Settings is where you change how TalkBar looks, records, uses AI, shares and stores your data. This section is the complete reference: one page for each Settings tab, with every control, what it does and its default value. For how a feature works, follow the links to its feature page.

Opening Settings

Click Settings at the bottom of the main sidebar. A red badge on it means a setting needs your attention.
Open the TalkBar logo menu and choose Settings. A submenu lists every tab, so you can jump straight to one.
Click your account card in the sidebar to open Account.
Click the gear in the Quick Actions menu to open Quick Actions.

Most changes save as soon as you make them. You don't need to press a Save button unless a page shows one, such as Save Timezone in General.

How Settings is organized

The Settings sidebar groups the tabs into four sections.

Group	Tab	What you set there	Reference
Workspace	General	Appearance, session defaults, session detection, cleanup, knowledge scans, language, updates, startup, time, calendar, logs	General
Workspace	Projects	Create, edit, pin and restore projects	Projects, topics and keywords
Workspace	Topics & Keywords	Topics, AI keywords and action item labels	Projects, topics and keywords
Workspace	Templates & Skills	Session templates, summary sections, note templates, skills and knowledge skills	Templates & Skills
Workspace	Quick Actions	The floating Quick Actions button and its shortcuts	Quick Actions
AI & Voice	AI Providers	Default and per-feature models, providers, token limits, request settings	AI Providers
AI & Voice	Private Local AI	Private AI Mode and the models that run on your computer	Private Local AI
AI & Voice	Voice	Microphone, recording, transcription, dictation and speakers	Voice
Connections	Notifications	Email, Telegram, Slack, Teams and webhook channels, and desktop notifications	Notifications
Connections	MCP Access	Let other AI apps on this computer work with your TalkBar data	MCP Access
Connections	Export & Share	Export destinations and rules, share links, custom branding	Export & Share
System	Account	Your profiles and workspaces	Account and workspaces
System	License	Your plan, license key and upgrades	License
System	Data & Backup	Data folder, backups, transfer between computers, recovery code, reset	Data & Backup
System	Help & Tours	Replay onboarding and guided tours	Help & Tours and Doctor
System	Doctor	Check your setup and jump to fixes	Help & Tours and Doctor

At the top of the sidebar, Back returns you to where you were before Settings. At the bottom:

Check for Update checks for a new TalkBar version right away.
Contact us opens a form for sending a message to the TalkBar team.
Quit / Hide asks whether to quit TalkBar (Quit App) or keep it running in the tray (Hide to Tray).

Inner tabs

Several tabs are split into inner tabs along the top of the page.

Tab	Inner tabs
AI Providers	AI Features, Providers, Models, Advanced
Private Local AI	Local AI models, Speech models, System models
Voice	Recording, Transcription, Dictation, Speakers
Templates & Skills	Session templates, Summary sections, Note templates, Skills, Knowledge
Topics & Keywords	Topics, Keywords, Action Items
Export & Share	Export Session, Share Content, Custom branding

Find a setting

Find a setting… at the top of the Settings sidebar searches every setting in every tab.

Click Find a setting…. With the search box empty, it lists all tabs by group, so you can also use it to jump between tabs.
Type a word, such as dark mode, shortcut, backup or Telegram. Results are grouped by tab and show the section each setting belongs to. Search also matches related words and descriptions, so telemetry finds Share usage statistics. English setting names work even when TalkBar is in another language.
Pick a result. TalkBar opens the right tab and inner tab, scrolls to the control, and highlights it.

If nothing matches, you see No matching settings.

Highlighted settings

When search or a link opens a specific setting, the control briefly scales up and flashes in your accent color so you can spot it on the page. A link to a specific setting elsewhere in TalkBar, such as one in an Ask TalkBar answer, opens it the same way.

Attention dots

A red dot next to a tab in the Settings sidebar means something there needs your attention. Dots can appear on:

AI Providers: an AI provider or model has a problem, or a saved provider key can't be read.
Private Local AI: a built-in model that TalkBar needs isn't downloaded.
Notifications: a turned-on delivery channel failed to deliver or is missing its password or token.
Export & Share: a saved export destination or branding key can't be read on this computer.
Data & Backup: TalkBar can't read your saved keys on this computer. Use your recovery code there to restore them.
License: your license needs attention.

The Settings item in the main sidebar shows a badge while there are problems. Doctor checks your setup and takes you to the fix for most problems.

Settings managed by your organization

If your organization manages TalkBar, some settings may be locked. A tab with locked controls shows a notice at the top:

Your organization manages some of these settings. Some controls on the page are locked, and the others work as usual.
Your organization locked these settings. They keep working as set up. The whole setup on the page is locked. What's already configured keeps working, but you can't change it.

Locked controls are greyed out. A Managed by your organization label marks them, and its tooltip reads Your organization manages this setting. Notices can appear on General, AI Providers, Private Local AI, Notifications, MCP Access, Export & Share, Data & Backup and License. To change a locked setting, contact your administrator.

Notifications

Every setting under Settings → Notifications — delivery channels for email, Telegram, Slack, Microsoft Teams and webhooks, and desktop notifications.

Private Local AI

Every control under Settings → Private Local AI, where you turn on Private AI Mode and download or delete the AI models that run on your computer.

Settings overview