Clip library & storage

Where recordings go#

The initial save directory is your Windows Videos folder under HydroClips. You can choose another directory in Settings. Manual recordings and replays are MP4; screenshots are PNG. The library points to these local files.

Generated names begin with Recording_, Replay_ or Screenshot_. Video thumbnails can be saved as a neighbouring .mp4.jpg file.

Review a clip#

Open Clips Gallery, select a clip and play it. Use Show in Folder to locate the file in Explorer. Check both picture and sound before sharing it elsewhere.

Version 2.0.7 prefers the actual numeric video duration when drawing the badge. Older clips imported from disk may have incomplete duration metadata. A “0s” label on an imported file does not by itself prove the MP4 is empty; check the actual file in a player.

Trim a clip#

1. Open Clips Gallery and select a local recording or replay.
2. Choose Trim & audio. The editor reads the actual video duration and audio tracks.
3. Set Start and End in seconds, move the sliders, or seek the video and choose Set start here / Set end here. Select at least 0.1 seconds.
4. Choose Preview selection. It begins at Start and stops at End.
5. Choose Save as new clip. The new MP4 appears with an EDITED CLIP badge; your original stays in the library.

Adjust game and microphone separately#

New recordings retain Game & system and Microphone when those sources are enabled. Each slider ranges from 0% to 200%. For example, set game to 50% and microphone to 100%, then preview. The exported default combined track uses those levels, while the original separate tracks remain available for later edits. Reopening an edited clip restores its source levels; returning a slider to 100% restores that source.

Older recordings that contain only combined sound show one slider and an explanation. HydroClips cannot recover separate voices from an already mixed track. A silent recording can still be trimmed. A microphone device failure may leave a labelled but silent track: verify the recording itself.

Export behavior and recovery#

Video is copied with an MP4 edit list instead of being re-encoded. The selected visible start can fall between keyframes; preceding encoded frames may be retained internally so playback can decode correctly. Audio is copied when its levels are unchanged and remixed to AAC when changed. Export speed depends on clip length and disk speed.

New files begin with Trim_ and use your configured recording folder. The service verifies duration, usable video and audio track count before inserting the result in the library. One edit export runs at a time. Errors leave the original unchanged and preserve temporary export data under %APPDATA%\Hydro Clips\clip-edits. Edited files are local and are not automatically uploaded; use Upload to Cloud if you want a separate backup.

Manage storage#

Saved clips are separate from the rolling replay buffer and are not automatically deleted by buffer pruning. Manual sessions can grow beyond the configured replay size because their needed segments remain pinned until export.

Deleting a clip from the app removes the recorded file and its thumbnail. Keep a separate backup before deleting anything you want to retain. The app's uninstall process preserves the recording folder and user settings.

Optional Google Drive backup#

Google Drive is an optional, separate OAuth connection. This release needs a valid configured client ID and client secret; an empty configuration does not create a demo connection. Connect successfully before relying on automatic upload.

Uploads target the configured backup folder and can be queued automatically for newly saved clips. Verify upload completion and the file in Drive; a local saved-clip notification is not an upload confirmation.