Bole. Type ho jaye. डेस्कटॉप par, native.

Sanketra is unsigned during the free beta. Both OSes will warn you once. The right-click → Open (Mac) and More info → Run anyway (Win) bypasses are documented with screenshots below. Linux has no equivalent warning — it just runs.

Two prompts on Mac

Microphone · Accessibility

macOS asks twice — once for your mic (so we can hear you) and once for Accessibility (so we can type at your cursor). Both prompts are reversible from System Settings. Windows asks once, for the mic. Linux asks zero times.

One hotkey, everywhere

Ctrl + Shift + Space

Same chord on every OS. Hold to start, release to transcribe. The text appears wherever your cursor is — chat, code editor, browser, anywhere a keyboard would work. Customizable in Settings.

Pick your OS. हर screen दिखाया hai.

We auto-select the tab matching your computer. Every step has a screenshot or a mockup of what you’ll see, plus a callout for what to do if something looks different — so you never have to guess.

macOS · 11 steps · 5 min

Drag, right-click Open, अनुमति दो, done.

macOS will show you one warning the first time you launch Sanketra — because we are unsigned during the free beta. The bypass is built into macOS: right-click the app and choose Open. After that, double-click works like any other app. Below is every step, every warning, every prompt — with what to do and what you will see.

Step 01 of 11

Download the .dmg

Click the Download for macOS button above. Your browser saves Sanketra-Desktop-universal.dmg to your ~/Downloads/ folder. The file is about 112 MB; on a normal connection it lands in under a minute.

Step 02 of 11

Open the .dmg in Finder

Double-click the downloaded .dmg in Finder (or click the file in your browser’s download bar). macOS mounts it as a temporary disk and opens a window.

You will see this — it is normal

A new Finder window pops up showing the Sanketra Desktop app on the left and an arrow pointing to your Applications folder on the right. This is the standard Mac install window — same layout as Chrome, Firefox, Slack.

Step 03 of 11

Drag Sanketra Desktop to Applications

Drag the Sanketra Desktop icon onto the Applications shortcut. Don’t double-click the app from inside the .dmg — apps run from /Applications, not from the mounted disk. Dragging is the standard Mac install gesture.

Once the drag completes, you can close the .dmg window and eject the disk (drag the Sanketra Desktop disk in Finder’s sidebar to the Trash, or right-click → Eject).

Step 04 of 11

Open Applications → right-click Sanketra Desktop → Open

Open the Applications folder (Finder → sidebar → Applications). Find Sanketra Desktop. Right-click (or Control-click) it and choose Open from the context menu.

You only need this dance once. After macOS records your approval, double-click works like every other app on your Mac.

You will see this — it is normal

Right-click, not double-click. This is critical the first time. Double-clicking an unsigned app on a fresh Mac triggers Gatekeeper’s hard-block dialog with no Open button. Right-click → Open is Apple’s own documented workaround.

Step 05 of 11

Approve the Gatekeeper warning

A dialog appears: “macOS cannot verify the developer of Sanketra Desktop. Are you sure you want to open it?”

Click Open. Sanketra launches. macOS remembers your decision and won’t ask again unless you reinstall a different version.

You will see this — it is normal

This warning fires for every unsigned Mac app — Sanketra is in this category during the free beta because Apple Developer Program signing costs ₹8,000/year, which we’ll spend once paying users justify it. The warning is macOS doing its job, not a sign of something wrong.

If instead — you see “cannot be opened” with no Open button

You probably double-clicked instead of right-clicking. Close the dialog, go back to Applications, right-click Sanketra Desktop → Open. The Open button appears only in the right-click flow on first launch.

Step 06 of 11

Grant microphone access when prompted

The first time Sanketra opens the mic, macOS shows a system dialog asking “Sanketra would like to access the microphone.” Click Allow.

Sanketra needs the mic for the obvious reason — that’s how dictation works. The dialog text is exactly what you’ll see, sourced from Sanketra’s own bundle metadata.

You will see this — it is normal

macOS shows this prompt the first time Sanketra reads the mic. Audio is processed entirely on your Mac — Whisper runs locally on CPU, nothing crosses your network. The permission is reversible from System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone any time.

Step 07 of 11

Sanketra asks for Accessibility access

Immediately after the mic prompt, Sanketra shows its own dialog: “Sanketra needs Accessibility access to listen for your dictation hotkey from anywhere and type the recognized text into the focused app.”

Click Open Accessibility. macOS’s System Settings app launches and jumps straight to the right panel.

You will see this — it is normal

Accessibility access on macOS is what lets the global hotkey work from any app and lets Sanketra type the recognized text at your cursor. Without it, the hotkey is silent. This is a one-time grant.

Step 08 of 11

Toggle Sanketra Desktop ON in Accessibility

You’ll see a list of apps that have requested Accessibility access. Find Sanketra Desktop in the list and click the toggle to switch it ON. macOS asks for your account password (or Touch ID) to confirm.

If instead — Sanketra Desktop is not in the Accessibility list yet

Click the + button at the bottom of the Accessibility list, navigate to Applications, choose Sanketra Desktop, click Open. The toggle appears, switch it on. macOS sometimes requires this manual add on older versions.

Step 09 of 11

Quit Sanketra and relaunch

Press ⌘ Q to quit Sanketra (or right-click its Dock icon → Quit). Then relaunch it from Applications — this time a normal double-click works.

You will see this — it is normal

macOS only registers a freshly-granted Accessibility permission for the next launch — not the running process. This is a system-wide quirk that affects every app needing Accessibility, not just Sanketra.

Step 10 of 11

If the hotkey still doesn't fire, also enable Input Monitoring

On macOS 10.15 Catalina and newer, keyboard event monitoring is split out into a separate Input Monitoring permission. If your hotkey doesn’t fire after step 9, Sanketra shows a second dialog asking you to grant Input Monitoring.

Click Open Input Monitoring, find Sanketra Desktop in the list, toggle it ON, then quit + relaunch Sanketra one more time.

If instead — you don't see a second prompt

On some macOS versions (Sonoma 14+ in particular), Accessibility alone is sufficient and no Input Monitoring prompt appears. If your hotkey works after step 9, skip this step entirely.

Step 11 of 11

Hold ⌃ ⇧ Space, say something, release

Focus any text field — a note app, a chat window, your browser’s address bar. Hold Ctrl + Shift + Space (yes, Ctrl, not Cmd — same chord as Linux + Windows). Say a sentence. Release the keys. The transcript types into the focused field within ~1.5 seconds.

Tray menu

Click the स icon in your menu bar to see all of Sanketra’s controls. Open the main window, switch modes, view history, quit — everything is one click away.

You will see this — it is normal

Sanketra also lives in your menu bar — look for the स glyph near the clock. Click it to open the tray menu (mockup below). The main window can be closed; the menu-bar icon keeps the engine warm.

Windows · 8 steps · 3 min

Click More info → Run anyway, then आगे बढ़ो through the wizard.

Windows SmartScreen will flag Sanketra Desktop because we’re unsigned during the free beta. The escape hatch is intentional and one click deep. No UAC prompt, no admin rights — Sanketra installs to your user folder. Eight steps; everything you’ll see is documented below.

Step 01 of 08

Download the installer .exe

Click the Download for Windows button above. Your browser saves Sanketra-Desktop-Setup-x64.exe to C:\Users\you\Downloads\.

The .exe is about 98 MB. Edge may add an extra “this file isn’t commonly downloaded” nudge on the download itself — click the three dots → Keep. We address why in the next step.

Step 02 of 08

Double-click the installer and meet SmartScreen

Double-click Sanketra-Desktop-Setup-x64.exe in your Downloads folder. A big blue dialog appears.

You will see this — it is normal

The big blue dialog says “Windows protected your PC.” This is SmartScreen, Microsoft’s reputation engine. Any installer signed by a publisher Windows hasn’t seen before triggers it. Even apps from well-known developers see this on their first release of a new version.

If instead — you only see Don't run, no More info link

The More info text is small and easy to miss — it sits below the headline, above the Don’t run button. If you genuinely can’t see it, your Windows version may have hidden it behind a group policy (corporate-managed laptops). In that case, ask your IT admin to whitelist Sanketra-Desktop-Setup-x64.exe.

Step 03 of 08

Click More info → Run anyway

Click More info. The dialog expands to show the publisher (currently listed as Unknown publisher, will change to Misc42 Labs once we’ve bought a code- signing certificate).

A new button appears: Run anyway. Click it. The Inno Setup installer wizard opens.

You will see this — it is normal

Clicking Run anyway is not bypassing security — it’s telling Windows “I downloaded this from a source I trust.” That’s exactly what the dialog is for. After enough users install Sanketra, Microsoft’s reputation engine learns to trust the publisher and the warning stops appearing.

Step 04 of 08

Click through the install wizard

The wizard walks you through four pages:

Welcome — click Next.
License Agreement — short EULA, choose I accept the agreement → Next.
Select Destination Location — default is fine → Next.
Select Additional Tasks — leave Launch at startup checked if you want Sanketra in the tray on boot. Create desktop icon is your call → Next.

You will see this — it is normal

The wizard installs to %LOCALAPPDATA%\SanketraDesktop\ by default — your personal user folder. No UAC prompt because no admin rights are needed. Pick a different folder if you like; default is fine for everyone.

Step 05 of 08

Click Install and wait ~30 seconds

The wizard copies Sanketra into %LOCALAPPDATA%\SanketraDesktop\, registers Start menu shortcuts, and (if you ticked it) adds the run-at-login entry. Total time on a modern PC: under 30 seconds.

Step 06 of 08

Finish → Launch Sanketra Desktop

The final wizard page has a Launch Sanketra Desktop checkbox — leave it ticked, click Finish. Sanketra appears: a small window with the headline you saw on the homepage, plus a stylized स icon in your system tray (bottom-right of your taskbar).

Step 07 of 08

Grant microphone permission

On Windows 11 and 10, the first hotkey press triggers a system microphone-permission prompt. Allow it; this is the only OS prompt Sanketra needs on Windows. (No accessibility equivalent — pynput’s Win32 keyboard hooks need no extra permission.)

You will see this — it is normal

Windows 11 shows a toast in the bottom-right corner of your screen the first time Sanketra opens the mic: Allow Sanketra Desktop to access your microphone? Click Yes. Windows 10 behaves the same but may silently grant access without a prompt depending on your privacy settings.

If instead — you accidentally clicked No

Open Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone, find Sanketra Desktop in the “Let apps access your microphone” list, toggle it ON. Quit Sanketra (right-click tray icon → Quit) and relaunch from Start Menu.

Step 08 of 08

Hold Ctrl + Shift + Space, speak, release

Focus any text field. Hold Ctrl + Shift + Space, speak a sentence, release. The transcript types into the focused field within ~1.5 seconds.

Tray menu

Right-click the स icon in your system tray (you may need to expand the hidden-icons chevron near the clock) to see all controls. Closing the main window hides Sanketra to the tray — it keeps the engine warm so the next hotkey is instant.

If instead — the hotkey doesn't fire when a game/IDE is focused

Some apps run elevated (administrator privileges) and Windows blocks key injection from non-elevated processes into elevated windows. Either right-click Sanketra Desktop → Run as administrator, or stop running the target app elevated. Most users never need to do this.

Linux · 5 steps · 2 min

Make it executable, run it. Linux वालों ke liye sabse seedha hai.

The .AppImage runs on any distro — Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, Debian, Mint. No package manager, no root, no install location to choose. PulseAudio / PipeWire grants microphone access automatically. The only sharp edge is Wayland sessions blocking global hotkeys — step 5 covers the workaround.

Step 01 of 05

Download the .AppImage

Click Download for Linux above. Your browser saves Sanketra-Desktop-x86_64.AppImage to ~/Downloads/ (about 104 MB).

Step 02 of 05

Mark it executable

AppImages ship without the executable bit set, for security. You have two paths:

Option A · Files manager (no terminal)

Right-click the .AppImage in your file manager → Properties → Permissions tab → tick Allow executing file as program → close. Then double-click the .AppImage to launch.

Option B · Terminal (one line)

chmod +x ~/Downloads/Sanketra-Desktop-*.AppImage
~/Downloads/Sanketra-Desktop-*.AppImage

Step 03 of 05

The main window opens — no prompts

Sanketra launches and shows you the main window — eyebrow tag, headline, mode strip, mic card. The system tray gets a स icon (look in your top bar on GNOME, or system tray on KDE / XFCE / others).

You will see this — it is normal

Linux has no equivalent of Gatekeeper or SmartScreen for portable executables. PulseAudio / PipeWire grants microphone access transparently. X11 sessions allow global keyboard hooks without a permission prompt. You should see Sanketra’s main window within ~3 seconds of launch.

If instead — you see “Could not load Qt platform plugin xcb”

PySide6 6.5+ needs the libxcb-cursor0 shared library. Install it for your distro:

# Ubuntu / Debian / Mint
sudo apt install libxcb-cursor0

# Fedora / RHEL / CentOS Stream
sudo dnf install xcb-util-cursor

# Arch / Manjaro
sudo pacman -S xcb-util-cursor

Then re-run the AppImage.

Step 04 of 05

Hold Ctrl+Shift+Space, speak, release

Focus any text field. Hold Ctrl + Shift + Space, say something, release. Transcript types in within ~1.5 seconds on the small Whisper model (default for free tier).

Step 05 of 05

If you're on Wayland and the hotkey doesn't fire

GNOME 45+, KDE Plasma 6 default sessions, Fedora Workstation defaults — these all run on Wayland, which prevents Sanketra’s global hotkey from working from inside other apps. Two ways out:

Switch to an X11 session — log out, click the gear icon on the login screen, choose Ubuntu on Xorg (or GNOME on Xorg, Plasma X11), log back in. Hotkey works.
Use the tray menu — click the स icon → Start dictation. Same engine, same speed. Works on Wayland because no global hook is needed.

You will see this — it is normal

Wayland deliberately blocks global keyboard hooks as a security feature — any process grabbing every keystroke is, by design, a keylogger. Sanketra’s hotkey is a global keyboard hook. The blocking is correct; the workarounds are explicit.

If instead — you'd rather keep Wayland

Use the in-app Start dictation button (or the tray menu’s same item) instead of the hotkey. Same engine, same transcription — just an extra click vs. holding the chord. Future Sanketra versions may use the XDG Portals GlobalShortcuts API once GNOME ships it stable.

One QR. दो device, ek setup.

Same server powers Sanketra Phone (Android Play Store, free). Click Pair Phone in the Desktop tray — a QR shows up. Point your phone’s camera at it. The app deep-links, auto-pairs in two seconds. No IP, no 4-digit code typing. Phone becomes a mic; transcripts type at your PC’s cursor.

90-second window

Single-use token

Each QR carries a one-time pair token that expires in 90 seconds and burns on first use. Screenshot leaks have a tiny attack window; the dialog auto-mints a fresh token if you don’t scan in time.

LAN-only

No cloud relay

Phone and PC pair over your WiFi. No traffic leaves the network. If the QR scan shows a recovery page, the phone is on a different network — switch WiFi and re-scan.

iPhone too

No native iOS app needed

iOS users scan the same QR — Safari opens the web phone-mic client with auto-pair already done. No App Store install. Works on iPad. The Sanketra Desktop server is the only piece you install on a PC.

“4-digit code as fallback — कोई QR scan nahi कर पाए toh PC उस par भी एक code दिखाता है, phone पर manually type kar do.”

Reverse direction · फ़ोन पहले installed है तो

Already running Sanketra Phone but need Desktop on a new PC? Open Settings → Install on a new PC → tap Send on WhatsApp. Text the smart-install link to yourself, open it on your PC’s browser, and /get auto-detects your OS + starts the right Mac/Win/Linux download. Zero typing on the PC.

Skip the wizard. Run the command. सीधा रास्ता.

For developers, IT admins, and anyone who prefers a shell. Each command does the same thing the visual installer does — just faster and scriptable.

मैक

Bypass Gatekeeper from Terminal

Strips the quarantine xattr that triggers Gatekeeper. Run after dragging the .app to Applications. Replaces the right-click → Open dance with one command. Re-applies if you reinstall.

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine "/Applications/Sanketra Desktop.app"

विंडोज़

Install with silent flags (admin or automation)

Inno Setup honors /SILENT (progress bar only, no prompts) and /VERYSILENT (no UI at all). Useful for IT-managed deployments or scripted installs. The .exe must already be in your working directory.

Sanketra-Desktop-Setup-x64.exe /SILENT /CLOSEAPPLICATIONS

लिनक्स

Install from source — Python venv path

Skips the AppImage entirely. Clones the repo, sets up a venv at ~/sanketra-desktop/, installs the slim desktop deps on top of Whisper, registers the .desktop launcher. The classic install for hackers who want to read every line.

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Misc42/sanketra/master/desktop/install-desktop.sh | bash

If something went sideways — यहाँ देखो.

Searchable matrix. Ctrl-F your error message. If your specific symptom isn’t listed, the fastest path to a fix is the GitHub Issues queue — link at the bottom.

macOS

Right-clicked → Open, still see no Open button

Reboot the Mac once. macOS Sequoia 15+ caches a stricter unsigned-app block; a fresh login resets the heuristic. If still blocked, run the xattr command above from Terminal.

App opens then immediately dies — Console shows Killed: 9

Hardened-runtime denial. Reboot, then xattr-strip the quarantine bit (see Terminal paths above). If persistent across reboots, file an issue on GitHub with the contents of ~/Library/Logs/Sanketra Desktop/last-crash.log.

Hotkey works in Notes but not in Terminal or 1Password

Those apps use macOS Secure Input mode, which blocks key injection from any other app — by design. Restart focus to a non-secure app to test the hotkey. Not a Sanketra bug; a system-level security boundary.

Sanketra Desktop doesn't appear in Accessibility list

Click the + button at the bottom of the list → navigate to /Applications → choose Sanketra Desktop → Open. Then toggle it ON. macOS doesn't auto-list apps that haven't been launched yet.

Windows

Defender / Bitdefender / Kaspersky deletes sanketra-desktop.exe

False-positive on pynput's global keyboard hook (the anti-keylogger heuristic). Restore the file from the AV quarantine, then add %LOCALAPPDATA%\SanketraDesktop\ as an exclusion. Until we have a code-signing cert, this happens to ~5% of installs.

Hotkey works in Chrome but not Notepad++ or VS Code (run as admin)

Windows blocks low-privilege processes from injecting input into high-privilege ones. Either run Sanketra Desktop as administrator (right-click .exe → Run as administrator) OR run the target app without admin. Most users never hit this.

"Side-by-side configuration is incorrect" on launch

Missing Visual C++ Redistributable. Install the latest x64 redist from microsoft.com/download. The Inno Setup wizard bundles a check for this but older Windows 10 systems sometimes need the redist re-applied after major OS updates.

Tray icon doesn't appear after launch

Click the chevron (^) near the clock to expand hidden tray icons. Drag the Sanketra icon onto the always-visible strip. Windows hides new tray icons by default; this is a one-time setup.

Linux

Could not load Qt platform plugin xcb

Install libxcb-cursor0: apt → 'sudo apt install libxcb-cursor0'; dnf → 'sudo dnf install xcb-util-cursor'; pacman → 'sudo pacman -S xcb-util-cursor'. PySide6 6.5+ depends on it; most distros need an explicit install.

Hotkey doesn't fire on GNOME 45+ / KDE Plasma 6

You're on Wayland; it blocks global keyboard hooks. Two paths: (A) log out, choose an X11/Xorg session at the login screen, log back in — hotkey works. (B) Use the tray menu's Start dictation item instead — works on Wayland.

No audio captured — Whisper transcribes silence

Open pavucontrol → Recording tab → find Sanketra Desktop's stream → ensure it's pointed at your real mic, not the 'Monitor of …' loopback. PipeWire users: use Helvum or pw-link to inspect routing.

AppImage refuses to run — 'cannot execute binary file'

Either chmod +x is missing (see step 2 of the Linux guide) OR you're on a 32-bit/ARM system (AppImage is x86_64-only currently). Check 'uname -m'; if it's not x86_64, the AppImage won't work and you should use the install-desktop.sh source path instead.

File a GitHub issue

The fastest path to a fix is Misc42/sanketra/issues. Include your OS, the error message verbatim, and (if you can) the contents of your last-crash.log file.

Email support

support@sanketra.app. Slower than GitHub for technical bugs, faster for license / payment questions.

Read the source

The desktop client is open source. Browse it if you want to verify what Sanketra does (and doesn’t) before installing.

Local. Always.

Audio never leaves your machine. Whisper runs on your CPU or GPU; the model lives in ~/.cache/whisper/. No call-home, no account, no telemetry.

Hindi + English.

Code-switch mid-sentence — Whisper handles both. Aaj ka meeting note likh raha tha flows the same as pure English. Larger models (medium / large-v3) unlock with Pro.

Free during beta.

All three builds are free while we shake bugs out. Pro features (long sessions, transcript history, advanced models) become a paid SKU later — see pricing.