Check Mic & Notifications Permissions — Chrome on Windows 10 – CORVUM Knowledge Base

For the Corvum browser / desktop app to work correctly, two permissions must be granted: microphone access and browser notifications. This guide walks through every place these permissions may need to be configured, from Windows system settings all the way to Chrome's site-level controls.

ℹ️ Tip: Start from the top of this guide and work downward. A permission blocked at the Windows level will override everything in Chrome, so it's important to check each layer in order.

If you check the Corvum web portal dashboard and see that Phone Status shows 'Needs Attention', that normally means that some permissions are not set as required.

You can click on the 'Needs Attention' warning and you'll be taken to Phone Troubleshooting:
https://beta.app.corvum.io/dashboard/settings/phone

The tools on this page may be able to help you get all permissions set as needed. If this doesn't resolve the warning, please proceed with the steps below.

Section 1 — Windows System Permissions

Windows 10 has a master privacy switch for hardware access. If the microphone is blocked here, no browser will be able to use it regardless of its own settings.

Open Windows Privacy Settings

Open the Start menu — click the Windows icon in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
Open Settings — click the gear icon, or search for "Settings" and press Enter.
Navigate to: Settings → Privacy → Microphone

Microphone Privacy Switches

On the Microphone privacy page, confirm the following three toggles are all turned On:

Location / Setting	What to Check / Set
Allow access… (device level)	The top toggle "Allow access to the microphone on this device" must be On. If it is Off, click Change and enable it.
Allow apps to access your microphone	The second toggle must also be On. This controls whether any app (including browsers) can use the microphone at all.
Allow desktop apps to access…	Scroll to the bottom of the page. Ensure this toggle is On so that Chrome, which is a desktop application, is permitted.

Note: If any toggle was 'Off' and you turned it 'On', you will need to restart Chrome before the change takes effect.

Section 2 — Chrome Browser Settings

Chrome manages its own permission layer independently of Windows. Even if Windows permits microphone access, Chrome can still block individual websites. Notifications are controlled entirely within Chrome (not Windows).

Check Site-Level Permissions (Recommended First Step)

Open the Corvum portal and log in — https://beta.app.corvum.io/
Click the lock icon (or tune icon) — located to the left of the web address in the address bar.
Select "Site settings" — from the dropdown menu that appears.
Review the Microphone and Notifications rows — each should show "Allow". If either shows "Block" or "Ask", click the dropdown next to it and change it to Allow.
Reload the page — press F5 or click the reload button after making any changes.

Check Chrome's Global Permission Settings

Open Chrome Settings — click the three-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner, then select Settings.
Go to Privacy and security — click this option in the left-hand sidebar.
Click "Site settings"
Check Microphone — under Permissions, click Microphone. Ensure "Sites can ask to use your microphone" is selected. Check the Blocked list — if your site appears there, click the trash icon to remove it.
Check Notifications — return to Site settings and click Notifications. Ensure "Sites can ask to send notifications" is selected. Check the Blocked list and remove your site if it appears there.

ℹ️ Shortcut: You can navigate directly to Chrome's permission pages by typing the following into the address bar and pressing Enter:

chrome://settings/content/microphone
chrome://settings/content/notifications

Section 3 — Checking for a Blocked Permission Prompt

Sometimes Chrome shows a permission prompt that the user accidentally dismissed or blocked. When this happens, Chrome will not ask again automatically.

Look for a blocked icon in the address bar — check for a camera/microphone icon with a red X, or a bell icon with a line through it, to the right of the address bar. Clicking this icon will show the current blocked status.
Click the icon and choose "Always allow" — or change the blocked permission to Allow.
Reload the page — press F5. Chrome may show the permission prompt again; click Allow when it appears.

Section 4 — Additional Checks (if permissions look correct but there is no audio)

Hardware: Physical Microphone Mute

Some laptops and USB microphones have a physical mute button or switch. Confirm the microphone is not muted at the hardware level. A muted microphone will not produce any error in the browser — audio simply will not transmit.

Windows Sound Settings: Default Device

Right-click the speaker icon — in the Windows taskbar (bottom-right corner).
Select "Sounds" — then click the Recording tab.
Confirm the correct microphone is listed and marked as the Default Device (green checkmark). If not, right-click the correct device and select "Set as Default Device".

Chrome Version

Permission behaviour may differ on older versions of Chrome. Type chrome://settings/help in the address bar and press Enter — Chrome will check for and install any available updates automatically.

Quick Reference Summary

Layer	Microphone	Notifications
Windows Privacy	Settings → Privacy → Microphone (3 toggles On)	Not applicable — Windows does not manage browser notifications
Chrome Global	`chrome://settings/content/microphone`	`chrome://settings/content/notifications`
Chrome Site-Level	Lock icon → Site settings → Microphone: Allow	Lock icon → Site settings → Notifications: Allow
Hardware	Physical mute button/switch on device	Not applicable

After completing all steps, reload the Corvum web portal, check the 'Phone Status', and test a call.

If issues persist, please contact Corvum support at support@corvum.io — we're here to help!