First-time setup checklist

Once Cradle is installed, five things make the difference between an app that works and an app that almost works. Work through them in order — they take five minutes.

What you'll need

• The work email your Cradle admin invited.
• The headset or headphones you plan to use for calls.
• A spare minute to grant a couple of permissions.

Step 1: Sign in

Open Cradle and choose Continue with Google or Continue with Microsoft, matching the work account your admin invited. Full walk-through in Signing into the Cradle desktop app.

Step 2: Pick your audio devices

Cradle has three audio settings, not one — input, output, and ringtone. Open Settings → Audio and set each:

• Microphone (input). The mic on your headset, not the laptop's built-in mic. Plug your headset in first so it shows up in the list.
• Speaker (output). Where the other person's voice plays. Usually your headset.
• Ringtone. Where the incoming-call ring plays. Set this to your laptop speakers so you hear calls when your headset is off your head.

Full walk-through coming in the Audio & devices articles.

Step 3: Grant microphone permission

Cradle has to ask the operating system for permission to use your microphone. Without this, the other person can't hear you.

Windows

1. Open Settings → Privacy & security → Microphone.
2. Make sure Microphone access is on.
3. Make sure Let apps access your microphone is on.
4. Make sure Cradle is on in the list of apps.

macOS

1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Microphone.
2. Make sure the toggle next to Cradle is on.
3. If you've just turned it on, quit and reopen Cradle so it picks up the change.

Linux

Microphone permission on Linux depends on your distro and audio server. If you're using PipeWire or PulseAudio, your microphone is usually available to Cradle by default. If it isn't:

• Open your sound settings (GNOME Control Center, KDE System Settings, or pavucontrol).
• Confirm your microphone is set as the default input.
• Confirm it isn't muted at the system level.

Step 4: Enable notifications

Notifications tell you when a call is coming in or when you've received a message. Without them, the app has to be in focus for you to notice.

Windows

1. Open Settings → System → Notifications.
2. Make sure Notifications is on at the top.
3. Find Cradle in the list and make sure it's on.

macOS

1. Open System Settings → Notifications.
2. Click Cradle in the list.
3. Make sure Allow notifications is on. Banners or Alerts both work — pick what you'd prefer.

Linux

1. Open Settings → Notifications (or your distro's equivalent).
2. Confirm notifications from Cradle are allowed.

Step 5: Launch at login (optional)

If you'd like Cradle to start when you log in to your computer, so you never miss a call because you forgot to open it:

Windows

1. Open Task Manager.
2. Click the Startup apps tab.
3. Find Cradle and click Enable.

macOS

1. Open System Settings → General → Login Items.
2. Click the + under Open at Login.
3. Choose Cradle.

Linux

Launch-at-login on Linux depends on your distro. Most desktop environments support adding a .desktop autostart entry under ~/.config/autostart/. Check your distro's docs for the GUI way to do this.

What you should see

You're done when:

• You're signed in.
• A test call to a colleague lets both of you hear each other.
• A test call from another phone makes your laptop ring even when Cradle isn't on screen.

If it doesn't work

• The other person can't hear you. Microphone permission isn't on, or Cradle has the wrong mic selected.
• You can't hear the other person. Output device is wrong — your headset is unplugged or set as ringtone but not speaker.
• The app doesn't ring for incoming calls. Notifications aren't enabled, or your status is set to Do Not Disturb.

Each of these has its own troubleshooting article — see Audio issues — Windows for now; the per-OS variants are coming in a later release.

Related

• Signing into the Cradle desktop app
• Updating the Cradle desktop app