Fixes
Fix a meeting problem
Find your meeting app and the problem. Each page lists the likely causes, most common first, and the fix — in the app maker’s own words.
Google Meet
Transcript missingA Google Meet transcript is saved to the organiser’s Drive, only starts from a computer or an Android phone, and waits for the host to join on the web.Recording missingGoogle Meet saves recordings to the organiser’s Drive, only records from a computer or an Android phone, and stops by itself after eight hours.Notes or summary missingGoogle’s automatic notes need an eligible plan, a meeting of about fifteen minutes or more in one supported language, and somebody from the host’s organisation to start them.Breakout rooms missingBreakout rooms in Google Meet need an eligible Workspace edition and a host on a computer, and Google never records what happens in them.No sound, or people cannot hear youMost Google Meet sound problems are one of four things: the browser was not allowed the microphone, you are muted somewhere, the wrong speaker is chosen, or you joined in Companion mode.Camera not workingWhen the camera does not work in Google Meet, Google’s own checklist starts with the simple things: the right camera, another app holding it, and permission in the browser and the computer.Screen share not workingWhen you cannot present in Google Meet it is usually the Mac’s screen permission for your browser, a host or admin who turned presenting off, or a shared window where a shared tab — with its sound — was needed.Captions in the wrong languageGoogle Meet captions follow the language chosen in the captions menu, and translated captions only exist on some Workspace editions.Meeting ended after an hourOn a personal Google account, a Google Meet call with three or more people ends at sixty minutes; a one-to-one call can run for twenty-four hours.Too many people to joinA personal Google account can have up to a hundred people in a Google Meet call; on Google Workspace the limit depends on the edition.
Zoom
Transcript missingZoom only writes an audio transcript for a meeting recorded to the cloud, on a paid account with the transcript setting on — and it arrives a while after the recording, in the host’s web portal.Recording missingA Zoom cloud recording belongs to the host and needs a paid licence; a computer recording only exists once it has converted on the computer that made it.Meeting ended after 40 minutesZoom ends meetings hosted on a free (Basic) licence at 40 minutes. When a paid account still cuts off at 40, the licence usually is not reaching the person hosting.Breakout rooms missingZoom breakout rooms have to be switched on for the account, can only be run by the host or a co-host from the desktop app, and are never caught by a cloud recording.No sound, or people cannot hear youIn Zoom, silence is usually a mute somewhere — yours, the host’s or a button on the headset — a microphone Zoom was never given permission to use, or the wrong device picked in the audio menu.Camera not workingWhen Zoom shows no video, it has usually picked the wrong camera, been blocked by the computer or by security software, or needs a clean reinstall.Cannot join the meetingMost people who cannot get into a Zoom meeting have a link that will not open, a missing passcode, an out-of-date meeting ID, or a browser or app that needs replacing.
Microsoft Teams
Transcript missingOnly people from the organiser’s own company can start a Teams transcript; the organiser or their IT admin can switch it off altogether; and the file lives in the organiser’s OneDrive.Recording missingA Teams recording goes to the organiser’s OneDrive, or to the team’s SharePoint site for a channel meeting; if Teams cannot save it there, it is deleted after 21 days.Breakout rooms missingOnly the organiser of a Teams meeting, or a breakout room manager they chose, can run breakout rooms — and only from the Teams app on Windows or a Mac.No sound, or people cannot hear youMost Teams sound problems are a mute somewhere — in the meeting or on the headset — Teams not being allowed the microphone, or the wrong speaker picked.Camera not workingWhen the camera fails in Teams, Microsoft’s checklist starts with another app holding the camera, then the computer’s permission, then the browser if you use Teams on the web.Cannot join the meetingMost people who cannot get into a Teams meeting are waiting in the lobby, using a phone’s browser, or blocked by a setting the organiser or their company chose.Captions in the wrong languageTeams captions follow the meeting’s one spoken language, which only some people can change, and translated captions need Teams Premium or Microsoft Copilot.
Webex
Recording missingA Webex recording can take up to a day to arrive, belongs to the host even when someone else pressed record, and on the free plan never goes to the cloud at all.Transcript missingWebex only keeps a transcript after the meeting when the meeting was recorded and Webex Assistant or captions were on — and only the host decides who else gets to see it.Meeting ended after 40 minutesWebex Free meetings stop at 40 minutes; paid Webex plans run for up to 24 hours unless the company’s Webex site is set up differently.
Google Chrome
Microphone not workingWhen a call in Chrome cannot hear you, three things each get a say — the site, Chrome and the computer — and Google’s own checklist starts with simply being muted.Camera not workingWhen your video stays black in a Chrome call, the camera is usually blocked for the site, blocked for Chrome by the computer, held by another app, or simply the wrong camera.Screen share not working on a MacOn a Mac, Chrome can only share your screen once macOS has given it permission to record the screen — and the sound comes along only when you share the right thing.
Safari
Microphone not workingSafari keeps a separate microphone setting for every website — Ask, Deny or Allow — and a call cannot hear you until that site is allowed.Camera not workingSafari lets each website use the camera only if you say so, under its Websites settings, and only one app on the Mac can hold the camera at a time.
Firefox
Microphone not workingFirefox remembers a yes or no about your microphone for each website, and can refuse every new site at once — so a call that cannot hear you is usually a saved Block somewhere.Camera not workingIf your video is black in a Firefox call, look at Firefox’s saved answer for that site first, then at whether the computer lets Firefox near the camera, then at what else has it open.Screen share not workingSharing a screen from Firefox can be held up by Firefox’s own safety warning, by an old Firefox on a new Mac, or by macOS never having given Firefox permission to record the screen.
Microsoft Edge
Microphone not workingIn Edge, the microphone has to be allowed in three places — for the meeting site, for Edge on your computer, and sometimes by whoever manages a work laptop.Camera not workingA black picture in an Edge call usually comes from one switch in Edge’s settings, a refusal you gave the site earlier, Windows privacy settings, or a rule set by your employer.Screen share not workingWhen the share button does nothing in Edge, the usual causes are a work rule that switches screen sharing off, or — on a Mac — macOS never having given Edge permission to record the screen.
How these are written
Each page is one problem on one meeting app. Every cause is quoted from that app's own help pages, with a link and the day we read it, and the causes are listed most likely first. Where the app's own help says nothing, neither do we.
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