> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.alex.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Set up the Inbox > Turn Inbox recording on, bring in what already happened, and set when undecided candidates close, in Settings → Inbox. Admins (anyone with **Global Settings: Can manage**) manage the Inbox for the whole company in **Settings → Inbox**, under Company. Only admins can open this page, and it appears once your Alex team has made the Inbox available to your company. Nothing reaches the Inbox until an admin turns **recording** on. While it's off, Alex adds no items, and people who open the Inbox see that it isn't recording. ## The status bar The top of **Settings → Inbox** always says whether Alex is recording, and holds the one control for it: | Status | What it means | What you can do | | - | - | - | | **Not recording** | Alex isn't adding items. If recording was on before, it says when it was turned off. | **Turn on** | | **Recording · backfilling** | Recording is on, and Alex is bringing in what already happened. It shows how many items it has opened so far. | Wait for it to finish. You can't turn recording off or stop the backfill while it runs. | | **Recording** | Alex adds an item whenever a candidate needs a person. It says since when, and who turned it on. | Turn it off with the switch. | ![Settings → Inbox while not recording, with Turn on](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-settings-off.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=501f3baabae1a1d383080c84c068a497) ## Turn recording on 1. Click **Turn on**. 2. Under **Bring in what already happened**, choose **Last 7 days**, **Last 14 days** or **Last 30 days**, or **Skip backfill** to start from now. 3. Under **Close decisions nobody acted on**, choose **Never**, or close an undecided candidate's item after **7**, **14** or **30 days**. 4. Click **Start**. Recording starts straight away, in your name. Unless you skipped it, Alex then brings in what needed a person over the window you chose, on every job, and the status bar shows its progress. ![The Turn on dialog: how far back to bring in what already happened, and when to close undecided candidates](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-turn-on-dialog.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=0e1f6340d01ebeaf0a60dbe9773c6084) Good to know about the backfill: * **Nothing is doubled.** An item already in the Inbox is left as it is. * **Closed items stay closed.** Anything handled since isn't brought back. * **Answered asks are skipped.** A request for a person or an unanswered question that someone has already written to the candidate about isn't brought in. * **Old decisions are skipped** when you close undecided candidates after a time limit: a Needs decision item older than that limit would close straight away. * **Text conversations' questions aren't brought in.** Alex checks a quiet text conversation for questions as it happens, so only interviews' questions come in from before recording started. ![The status bar while Alex brings in what already happened](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-settings-backfilling.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=fa935152cebad61b4bb25b07c40d0c77) ## While recording Once the backfill is done (or skipped), the page shows: * **Backfill**: who started it, when, how far back it reached, how many items it opened and how it ended; or **Backfill skipped**. * **Rules**: **Close decisions nobody acted on**, which you can change at any time. ![Settings → Inbox while recording: the status bar with its switch, the backfill's details and the rules](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-settings-on.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=8ae60b3624148ba0f03caebb285cb6ed) ### If the backfill fails or stops If the backfill fails or stops before it finishes, the page says so, and anything it opened stays. Click **Retry** to run it again over the same window. It won't double anything it already opened. ![A backfill that stopped on an error, with Retry](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-settings-retry.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=4a97d7852e28e29ae89f6f0ce99501c4) ### Close decisions nobody acted on Closes a Needs decision item when nobody has decided within **7**, **14** or **30 days** of the candidate's interview. The candidate stays undecided; the item shows as **Closed with no decision in time**. The default is **Never**. ## Turn recording off Click the switch in the status bar, then **Turn off** to confirm. * **Alex stops adding items.** Nothing new reaches the Inbox until it's turned back on. * **Items already in the Inbox stay**, and still close when someone handles them. * **Turning it back on** opens the same dialog. The window starts at the one that reaches back to when recording was turned off, so you can bring in what happened while it was off. It won't double anything that was already recorded. ![Confirming that recording should be turned off](https://mintcdn.com/apriora/MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb/images/inbox/inbox-turn-off-confirm.png?fit=max\&auto=format\&n=MDTG4MwWsGXMaoCb\&q=85\&s=cafb0835c5c6a2f24880281ad47e5039) ## Give people the Inbox Recording fills the Inbox; a role permission decides who can open it and whose items they see. See [Permissions](https://docs.alex.com/inbox/permissions.md). > [!NOTE] > > Have questions or feedback about the Inbox? Contact [support@alex.com](mailto:support@alex.com). This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.