Windows install help

Your download is on its way.

Pristi is new and not digitally signed yet, so Windows may ask you to confirm the download and installer. This guide shows the exact clicks.

Only continue if you started the download from pristi.app.

Download did not start? Try again
1

Finish the download

If the download looks stuck

Press Ctrl + J to open your browser's Downloads list. Find Pristi-Setup.exe, then choose Keep anyway or Resume. The wording varies slightly by browser.

Do not open the .crdownload file from File Explorer. It is only a temporary, unfinished download.
Chrome's recent download panel showing Pristi Setup downloading
Use the browser's download list—not File Explorer.
2

Run the installer

When Windows protects your PC

This warning appears because Windows cannot verify Pristi's publisher yet. Select More info, check that the app name begins with Pristi-Setup, then select Run anyway.

Windows protected your PC screen showing Pristi Setup, Unknown publisher, and the Run anyway button
2After selecting “More info,” choose Run anyway.
Pristi Setup installation progress window
Pristi then installs automatically. Wait for this window to finish.

Quick check

Press Alt + X.

If Pristi starts recording, installation is complete. You can close this guide.

Pristi recording pill showing a moving waveform
This means it is working. The small waveform moves while Pristi listens.

Nothing happened? Continue below.

4

Only if the hotkeys do not work

Exclude Pristi's folder in Windows Security

Click Start, type Windows Security, and open the app with the blue shield. Go to Virus & threat protection → Manage settings → Add or remove exclusions. Select Add an exclusion → Folder.

Why this happens: Pristi's hotkey helper, WinKeyServer.exe, listens system-wide for Alt + X and Alt + C. Without a trusted signature, that can look like a keylogger to antivirus software — the detection is usually named Trojan:Win32/KeyLogger!AMTB if you check Windows Security's Protection history. It's a false positive; excluding the folder below is enough.

Virus and threat protection settings showing the Manage settings link
1Select Manage settings, then scroll to Exclusions.
Folder to add%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\pristi-desktop

Windows Security exclusions screen with Add an exclusion and Folder selected
Select Folder, paste the copied path, then choose Select Folder.

4A

Relaunch Pristi and check again

Open Pristi from the Start menu and press Alt + X. If recording starts, you're done — no reinstall needed.

4B

Still nothing? Reinstall

Windows may have already deleted the blocked file before you added the exclusion — the exclusion alone can't bring back a file that's gone. Fully quit Pristi from the system tray, open Settings → Apps → Installed apps and uninstall it, then run Pristi-Setup.exe again. The exclusion you just added means the fresh copy will be left alone this time. Press Alt + X again to confirm.

Pristi Setup reinstalling the application
Only needed if relaunching alone didn't fix it.
Hotkeys work?

You're done. Pristi is ready to use.

Using a different antivirus?

The fix is the same idea as the Defender steps above: add one folder to your antivirus's exclusion list. The exact wording of the warning will look different in every product — what matters is whether it names the same file.

  • Folder to exclude%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\pristi-desktop
  • File the warning should nameWinKeyServer.exe

If your antivirus flags a different file, or something running from outside that folder, do not exclude it — email [email protected] instead.

Norton

Open Norton → SettingsAntivirusScans and Risks tab → find Items to Exclude from Scans (sometimes labelled Exclusions/Low Risks) → ConfigureAdd Folders.

McAfee

Open McAfee Security Center → PC Security (or the gear icon) → Real-Time ScanningExcluded Files → add the folder.

Quick Heal

Open Quick Heal → SettingsExclude Files and Folders (under Virus Protection/Antivirus settings) → add the folder.

Avast & AVG

Open the app → menu (☰) → SettingsGeneralExceptionsAdd Exception → browse to the folder.

Kaspersky

Open Kaspersky → Settings (gear) → Threats and ExclusionsManage exclusionsAdd → browse to the folder.

Bitdefender

Open Bitdefender → ProtectionAntivirus settings (gear) → ExclusionsAdd an Exclusion → browse to the folder → apply to real-time protection.

Using something not listed here? Every antivirus has an equivalent "exclusions," "exceptions," or "allow list" setting somewhere in its scan or protection settings — add the same folder there. Menu names vary by product version; if you can't find it, email [email protected] and we'll walk you through it.

What we won't tell you to do: turn off your antivirus, disable real-time protection, or ignore a warning about a different file. Excluding this one folder is enough — nothing else needs to change.