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How To Permit Screen Sharing Between Users in Discord Voice Calls

Discord has become one of the most popular communication platforms, allowing users to interact via text, voice, and video. One of its most useful features is the ability to share your screen with other users during a voice call. This allows for easy collaboration, teaching opportunities, watching videos together, and more.

However, Discord’s screen sharing feature is permission-based. As a server admin or moderator, you must manually enable the feature for individual users before they can share their screens with others in a voice channel. Here is a step-by-step guide to permitting screen sharing access on a Discord server:

Enable Server-Wide Screen Sharing

The first step is to enable screen sharing for your entire Discord server. This allows all voice channels to support screen sharing, then you can choose which users have access.

  1. Open the Discord desktop app and select your server
  2. Click the dropdown next to the server name and choose “Server Settings”
  3. Select “Permissions” from the menu on the left-hand side
  4. Find the “Screen Share” permission and make sure the switch is turned on (blue)

Choose User Roles With Access

Now that your server supports screen sharing, you need to decide which user roles should have access. For example, you may want to only allow moderators and admins to share their screens.

  1. In the server settings, choose “Roles” from the left-side menu
  2. For each role, expand the option and enable the “Screen Share” permission if desired
  3. Be sure to save your changes!

Grant Individual Members Permission

If you don’t want entire roles to have access, you can also grant the screen share permission to individual server members.

  1. Open the channel list and right-click on the user
  2. Choose “Edit Channel Permissions”
  3. Enable the “Screen Share” permission switch for that member
  4. Click “Save Changes” to apply your update

Once a user has the proper permissions, they will see a new “Screen Share” icon appear at the bottom of the Discord window when joining a voice channel. They can then choose an application or their entire display to share with others in the channel.

The permission settings may be slightly different if you are an admin trying to enable screen sharing for a group DM call rather than a server. You also may need to enable screen recording permissions in your computer’s security settings before Discord can capture and share your screen.

Best Practices for Screen Sharing

Now that you know how to configure screen sharing permissions for your Discord server, here are some best practices to ensure the feature is useful for your members:

Set Guidelines

Make sure your users know when and how screen sharing should be used. You may want to limit it to certain channels or purposes only.

Moderate Activity

If users are sharing inappropriate or distracting content, do not hesitate to revoke their permissions. You can also mute or deafen them in the voice channel.

Use Multiple Calls

If you want small groups to share their screens simultaneously, have them join separate voice channels instead of one large call.

Check User Feedback

Ask your members if they are finding the screen share feature helpful. See if they have any suggestions for improvement.

Troubleshoot Issues

Make sure client software is up to date and that users have the required OS permissions to capture and share their displayed content.

Enabling Screen Sharing On Other Platforms

In addition to the desktop application, Discord’s screen sharing capabilities work across all major platforms:

Mobile

  • Join a voice channel and tap the “Screen” icon in the toolbar
  • Select which app or your entire display to share
  • Mobile users have fewer control options compared to the desktop app

Browser

  • Requires a browser that supports webcam and microphone access
  • Join a voice channel and click the “Screen Share” icon next to the mute button
  • Allow Discord to access your computer’s display and audio

Game Consoles

  • PlayStation and Xbox require a special screen sharing app to be installed
  • The Discord mobile app can also share your device’s display to voice channels

So in summary, enabling screen sharing in Discord voice channels first requires server and/or individual user permissions to be configured by a server admin. Once enabled for a member, they can start sharing their display inside any approved voice channel to collaborate with other users in real-time. With proper moderation, it is an extremely powerful communication feature for both recreational and professional uses.

About the Author

As a long-time Discord user and server administrator, I have extensive experience configuring and managing permissions, roles, and features like screen sharing. Communication platforms are essential for remote teams and online communities, so making sure tools like Discord are optimized for your members leads to greater engagement. Please reach out if you need any assistance setting up screen sharing or other advanced functions for your Discord server.

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