I am often contacted by friends, colleagues or family when they have problems with their computer… If I am there, no problem, I take control and look at the problem. If I am not there, I can very well take control using software such as TeamViewer. But there may be cases where I do not have the possibility to take control remotely…
So in these cases, there is a little-known feature in Windows, which appeared with Windows 7, and which is called " User Action Recorder "(Problem Recorder in English).
This tool, signed Microsoft, will detail step by step all the actions carried out by a user, while incorporating screenshots... it is therefore much easier to help your interlocutor.
User Action Recorder to Reproduce a Problem in Windows
Here is a detailed step-by-step guide on how to use this tool in Windows 11 (the process is the same for Windows 10).
First, on Windows 11, go to the right side of your screen to search via the Start menu or the search tool (the magnifying glass). Start typing the words “User Action Recorder” and very quickly you should see the suggestion appear.
Then select the “User Action Recorder” program.
The recorder will open and you just have to press the “Start recording” button.
Once the recording has started, you can play back the steps that lead to your problem and once finished, press "Stop recording".
A window will then open in which you will be able to discover all the steps you have taken to arrive at your problem. These steps consist of text describing the action carried out (mouse click, text entry, software launch, etc.) as well as screenshot allowing for a better view of the operations carried out.
At the top of this window, you have the option to save this document. When saving (which is done in ZIP compressed format) you will have to choose the location where you want to store the file as well as its name.
In the ZIP file saved, there is a file in .mht format that Windows will open in Internet Explorer.
You can then send this ZIP file to the person who will be helping you… they should now have most of the information they need to understand your problem. Convenient, right?
Windows is often criticized, but sometimes you make great discoveries of tools that should be put forward much more given their usefulness.
Did you know about the User Action Recorder?
Well done! Thank you in advance for your remote interventions (and thank you also for all those already carried out).