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Every preference in MetaDock lives in one searchable Settings window, organized into categories down the left. This page documents every setting, what it does, and the options it offers. Open Settings from the main toolbar, then use the search bar at the top to jump straight to any option.
Settings are grouped into categories shown as tabs on the left. Which categories appear depends on your edition and which features it includes.
| Category | What you'll find |
|---|---|
| General | Auto-save, auto-start with Windows, default search engine, default download folder. |
| Appearance | Theme, fonts, per-surface colors, icon size, divider size, and window transparency. |
| Layout & UI | How new windows, links, and dialogs open, title-bar behavior, and suggestion timing. |
| Browser | JavaScript, tracking prevention, default zoom, ad/tracker blocking, link preview, URL shortcodes. |
| Applications | Dock external Windows apps beside your browsers, and control which apps appear in the mount list. |
| Trading | Enable trading and Quick Symbol tools, and choose how multiple charts open. |
| Privacy & Security | Stealth modes, privacy password, site permissions, the credential vault, and anti-fingerprint. |
| API & Automation | Turn on REST, WebSocket, MCP, WebDriver, and CDP, manage keys, and control access. |
| Keyboard Shortcuts | Rebind any keyboard action to keys you prefer. |
| AI | Model and connection settings for the built-in AI assistant. |
| About | Your installed version and edition. |
The search bar at the top of Settings is the fastest way to find anything. Start typing a setting name to filter across every category at once. The filter button next to the search bar also offers quick tokens that narrow the list:
@modifiedOnly settings you've changed from their defaults.@appearanceAppearance settings (theme, colors, fonts, transparency).@layoutLayout & UI settings (window, link, and dialog behavior).@browserBrowser settings (zoom, tracking prevention, scripts, ad blocking).@apiAPI & Automation settings (transports, host, port, keys, access).A Reset to Defaults button restores settings to their factory values if you want a clean slate.
@modified in the search bar to see everything you have changed. The fix is often reverting a setting you forgot you touched.| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Auto-Save | Saves your workspace automatically whenever you make a change. On by default, so a crash or restart never costs you your layout. |
| Auto-start with Windows | Launches MetaDock when Windows starts. Off by default. |
| Default Search Engine | The engine used when you type a query into the address bar. Over 20 are built in, including Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Yandex, Ask, Reddit, YouTube, and regional Amazon, eBay, and BestBuy. Google is the default. |
| Default Download Directory | The folder new downloads are saved to. |
Control the entire look of the app, from the active theme down to individual surface colors.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Theme | The active color theme. Pick a built-in theme or one you have built yourself (see Themes below). |
| Dark/Light Mode (Browser) | The color-scheme preference passed to web pages, so sites that support it render in Dark Theme or Light Theme. |
| Font | The application font family and size used throughout the interface. |
| Color customization | A color picker for every surface: panel background and text, input background and text, buttons, selection, links, tooltips, edges, shadows, separators, and the accent. 21 colors in all, edited in the theme editor below. |
| Icon Size | Scales interface icons from 50% to 200% so the toolbar matches your display and eyesight. |
| Resize Grip Size | The width of the draggable dividers between panels, from 1 to 16 pixels. Larger grips are easier to grab. |
| Window Transparency | Translucent window backgrounds with a blur effect on Windows 10 and 11. |
| Transparency Level | How opaque the background is when transparency is on, from 0 to 255. Lower is more see-through. |
MetaDock ships with eight built-in themes: two light (Light, Blue) and six dark (Dark, Classic, Future, Dark Blue, Tuxedo, Terminal). Dark Blue is the default in dark mode and Light in light mode.
You can also build your own. Open the theme editor from Appearance → Theme Management:
Decide how windows, links, and dialogs appear, and how the chrome behaves.
| Setting | Options |
|---|---|
| New Window Behavior | How new browsers and apps are created: Workspace Panel (docked into the tiled layout), Floating Window (a free window you can move anywhere), or Tabbed Interface (a new tab inside an existing dock panel). |
| New Link Behavior | How 'open in new window' links behave: Workspace Panel, Floating Window, or Tabbed Interface, using the same three modes as above. |
| Dialog Display Mode | How dialogs and popups appear: Workspace Panel, Tabbed Interface, or Floating Window. |
| Title Bar Mode | Title bars on panels and browsers: Always Show, Always Hide, or Auto-hide (they slide in when you move the cursor near the top edge of a panel). |
| Auto Suggest Interval | The delay before address-bar suggestions appear, from 100 to 3000 ms. Lower feels snappier; higher waits until you pause typing. |
Defaults that apply to every browser you open. Most can be overridden per profile or per browser.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Enable JavaScript | Turns JavaScript on or off for all browser windows. On by default. |
| Tracking Prevention Level | How strictly trackers are blocked: Disabled, Basic (blocks known malicious trackers, allows most analytics), Balanced (blocks most trackers while keeping sites working), or Strict (blocks all trackers, may break some sites). |
| Default Zoom Level | The zoom level new browsers open at, from 25% to 500%. |
| Extended Title: Show Profile | Adds the profile name to window title bars so you always know which identity a browser belongs to. |
| Extended Title: Show Proxy | Adds the proxy status to window title bars. |
| Disable Floating Windows | Keeps windows inside the docked area instead of letting them float free. |
| Link Preview on Alt+Hover | Hold Alt and hover over a link to see a small screenshot preview of where it leads, rendered by a single reusable background browser. |
| URL Shortcodes | Save short codes that expand to full URLs. Type a shortcode in the address bar to jump straight to its destination. |
The Browser category also hosts ad and tracker blocking:
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Block ads | Blocks ads and trackers using filter lists. Can be overridden per profile and per browser. |
| Filter Lists | Toggle, update, or remove the built-in block lists, and add your own by URL. |
| Adblock Site Exceptions | Sites where ad blocking is turned off. An entry also covers its subdomains. |
Dock native Windows applications into the same tiled layout as your browsers. Beta
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| App Support (Beta) | Allows external Windows applications to be docked alongside your browsers. |
| Mountable App Privacy | Hide the New Tab running-app list while screen-sharing, or hide specific applications from it. |
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Trading Features | Enables the trading and Quick Symbol tools, including the keyboard symbol search for opening a ticker across your charts at once. |
| Quick Symbol Charts | How chart windows open for multiple symbols: Workspace Panels (each chart as its own docked panel) or Single Floating Window (all charts as tabs in one floating window). |
Everything that controls what is visible, what is remembered, and how your identity is protected.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Privacy Features | Enables the instant hide and stealth features (F2 and F8). See Stealth Modes below. |
| Set Privacy Password | Sets a password so hidden browsers and the hidden interface cannot be revealed without it. |
| Clear Privacy Password | Removes the privacy password (you must enter the current one to clear it). |
| Site Permissions | View and forget remembered site permission decisions, such as camera, microphone, location, and notifications. |
| MetaDock Credential Manager | When on, MetaDock's master-password vault handles autofill and save prompts. When off, the browser's built-in password manager takes over instead. Changing this requires a restart for already-open browsers. |
| Import Passwords from File | Import logins from a CSV (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari, LastPass, Dashlane, NordPass), a Bitwarden JSON export, or a 1Password .1pux export. |
The Privacy & Security category is also where anti-fingerprint and geolocation protection live:
MetaDock includes instant-hide modes designed for sensitive environments, whether you are at work, sharing a screen, or just need privacy in a hurry. Turn them on with Privacy Features in Settings.
Press F8 on any browser panel to instantly hide its content and mute its audio. The panel goes blank so nobody can see what was on it.
Use case: someone walks up while you are browsing something personal. F8 hides just that panel; your other panels stay visible and normal.
Press F2 to completely hide MetaDock's interface and mute all audio. The whole application disappears.
Use case: you are about to share your screen. F2 hides everything at once. When you are done, press F2 again (or enter your password) to bring it all back.
Mute or unmute every browser and media source in one keystroke.
One unified panel turns on the automation surfaces, manages keys, and controls who can connect. It opens fresh each time so the status and usage you see are always current.
A header showing the live base URL your tools should point at, plus your current request usage.
Per-transport toggles for REST, WebSocket, MCP, WebDriver (Selenium), and CDP, plus the host and port. The default is 127.0.0.1:8080. A single Apply applies host, port, and transport changes together.
An embedded multi-key manager for creating and revoking API keys, plus a one-click installer that adds MetaDock to desktop tools like Claude Desktop and Cursor.
An Allow-All toggle above two allowlists: an approval list for authorized connections, and an MCP access list that controls which tools an agent may use.
| Category | What it does |
|---|---|
| Keyboard Shortcuts | Rebind any keyboard action to keys you prefer, and reset all bindings back to their defaults. |
| AI | Model and connection settings for the built-in AI assistant, when your edition includes it. |
| About | Shows your installed version and edition. |