> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.voyager.so/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Allow computer control
> Let the agent click, type and see your screen in your other apps: grant the macOS permissions when the chat asks, and control or turn off computer control on macOS and Windows.
With **computer control**, the agent works in your other apps the way you would: it clicks, types and looks at your screen. It only does this when you ask it to. This page shows how to allow it on a Mac, how it works on Windows, and how to stop or turn it off.
## What you need
* **macOS or Windows.** Computer control isn't available on Linux, and its setting doesn't appear there. See [Requirements](https://docs.voyager.so/get-started/requirements.md).
* **On a Mac:** two macOS permissions, **Accessibility** and **Screen & System Audio Recording**. Voyager asks for them in the chat the first time the agent needs them, not during setup.
* **On Windows:** nothing extra. Apps running as administrator can't be controlled.
* An agent that supports it, such as Claude or ChatGPT. If yours doesn't, the chat says so.
## Allow computer control on a Mac
| Permission | What it lets Voyager do |
| - | - |
| **Accessibility** | Lets the agent click and type in your apps when you ask. |
| **Screen & System Audio Recording** | Lets the agent see your screen. |
The first time the agent needs computer control, a card titled **Allow computer control** appears in that chat, above the message box: "To work in your other apps, the agent needs these macOS permissions. It only uses them when you ask." Making a screen recording asks for its own access when you start one.
**1. Allow Accessibility**
Next to **Accessibility**, click **Allow**. macOS asks whether Voyager may control your computer and opens **System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility**, and a small Voyager panel appears that says **↑ Drag Voyager into the list above**.
If Voyager is already in the list, turn it on. If it isn't, drag the Voyager icon from the panel into the list, then turn it on. macOS may ask for your password.
Voyager's helper panel. Drag the icon into the list in System Settings.
**2. Allow Screen & System Audio Recording**
Back in Voyager, next to **Screen & System Audio Recording**, click **Allow**. The first time, macOS asks to let Voyager record the screen and adds Voyager to the list; turn it on, or drag it in from the helper panel.
> [!WARNING]
>
> macOS only applies Screen Recording after Voyager restarts. When macOS offers **Quit & Reopen**, choose it, or quit Voyager yourself and open it again. Voyager reopens on the same chat, with the card showing what's allowed, so nothing is lost.
**3. Ask the agent to try again**
Each row you granted shows **Allowed** with a check; Voyager checks every couple of seconds, so you don't need to refresh. Once both are allowed, the card says **Computer control is ready. Ask the agent to try again.** Click **Done** and ask the agent to carry on.
Not ready? Click **Not now**. The chat asks again the next time the agent needs computer control. You can also grant or remove these at any time in **Settings → Advanced → Permissions**, which covers the camera, microphone, automation and file access Voyager may ask for later too.
## Computer control on Windows
Computer control works on Windows without the Mac permission steps. Agents select and switch windows themselves, without asking for approval each time. Apps running as administrator can't be controlled.
## Watch, pause or stop
While the agent controls an app, a bar in the chat names the app and shows **Pause** and **Stop**. Use them at any time.
* **Visible cursor** uses your real mouse and keyboard. If you use the keyboard or mouse yourself, the agent stops and the chat says **Computer control paused**. Click **Resume**, then tell the agent to continue.
* In the background mode, the agent works in the selected window without moving your cursor. Some actions need **Visible cursor**.
## Turn computer control off
Computer control is on by default. To turn it off, open **Settings → Advanced → Labs** and switch off **Control other apps** under **Computer use**. Labs features are experimental. On a Mac, the same section shows whether Accessibility and Screen Recording are granted, with buttons to open each in System Settings.
## Check it worked
* On a Mac, the **Allow computer control** card shows **Allowed** for both permissions.
* When you ask the agent to work in another app, the computer-control bar appears in the chat with that app's name.
## If something went wrong
> [accordion] “Could not open System Settings. Open Privacy & Security yourself.”
>
> Open **System Settings**, go to **Privacy & Security**, then **Accessibility** or **Screen & System Audio Recording**, and turn on Voyager there.
> [accordion] I allowed Screen Recording, but Voyager still can't see my screen
>
> Quit Voyager completely (choose **Quit Voyager** from the Voyager menu, or hold ⌘ Q) and open it again. macOS only applies this permission after a restart.
>
> If Voyager is switched on in **Screen & System Audio Recording** but still can't see your screen after it reopens, macOS is holding an old entry, often one left by an earlier copy of Voyager. Restarting again won't fix it. Instead, in System Settings, select **Voyager** in that list and click **−** to remove it. Then click **+**, choose **Voyager** in your Applications folder, switch it on, and quit and reopen Voyager.
>
> If it still can't see your screen after that, run `tccutil reset ScreenCapture design.moda.voyager` in Terminal, then quit and reopen Voyager and allow Screen Recording when it asks. Still stuck? Use **Send feedback**.
> [accordion] Voyager isn't in the list and dragging doesn't work
>
> Click the **+** button under the list, choose **Voyager** in your Applications folder, and turn it on. Make sure it's the copy of Voyager in Applications, not one still on the installer disk image.
> [accordion] The agent can't control an app on Windows
>
> The app may be running as administrator. Reopen it normally, then ask the agent to try again.
## Related
> [card] [Approvals and spending](https://docs.voyager.so/guides/approvals-and-spending.md)
>
> Choose how much the agent does on its own.
> [card] [Privacy](https://docs.voyager.so/help/privacy.md)
>
> What Voyager keeps on your computer and what it sends.
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