# Find a partner and run a session

> Open the Body double panel, choose a mode, find a partner and start a session on camera. Dock or expand the video, chat, block or end the session.

Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/body-double-session
Section: Focus and flow > Body doubling
Plans: Pro and Team plans
Updated: 2026-10-15

This guide takes you through one body doubling session, from opening the panel to ending the session. For what body doubling is, see [Body doubling: work alongside someone](https://plexiidesk.com/help/body-double-overview).

## Before you start

- **Plan:** body doubling is part of the **Pro** and **Team** plans.
- **Sign in** to your PlexiDesk account. If you are signed out, the panel shows **Sign in to find a partner** instead of **Find a partner**. See [Create an account and sign in](https://plexiidesk.com/help/account-sign-in).
- **Allow your camera,** and your microphone for every mode except **Silent**. See [Allow microphone, camera and screen recording on a Mac](https://plexiidesk.com/help/mac-permissions).
- **Leave any other meeting first.** The session's video cannot open while you are in another meeting.

## Open the Body double panel

Use either of these:

- Click the **Body double** button near the right-hand end of the header. It shows three people, and its tooltip says **Body double — pair with someone to feel less alone while you work**.
- Press `⌘` `K` on a Mac or `Ctrl` `K` on Windows, type "body double" and choose **Find a body double**. See [The command palette](https://plexiidesk.com/help/command-palette).

The panel is headed **Body double**, with the line **Work alongside someone, matched at random**.

## Find a partner

1. Under **How much interaction would you like?**, click a mode: **Silent**, **Intros only**, **A little chat is fine** or **Happy to talk**. The panel opens on your usual mode, and the one you click becomes your usual mode for next time. See [The four body doubling modes](https://plexiidesk.com/help/body-double-modes).
2. Optionally, type a few words in **What are you working on?**, for example "inbox triage". Your partner sees it. It holds up to 80 characters, and it is not shown in **Silent** mode.
3. Read the **Privacy** note at the bottom of the panel, then click **Find a partner**.
4. The panel says **Looking for someone who picked** followed by your mode, and shows your session name for this session, for example **You're QuietCedar34 while you wait**. To stop looking, click **Cancel**.

You can close the panel while it looks. The search carries on, the header button stays filled in, and its tooltip says **Body double — searching for a partner…**.

## Meet your partner

When a partner is found, a small dot appears on the header button and its tooltip says **Body double — partner found, click to greet**. Open the panel to see:

- **Say hello to** and your partner's session name
- **Working on** and their line, if they wrote one
- **You both picked** and the mode, with **Starting opens your camera in a private room, docked to the side of your screen.**

Then:

- Click **Start session** to open the video room.
- Click **Skip** to end the pairing without starting. Your partner is told the session ended.

## During the session

When you start, PlexiDesk turns on your camera, and your microphone if your mode uses one. The panel says **Opening your camera…**, then **You are on camera together. The video is docked at the side of your screen.**

### The video

The video sits in a panel docked to one side of the window, titled **Body double ·** and your partner's session name. Under the title, a line states your mode and the state of your microphone, for example **A little chat · mic muted, unmute for a quick word**. In **Intros only** it counts down the time until your microphone mutes.

The buttons along the bottom of the video:

| Button (tooltip) | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Mute** / **Unmute** | Mutes or unmutes your microphone. Not shown in **Silent**, where no microphone is used. |
| **Turn camera off** / **Turn camera on** | Turns your camera off or back on. |
| **Expand to full screen** / **Dock to the side** | Switches between the docked panel and a full-screen view. |
| **End and never match with them again** | Ends the session and blocks your partner. |
| **End body double session** | Ends the session. |

To move the docked video, click one of the four arrow buttons at the top of it (**Dock left**, **Dock top**, **Dock bottom**, **Dock right**). PlexiDesk remembers the side you choose. In full screen, pressing `Esc` docks the video again and does not end the session.

### The Body double panel

While the session runs, the panel shows your mode at the top and acts as the session's controls:

- **Dock video** or **Full screen** switches the video between docked and full screen.
- **Reopen video** appears if the video has been closed. The session carries on without it until you reopen it.
- Your partner's session name and their **Working on** line.
- **Block** ends the session, and you are not matched with that member again.
- **End session** ends the session for both of you.

In every mode except **Silent**, the panel has a text chat. Type a message and press `Return` (`Enter` on Windows), or click **Send**. A message holds up to 1,000 characters. In **Silent**, the panel says **You're not alone.** instead, and there is no chat.

You can close the panel and get on with your work. Its close button's tooltip says **Hide panel — session keeps running**, and `Esc` or clicking outside the panel also just hides it. A green dot on the header button shows the session is running. Click the button to bring the panel back.

## End the session

- Click **End session** in the panel, or **End body double session** on the video. The video closes and the session ends for both of you.
- To end it and never be paired with that member again, click **Block** in the panel, or **End and never match with them again** on the video. The panel says **Session ended. You will not be matched with them again.** Your partner is told only that the session ended.

If your partner ends the session, the panel opens by itself and says **Your partner ended the session.**

## Common questions

**The video did not open.** The panel says why, with a **Try again** button:

- **You are in another meeting. Leave it to see your body double.** Leave the other meeting, then click **Try again**.
- **Could not access your camera. Check system permissions.** (or **your microphone or camera**). Allow PlexiDesk to use them, then click **Try again**. On a Mac, see [Allow microphone, camera and screen recording on a Mac](https://plexiidesk.com/help/mac-permissions).

**It says it could not reach the matching service.** The message reads **Could not reach the matching service. Check your connection and try again.** Check your internet connection and click **Find a partner** again. If the connection drops during a session, the session ends and the panel says **Lost the connection to the matching service, so the session ended.**

**It is taking a while to find someone.** You are only paired with someone who picked the same mode. Leave it looking while you work, or click **Cancel** and try another mode.

**Can I change mode in the middle of a session?** No. Both of you agreed to the mode you were matched on. End the session and look again in another mode.

**I see "See plans" instead of "Find a partner".** Your plan does not include body doubling. **See plans** opens the pricing page. See [Plans and pricing: Free, Pro and Team](https://plexiidesk.com/help/plans-and-pricing).

## Related tasks

- [Body doubling: work alongside someone](https://plexiidesk.com/help/body-double-overview)
- [The four body doubling modes](https://plexiidesk.com/help/body-double-modes)
- [Set your body doubling preference](https://plexiidesk.com/help/settings-account-body-double)
- [The command palette](https://plexiidesk.com/help/command-palette)
- [The header bar](https://plexiidesk.com/help/app-header)