Troubleshooting Black Screenshots

Sometimes users report seeing screenshots like the following for their own tracked time:

NOTE: If you are seeing black screenshots from one of the users that you manage, then it is that user who will need to follow these steps.

If you are using Time Doctor within a virtual machine, screenshots will not be captured outside of that environment. Mouse movement and keystrokes will not be captured either.

1. Update your Time Doctor desktop software to the latest version.
You can download the latest version from our website.

2. Try disabling your antivirus software.
Sometimes antivirus software can prevent screenshots from being captured. If the screenshots start working again when your antivirus software is disabled, then you will need to re-enable the antivirus software and adjust its settings to allow screenshots. Please contact your antivirus software provider for support with this issue.

3. Delete the Time Doctor cache from your computer.
To delete the cache, you will first need to sign out of the Time Doctor application and shut it down completely. Then follow the steps in the following articles to delete your cache.

NOTE: You will not need to send us your cache folder as explained in the article, you just need to find the folder and delete it.

4. Another program could be preventing Time Doctor from taking screenshots on your computer. Please try disabling all other programs, running Time Doctor, and seeing if you are getting the correct screenshots

NOTE: It will take several minutes for screenshots to upload to the server, so if you are not seeing any screenshots, you might need to wait a few minutes for them to upload.

If disabling all of your other programs works, then you will need to add them back one at a time to see which program could be causing the problem.

5. Try disabling hardware acceleration on Windows 7.
Watch this video to learn how to disable hardware acceleration.

6. Try disabling the Aero theme on Windows Vista or Windows.
This article explains how to do so.

7. If you are using an older operating system, the screenshots may not work.
We do not provide support for Windows XP as Microsoft has stopped providing support for it.

8. Disable Webroot.
If you are using Webroot, you may have trouble with screenshots. You can try disabling certain portions of Webroot. If that fails, completely uninstall Webroot from your system. Then check to see if the problem is resolved.

If you have tried all of the options above and are still seeing black screenshots, then please either send an email to support@timedoctor.com or respond to an existing support ticket. Be sure to include the following information:

  • The email address that you use for your Time Doctor account
  • The version number for the Time Doctor desktop software that you are using
  • Your operating system type and version number
  • A screenshot of your account's screenshot page where you are seeing the black screenshots
  • Your Time Doctor cache folder
    (Follow the instructions in the articles in Step 3 above to find your cache and send it to us. Do not worry if you already deleted your cache as part of troubleshooting, the cache will have been automatically recreated when you restarted Time Doctor.)