When using the window capture feature in OBS Studio, some users have noticed an annoying yellow border that appears around the edges of the captured window. This border is added by Windows 10 to indicate that the window contents are being captured, but it can be distracting and undesirable when trying to record or stream gameplay footage.
Fortunately, there are a few methods you can try to remove or hide this yellow border in OBS Studio.
Table of Contents
Understanding the Yellow Border
First, it’s important to understand what’s causing this border to appear in the first place. As mentioned, it’s a feature built into Windows 10 to warn users that a window is being captured by a third-party application. This is intended as a security measure to prevent spyware from secretly grabbing screenshots or recordings.
So when OBS Studio uses the window capture method, Windows 10 recognizes this and adds the yellow border automatically.
Trying Different Capture Methods
The easiest solution is to simply switch to a different capture method in OBS Studio besides window capture. Here are some options to try:
Display Capture
Display capture records your entire monitor rather than just a single window. Since it captures the whole display output, the yellow border does not appear.
Pros: Removes the border, captures everything on your display
Cons: Can be more resource intensive, captures other UI elements you may not want
Game Capture
Game capture is designed specifically for capturing game footage. Like display capture, it does not trigger the yellow border.
Pros: Works well for games, no border
Cons: Only works for games, not other applications
Windows Graphics Capture
This alternative window capture method using the Windows graphics platform can sometimes avoid the border too.
Pros: No border, captures specific windows
Cons: Doesn’t work for some applications, more performance impact
Using Workarounds
If you need to stick with standard window capture, there are a couple of tricky workarounds as well:
Crop Filter
You can add a crop filter to the window capture source, cropping out the edges where the border appears.
Pros: Removes the border without changing capture methods
Cons: Requires trial and error to crop correctly, doesn’t work for some border sizes
Color Key Filter
Alternatively, try using a color key filter set to the yellow color to filter out the border.
Pros: Targets the specific yellow color
Cons: Can accidentally filter out yellow elements in the game visuals too
Updating Windows
Lastly, updating your Windows 10 version may help eliminate the border too. On the very latest Windows 11, the border has been removed entirely for window capture.
So upgrading your operating system could be the ultimate solution if the border bothers you. Just make sure your hardware and other software is compatible first!
Additional Tips and Tricks
Here are some other miscellaneous tips for dealing with the pesky OBS border:
- Restart your PC and try capturing again – sometimes helps
- Disable Aero themes under Windows Personalization settings
- Use a solid background color around captured window to hide border
- Try window capture on a secondary monitor instead
- Adjust capture settings like method, client area, etc.
- Update your OBS Studio software in case fixes were added
- Use transparency to fade the border edges
Conclusion
The yellow border that appears when capturing windows in OBS Studio can be annoying, but thankfully there are many potential fixes. Experiment with the different capture methods first, try various workarounds like cropping and color keying, or update Windows itself. With some tweaking, you should be able to find a solution that removes the border.
Let us know which approach worked best for eliminating your OBS Studio window border! We’re happy to help troubleshoot any lingering issues.
