What Is Respondus Monitor? (And How It Differs from LockDown Browser)
Respondus Monitor is a paid add-on to Respondus LockDown Browser that adds webcam recording and screen recording. Many students confuse them. They are sold together but technically separate.
A "with Monitor" exam means the recording layer is on; a "no Monitor" exam means just the lockdown. Pre-exam, Monitor exams have a webcam preview and ID-check; no-Monitor exams jump straight into the test. The recording uploads to Respondus' cloud during/after the exam for ML scoring and optional human review. Both LockDown Browser and Monitor use macOS' standard capture APIs when they record the screen; both honor window privacy. The Fracture overlay is invisible regardless of whether Monitor is on or off.
Yes - many do. The instructor configures whether Monitor is required per quiz.
Per Respondus docs, 5 years. The flagged overlay region is missing from those archives.
Apple changed ScreenCaptureKit semantics in 15.4. The overlay's reliability degraded; we recommend staying on 14.x or 15.0-15.3 for Monitor exams.
Need reference access during your exam?
Fracture runs a native floating overlay that sets the macOS window privacy flag. It is 100% excluded from screen capture feeds, window lists, and proctor recordings.