# B-ROLL Settings and Advanced Options Explained Source: https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/settings-and-advanced-options/ Published: 2026-09-25 Updated: 2026-09-25 Author: Ema Zamboni, video editor (https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/about/) Section: Features (https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/) **In short:** B-ROLL keeps its options in two places: Advanced options, the three-dot button next to Subtitles, and Settings, the gear button. Advanced options cover part-of-a-video mode, exact frame cuts, playlists, channels and credits files. Settings hold open at login, browser login, the media player and the cookies file. Every choice is saved in config.json. ## Where are B-ROLL's settings? B-ROLL spreads its settings over four spots: the main window rows, **Advanced options** (the three-dot button next to **Subtitles**), **Settings** (the gear button) and the globe button for language. The main window holds per-download choices; the other three hold what you set once. This reference table lists every B-ROLL setting, where it lives, its options and its default, with labels as the app shows them. | Setting | Where | Options | Default | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Save to | Main window, **SAVE TO** row | **Change**, recent folders menu, **Open folder** | `%USERPROFILE%\Downloads` | | Save audio to a different folder | Main window | Off, or a folder of its own | Off | | Type | Main window switch | Video, Audio | Video | | Quality (video) | Main window | Best, 4K, 1080p, 720p, 480p | Best | | Quality (audio) | Main window | Best, 320 kbps, 256 kbps, 192 kbps, 128 kbps | Best | | Format (video) | Main window | MP4, MKV, WEBM, ProRes, DNx | MP4 | | Format (audio) | Main window | MP3, M4A, WAV, FLAC, OPUS | MP3 | | Subtitles | Main window | None, Embedded, SRT, ASS, VTT | None | | Part of a video | Advanced options | Whole video; Only a part, ask me which each time; Only a part, use the default below | Whole video | | Exact frame cut (slower, re-encodes) | Advanced options | On, Off | Off | | Download playlists | Advanced options | No, Ask, Yes | Ask | | Download channels | Advanced options | No, Ask, Yes | No | | Save credits (attribution) for each download | Advanced options | On, Off | On | | Compact | Button above the download list | On, Off | Off | | Open B-ROLL at login | Settings | On, Off | Off | | Use browser login for age-restricted videos | Settings | On, Off | On | | Open files with | Settings | System default player, the media players B-ROLL finds, **Browse…** | System default player | | Cookies file | Settings | **Choose…**, **Reset**, drop zone | None | | Language | Globe button | Auto plus 7 languages | Auto | Two defaults matter for bulk work: channel downloads are off by default, and playlists default to Ask, so a playlist link asks before it queues anything. Every page in [B-ROLL features for video editors](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/) assumes these defaults unless it says otherwise. [Download B-ROLL for Windows](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/download/): free, Windows 10 and 11 today, macOS and Linux planned. No account, no ads. ## What do B-ROLL's Advanced options do? B-ROLL's Advanced options decide how much of a video you get and what happens with playlist, channel and credits downloads. Open them with the three-dot button next to **Subtitles**; the label shows a dot while a part mode is on. **Part of a video** has three modes. **Whole video** is the default. **Only a part, ask me which each time** opens the preview and trim player for a single link when VLC is installed, or a small **Download which part?** prompt otherwise. **Only a part, use the default below** applies the **Start** and **End** fields to every download. The app's own time rule for those fields: "A number = minutes (2 = 2:00). Use m:ss for exact (e.g. 1:30)." The [YouTube clip downloader with preview and in/out points](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/youtube-clip-downloader/) walks through marking several parts of one video. **Exact frame cut (slower, re-encodes)** adds yt-dlp's `--force-keyframes-at-cuts` option, which the [yt-dlp README](https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp) describes as slow because it re-encodes. Off, B-ROLL cuts on keyframes, so a clip can start a moment before your in point. The preview player follows this checkbox and has no switch of its own. The trade-off is laid out in [keyframe cut vs frame-exact cut for YouTube clips](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/formats/keyframe-vs-exact-frame-cut/). **Download playlists** and **Download channels** each take No, Ask or Yes. On Ask, a watch link that belongs to a playlist asks "Download just this video, or the whole playlist?"; Yes or No answers for you. With channels on No, a channel link shows "Channel downloads are off: enable in Advanced." and nothing is queued. The [YouTube playlist and channel downloader](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/youtube-playlist-channel-downloader/) covers the dialog that opens once they are on. **Save credits (attribution) for each download** is on by default. B-ROLL writes a `.credits.txt` next to every file and appends the same block to `credits.txt` in the folder; the [automatic credit files for every YouTube download](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/automatic-creator-credit-files/) page shows the template. ## What is in B-ROLL's Settings window? B-ROLL's Settings window, behind the gear button, holds four options: **Open B-ROLL at login**, **Use browser login for age-restricted videos**, **Open files with** and **Cookies file**. **Open B-ROLL at login** is off by default. When you switch it on, B-ROLL writes the value `BROLL` under `HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run`, the per-user key that [Microsoft documents](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/setupapi/run-and-runonce-registry-keys) as running a program every time the user logs on. Turn it off before you uninstall, or the entry stays behind. **Use browser login for age-restricted videos** is on by default. With no cookies file set, B-ROLL lets yt-dlp read the YouTube login of your installed browsers after a sign-in error. As of September 2026, yt-dlp often cannot read Chrome, Edge or Brave cookies while that browser, or its background process, runs, so Firefox or a cookies file are the dependable routes. **Open files with** picks the player that **Open file** uses on a finished card: the system default, a media player B-ROLL finds on your PC, or a player you pick with **Browse…**. **Cookies file (for sign-in / restricted videos)** takes a cookies.txt through **Choose…** or the drop zone. B-ROLL copies it to `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll\cookies.txt` and uses it for every download from then on. Exporting, loading and refreshing that file is covered in [YouTube cookies.txt: export, use and refresh it](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/troubleshooting/youtube-cookies-txt/). > **Careful: Keep the cookies file private** > > A cookies.txt carries your signed-in YouTube session. Use your own account, never share the file, and press **Reset** when you stop needing it. ## Where does B-ROLL save files by default? B-ROLL saves every download to `%USERPROFILE%\Downloads` until you pick another folder in the **SAVE TO** row. **Change** opens a folder picker, the small menu lists your real Downloads folder (OneDrive included) and up to 6 recent folders, and **Open folder** opens Explorer. Audio can go elsewhere. Switch on **Save audio to a different folder** and a second **SAVE TO** row appears: Audio downloads land there, video downloads stay in the main folder. Bulk downloads add one level. A playlist page link or a channel link saves into a subfolder named after the channel (for a playlist, the channel of its first video, or "channel" when none is found), while **Whole playlist** chosen from a watch link goes into the main folder. Subtitles in SRT, ASS or VTT sit next to the video, moving into a "Title - subtitles" folder when there is more than one. B-ROLL's own tools and settings never mix with your footage: they live in `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll`. Your first download is shown step by step in [how to install B-ROLL and download your first video](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/guides/getting-started/). ## Which choices does B-ROLL remember between sessions? B-ROLL remembers every choice in the reference table: it writes them to `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll\config.json` and restores them at the next launch, including the part-of-a-video mode and its default Start and End. Type, Quality and Format are stored twice, once for Video and once for Audio. Switch to Audio and your last audio format returns. The same file also keeps your recent folders, the version you told the update dialog to skip, and the last 200 finished downloads, which come back as cards in **Completed**. The download log is the exception: it lives in memory for the session only. The portable exe uses the same `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll` folder, so its settings stay on that PC rather than next to the exe. Uninstalling B-ROLL leaves the folder in place, with settings, history and any cookies.txt; delete it by hand for a full removal. ## What does the TOOLS section of the Advanced panel do? The TOOLS section sits in the sidebar **Advanced** panel, which is separate from the Advanced options menu. It shows whether yt-dlp, ffmpeg and the JS runtime (Deno) are ready, and it holds four repair and support actions. Opening the panel also shows the log under the download list. 1. Press **Force update yt-dlp** to update yt-dlp on demand; B-ROLL already moves it to the latest nightly build at every launch. 2. Press **Reinstall tools** to download ffmpeg and Deno again; neither updates on its own. 3. Press **Open download log** to read the full log of the session. 4. Press **Report a bug** to open your email app with a prefilled message; nothing is sent until you send it. A common case for **Reinstall tools**: when an ffmpeg was already on your Windows PATH at first launch, B-ROLL skips its own ffmpeg and Deno, and TOOLS shows "JS runtime: missing". The **Report a bug** message includes the last 4,000 characters of the log while **Include the download log** stays ticked. ## Frequently asked questions Q: How do I turn on channel downloads? A: Open Advanced options with the three-dot button next to Subtitles and set Download channels to Ask or Yes. The setting starts on No, so until you change it a pasted channel link only shows the hint that channel downloads are off. Ask confirms each channel link first; Yes opens the channel downloader straight away. Q: How do I remove my cookies file from B-ROLL? A: Open Settings with the gear button and press Reset next to Cookies file. Reset deletes the copy B-ROLL keeps in its own data folder, and the line returns to None, using browser. Your original export is a separate file, so delete it yourself if you no longer need it. Q: Does B-ROLL start with Windows? A: Only when you switch on Open B-ROLL at login in Settings, which is off by default. B-ROLL then adds an entry to your own user's Run key in the Windows registry (the section on Open B-ROLL at login gives its exact name and path), and Windows starts the app when you sign in. Switch the checkbox off to remove that entry again. Q: How do I change the interface language? A: Click the globe button and pick a language: Auto, English, Italiano, Español, Português, Français, Deutsch or Русский. B-ROLL asks to restart and opens again in the new language. Auto follows your Windows display language. Several dialogs, error messages and menu values such as Best or None stay in English in every language. ## Sources 1. [yt-dlp README on GitHub](https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp) 2. [Microsoft Learn: Run and RunOnce Registry Keys](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/setupapi/run-and-runonce-registry-keys) --- B-ROLL is a free, donation-supported desktop YouTube downloader for video editors: it downloads videos, clips, playlists and channels, converts them automatically into edit-ready ProRes or DNxHR (or saves MP4, MKV, WEBM or audio), and includes built-in trimming, subtitles and automatic creator credit files. Part of [B-ROLL Features for Video Editors](https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/features/) on the B-ROLL website. Download B-ROLL, free for Windows 10 and 11 (macOS and Linux planned): https://b-roll-6hk.pages.dev/download/