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Software Technical Specifications

The MuteMe application is a secure, robust and reliable software that is designed to control microphones at the operating system level and sync with popular conferencing applications. The application is updated regularly and is code signed for both Windows and macOS, and includes extended validation code signing for Windows. It does not access audio from the microphone and only utilizes native operating system APIs to control mute/unmute functions and sync with popular conferencing applications. Data is collected and stored securely with only authorized users having access and never sold or traded. The software is supported on Windows 10, Windows 11, macOS Catalina 10.15 or higher, and has a version for Ubuntu Linux. It is supported by over 20k lines of custom code and is developed, designed, and engineered in the US.

The application is updated regularly and is code signed for both Windows and macOS including having extended validation code signing on Windows. 

Background:

Work started on our current version of the application in January of 2020 after a successful Kickstarter campaign. We wanted to make an application that a vast majority of users would be able to install while still giving users the control they were seeking. We landed on developing a electron app that would be cross-platform across Windows, Mac, and Linux to ensure that regardless of the user OS we would have a solution that would work. Although the front end is fairly universal across Windows and macOS; the backend due to the integrations into the operating system is completely different and relies on various operating system API to accomplish the simple task of muting and unmuting your microphone and syncing with the conferencing applications.

At no point do we access the audio from your microphone and manipulate it in any way. We only interface with the API that give us control to change the volume levels of the microphones. We also rely on OS APIs for sync and control over various conferencing platforms. 

 

Software Overview:

The MuteMe Software (MuteMe Client) was developed to support easy mute/unmute controls and relies on native integrations into the operating system to both control microphones and to be able to sync with popular conferencing applications. Privacy, safety and security is a primary concern and our software includes the following features:

Code Signing

Our application is extended validation code signed on Windows by MuteMe LLC (SSL CERT) and both notarized and code signed by Apple on macOS. This means that users will not get the unauthorized application message on Windows when they download and try to execute the application. This also means that our application can run on the latest versions of macOS without any problems. As of version 0.8.2 updates are now also code signed so there should be no issues when the software is updating as well. 

Software Updates

Our application receives regular software updates typically once per month. In some cases software releases happen more frequently when a corresponding change in a conferencing application results in what we typically call a "hotfix" that needs to be pushed out immediately to maintain functionality. Users have the ability to opt out of software updates and have the ability to view the release notes prior to updating. Administrators have the ability to disable updates via the MSI install package. 

macOS Automation

Our software does require both automation and accessibility permissions on Mac OS to properly be able to control the various conferencing platforms. These permissions are very typical of the conferencing platforms themselves and so therefore typically not an issue. We do not require any audio or video based permissions because as stated earlier we do not access the audio stream or video stream in any way only the OS API's that control them. 

Windows Automation

Our software does not require any type of administrative privileges on windows unless installing the enterprise version of the software (MSI Version) across multiple users. In some corporate settings software installations may be restricted please have them contact our team or share this documentation with them. We do not require any audio or video based permissions because as stated earlier we do not access the audio stream or video stream in any way only the OS API's that control them. 

Data Collection

Data is collected and stored on both the users machine and in some cases a MixPanel database for product improvement, bug fixing, and error reporting. Users can access the log files on their computers themselves to see the specfic types of data being collected. The data that is collected includes but is not limited to, how fast a mute unmute operation takes place, the preferences you have set in the MuteMe app, when the app was installed, the type of MuteMe device you have connected and the path where the MuteMe application is installed. All data collected always has a clear objective and we do not collect personal information regarding the users. We do not sell, trade, share, or expose your data to any other companies. The collected data is stored either on our MuteMe servers, Google Servers, Amazon servers (AWS), GoDaddy Servers, or MixPanel servers.  It is secured at every step of the way and only authorized users have access to this data. 

USB Device Access

Our application will access the USB Controller to see the USB HID devices that are connected to the computer. This is so it can request to connect to the USB HID MuteMe device when connected. On macOS Ventura (Late 2022) or higher you will start to get a prompt asking if you want to connect to the device from the operating system the first time the device is connected. 

Native OS Audio APIs

Both Windows and macOS make their audio control APIs accessible without elevated permission. We access these on the respective operating systems to control the basic mute/unmute functions for certain audio devices like headsets and microphones. 

 

Technical Specs:

 Storage Space Required: 300mb typical installed space (based on chromium/electron) Download size is between 90mb - 130mb.

Ram Required: 4gb of system ram. Depends on conferencing platform 50mb to run base program. 100-300mb for sync controllers is typical. 

Processor Required: 1.6Ghz or faster dual core. Intel x86 (old versions only no longer supported). AMD/Intel x64, Apple Silicon (M1-M2) Dual core or higher recommended. 

Operating Systems Supported: Windows 10, Windows 11, macOS Catalina 10.15 or higher. Some features may not work on older versions of software. Version exists for Ubuntu Linux but is not fully supported. 

 

  • Major Libraries Used:
    • Electron with Forge
    • Squirrel Startup and Updates
    • MixPanel
    • NodeJs, with NodeFetch, NodeHID
    • Winston for logging
  • Coded In:
    • Java Script
    • C++
    • Swift
    • and many more....
  • Impressive Stats
    • Over 20k lines of custom code for this project
    • American development, design and engineering.

 

Last Updated: 11:28 PM - PST - December 1, 2022

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