How to configure session recording settings
Last updated October 13, 2026
Overview
Session recording settings control whether Atlas records how customers interact with your website, whose sessions are recorded, which elements are hidden for privacy, and on which domains recording runs. With recording turned on, agents can replay customer sessions and inspect developer tools data to troubleshoot issues, while sensitive details such as payment fields stay masked.
You choose a privacy starting point (record everything by default, or mask everything by default) and then add CSS selector rules that override that default for specific elements on the page.
Key Features
- Workspace-wide recording switch: Turn session recording on or off for the whole workspace.
- Visitor recording: Extend recording to people who are not identified yet, so anonymous sessions are captured too.
- Short session filtering: Skip recordings under thirty seconds so the team only reviews sessions worth watching.
- Overflow and canvas options: Decide whether recording continues past your plan's recording limit, and whether canvas elements such as charts or drawings are captured.
- Privacy recording mode: Record everything except elements you disable, or mask everything except elements you enable.
- Selector exceptions: Use CSS selectors to single out specific elements, like a payment field, and record or mask them regardless of the recording mode.
- Domain control: Choose which websites Atlas records sessions on, and switch each domain on or off at any time.
How to configure session recording
Turn on recording and choose recording options
- Click the main menu and go to "App Configuration > Session Recording" .
- Turn on session recording. Once it is on, Atlas can capture how customers interact with your site.
- Configure the recording options:
- "Record visitors": Turn on to also record people who are not identified yet, so anonymous sessions are captured.
- "Skip short sessions": Turn on to filter out recordings under thirty seconds.
- "Overflow recording": Turn on or off to control whether sessions keep recording once you have gone past your plan's recording limit.
- "Canvas recording": Turn on to capture canvas elements, like charts or drawings. Leave it off if these do not matter to your team.
Choose the recording mode
- Open the recording mode dropdown and select one of the following:
- "Record all except explicitly disabled": Everything is recorded, except elements you add as "Disabled" selectors.
- "Mask all except explicitly enabled": Everything is masked, except elements you add as "Enabled" selectors. This is the safer choice for sensitive data.
Add selector exceptions
- Click "Add selector".
- Enter the element's CSS selector, for example
.safe-input. This tells Atlas exactly which part of the page the rule covers. - Open the "Type" dropdown and select:
- "Enabled": The element is recorded.
- "Disabled": The element is masked.
- Click "Add". The selector appears in your selector list.
Add the domains to record
- Click "Add domain".
- Enter the domain and keep the "Enabled" toggle turned on, so recording starts on this domain as soon as it is added.
- Click "Add". The domain appears in your domain list, where you can switch it on or off at any time.
Save your settings
- Click "Save" to apply your recording settings, privacy mode, and selectors across the workspace. A notification confirms the recording settings were updated.
How to find an element's CSS selector
You can find a selector with your browser's built-in inspect tool. The steps below describe Google Chrome; other browsers work similarly.
- Open the page on your website that contains the element.
- Right-click the element and select "Inspect". The developer tools open with the element's HTML highlighted.
- Look at the highlighted HTML for an
idorclassattribute. For example,<input class="card-number" ...>or<input id="card-number" ...>. - Build the selector:
- For a class, add a dot before the class name:
.card-number - For an id, add a hash before the id:
#card-number
- Optional: To confirm the selector, press Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac) in the Elements panel and type the selector. The browser highlights the matching elements.
- Paste the selector into the selector field in Atlas.
How to delete a selector
- Go to "App Configuration > Session Recording" .
- Locate the selector, click the ellipsis icon, and select "Delete".
- Click "Save".
How to turn a domain on or off
- Go to "App Configuration > Session Recording" .
- In the domain list, use the toggle on the domain's row to switch recording on or off.
- Click "Save".
FAQs & Troubleshooting
Why aren't sessions being recorded?
Common causes:
- Session recording is turned off.
- The domain is not in the domain list, or its toggle is off.
- The changes were not saved with "Save".
- The person is an unidentified visitor and "Record visitors" is off.
- The session was under thirty seconds and "Skip short sessions" is on.
- Your plan's recording limit was reached and "Overflow recording" is off.
Why is a sensitive field still visible in recordings?
The selector may not match the element. Check the selector in your browser's inspect tool, confirm its "Type" is "Disabled" (or that the recording mode is "Mask all except explicitly enabled") and click "Save".
Are password fields recorded?
No. Password inputs (<input type="password">) are always redacted, whatever your settings.
Do selector changes apply to sessions already recorded?
Selectors apply to future recordings.
Which wins: the recording mode or a selector?
The selector. Each selector overrides the recording mode for the elements it matches.