Choosing Download Encrypted Backup lets you protect your seed with a password (minimum 8 characters) and save it as a ZIP in your Downloads folder. Keep both the file and that password safe.

Unlock Password

Your unlock password protects your encrypted files when previewing or downloading them on other devices and on the Hippius Console. For how it works, see the Unlock Password section in the Drive guide.

If you haven't set one yet, the row shows Set Unlock Password. Once it's set, the row reads "Your unlock password is set. You can change it at any time."

Changing Your Unlock Password

1. Click Change Unlock Password.
2. Enter your current password.
3. Choose a new password (a strength meter helps you pick a strong one) and confirm it.
4. Click Change password.

Changing the password re-encrypts the sealed backup on the server. Your mnemonic seed and the files on your desktop app are not affected.

Notifications

Choose which updates Hippius sends you, in the app and by email.

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Notifications.

Notification Preferences

Under Notification Preferences, each in-app notification type has a checkbox and an On / Off badge:

• Credits: "Notifications for account credits, including low balance warnings and credit additions."
• Drive: "Notifications for file operations including sync completion and failures."

Email Notification

The Email Notification card depends on how you signed in:

• If you signed in with an access key, the card reads "Sign in with Google, GitHub, or Email to manage email notifications." There is no email sign-in; the card means Google, GitHub or Apple.
• If you signed in with Google, GitHub or Apple, a Receive Email Notifications toggle appears with sub-options: Low account balance alerts, Zero balance alerts, and Marketing emails & newsletter.

After changing anything, click Save Changes (or Cancel to discard). These buttons stay disabled until you have unsaved changes.

Emails about your links

This card lets Hippius email you about your share links and their Insights: First views when a link is opened for the first time, New comments when people comment (the email says how many, since comments are encrypted), and a Summary of views and comments, daily, weekly or off. You can choose the same emails in the console. More in Emails about your links.

Appearance

The Appearance section controls how Hippius looks on this device: "Personalize how Hippius looks on this device."

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Appearance.

Theme

Under Theme, pick the look you want: Light, Dark, or System to follow your operating system. The change applies right away.

note

Your theme choice is stored locally, so it only affects this device. Your other devices and the Hippius Console keep their own setting.

Updates

The Updates section shows which release channel this computer is on and lets you change it. Under Release channel, pick Stable (the default) or Beta, which gets new features first, before they are fully stabilized. Hippius asks you to confirm before it switches. See Beta Channel for what changes and what doesn't.

On macOS and Windows, Hippius downloads the new build and restarts. On Linux it can't install a new version by itself: it points you to the releases page, where you download the new package and install it with your package manager.

Customize RPC

The RPC Setting section controls which blockchain endpoint the app connects to: "Customize your connection by updating the blockchain RPC endpoint." The default is wss://rpc.hippius.network. A custom endpoint can improve performance in some regions or point at your own node. Only use a provider you trust.

1. Click on
   Settings
   , then open Customize RPC.
2. Edit the value in the RPC Endpoint field (it must start with ws:// or wss://).
3. Click Save Changes. The app verifies the endpoint is reachable before applying it.
4. Confirm in the Confirm RPC Endpoint dialog by clicking Update & Restart.

The app restarts

Changing the RPC endpoint affects your blockchain connection, so the application restarts automatically to apply the change.