An Apple TV can't record in the background, so I built a small companion app that does it for you. NowSeen Recorder runs quietly on a Mac or Windows PC in your home, or on a Raspberry Pi or NAS that is on all the time. You pick what to record in NowSeen, the recorder saves it to a folder on your computer, and the recording shows up in NowSeen on all your devices.
Install on a Mac
- Download the zip file and open it.
- Drag NowSeen Recorder to your Applications folder and open it.
- The recorder lives in the menu bar. Click its icon and choose Open NowSeen Recorder to see the window with your address and recordings.
The app is signed and notarised by Apple, so it opens without warnings.
Install on Windows
- Download NowSeenRecorder.exe and put it somewhere it can stay, for example in your Documents folder.
- Open it. Windows may show “Windows protected your PC”. Click More info and then Run anyway.
- Windows Firewall asks whether the recorder may use the network. Allow it on private networks, otherwise NowSeen can't reach it.
The recorder starts with Windows and sits next to the clock. Nothing else needs to be installed.
Install on a Raspberry Pi or NAS
For a device that is always on: a Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 with a 64 bit system, a Linux PC, or a NAS that runs Docker, such as Synology, Unraid, QNAP or TrueNAS.
- Download the zip file and unpack it on the device.
- Open docker-compose.yml and set your time zone and the folder where the recordings should go.
- Start it with
docker compose up -din that folder. On a Synology, open Container Manager, choose Project, Create, and pick the folder.
The first start takes a few minutes, because the recorder is built on your device. After that it starts by itself, also after a restart. In NowSeen you enter the IP address of the Pi or NAS.
Connect NowSeen
- The recorder window shows an address, for example 192.168.1.20:8642. Click Copy Address for NowSeen if you want to paste it.
- In NowSeen, open Settings and choose Recording Server.
- Enter the address. That's it.
You only need to do this once per device. Your Apple TV, iPhone and iPad all talk to the same recorder.
Recording a programme
Open the TV guide, hold OK on a programme on Apple TV, or press and hold it on iPhone and iPad, and choose Record. You can also record from the guide of a single channel. A red dot appears on everything that is scheduled or recording. A programme that is already on starts recording right away; a later one starts exactly at its start time and keeps going five minutes after the end, in case it runs late.
Your recordings appear under Recordings, just below All Favourites in the Live TV categories. From there you can play them, stop a recording early or delete it.
Keep your computer ready
The recorder has to be running and your computer has to be on at the start time. A Raspberry Pi or NAS is always on, so there is nothing to set up there. By default the computer stays awake as long as something is scheduled. You can also let it sleep and have it wake up a minute before each recording:
Mac
Click Turn On next to Wake the Mac for recordings and approve it once in System Settings, General, Login Items.
Windows
Turn on Wake the PC for recordings. If the window says wake timers are blocked, click Power settings and allow wake timers.
Good to know
Recording uses a connection to your provider, just like watching. If your subscription allows one connection and you are watching something else, the recorder waits until a connection is free. NowSeen warns you when you schedule more recordings at the same time than your subscription allows.
Recordings are saved as normal video files in a folder you choose, NowSeen Recordings by default. Anyone on your home network can use the recorder, and it can't be reached from outside your home. Encrypted channels can't be recorded. Recording is not available in kids profiles.