To use the Respondus calculator, look for a calculator icon on the LockDown Browser toolbar once your exam opens. The icon only appears if your instructor turned it on in the exam’s Advanced Settings. If it’s missing, your instructor didn’t enable it, or your network is blocking the connection it needs. Your own physical calculator or Desmos is allowed only if the instructor says so.
The confusion is understandable. LockDown Browser locks your computer to the exam and blocks other applications, including the Windows or Mac calculator you’d normally open in a second. You can sit down to a math or finance exam and find nothing to compute with, and by then it’s too late to ask. Students also search for the Respondus calculator download, but there is nothing to install. It is built into the browser.
This guide walks through the whole process in four steps: confirming the calculator is allowed, finding it, fixing it when the icon is missing, and handling Desmos or a handheld calculator. It also shows the instructor-side settings, which helps you ask the right question. At takemyproctoredexam we work with students facing remotely proctored exams, and a setup problem found early is the cheapest one to fix.
How the Respondus calculator works
The calculator is a small tool that LockDown Browser adds to its own toolbar when an instructor enables it. It is the only calculator the browser provides, because everything else on your computer is blocked during the exam.
What you get and what stays blocked
The built-in tool comes in two versions: a standard calculator and a scientific calculator. The instructor picks one for the whole exam, and you can’t switch. The Windows or Mac calculator, spreadsheet apps, and a browser tab with a free online calculator all stay blocked.
If the instructor didn’t enable it, the exam has no calculator, and the only fix is to ask.
How instructors turn it on
If you teach the course, or want to know what to ask for, this is the path in the LockDown Browser Dashboard:
- Open the LockDown Browser Dashboard in your course.
- Choose Settings for the exam.
- Select Advanced Settings.
- Check Enable Calculator on the toolbar.
- Choose Standard Calculator or Scientific Calculator, then save.
Because it’s an Advanced Setting, instructors often skip it by accident. A polite message from you is often enough to get it switched on.
Step 1. Confirm the calculator is allowed
Before exam day, find out whether a calculator is permitted and which kind. The exam instructions, the syllabus, and the quiz description are the places to look, and your instructor has the final word.
Read the exam instructions
Search the quiz page and syllabus for "calculator," "scientific," "Desmos," or "approved materials." Some instructors write "a calculator is provided in LockDown Browser," which tells you to use the toolbar tool. Others write "bring a handheld calculator," which means something different. Wording like "no outside aids" usually means the built-in tool is your only option, if it’s enabled at all.
Ask in writing if it isn’t clear
If nothing is stated, send a short message a few days ahead. Written answers protect you if a question comes up later.
Subject: Calculator policy for [Exam name]
Hi Professor [Name],
Before the [Exam name] on [date], can you confirm whether a
calculator is allowed? Specifically:
1. Will the built-in LockDown Browser calculator be enabled
(standard or scientific)?
2. May I use my own handheld calculator? If yes, which models?
3. Is Desmos permitted?
Thank you,
[Your name]
Step 2. Find and use the calculator in the exam
Once you launch the exam in LockDown Browser, look at the toolbar for a calculator icon. Click it to open the tool over your exam window. In some setups, it sits in the top left of the toolbar, so check there first.
Locate the icon and open it
Start the exam and scan the toolbar before reading question one. If you see the icon, click it once to confirm it opens, then close it. Do this early, so a problem doesn’t surface in the middle of a timed question.
If you can’t find it, don’t hunt through menus for several minutes. Go straight to Step 3 and fix it before the clock costs you more.
Standard versus scientific
The two versions serve different courses, so know which one you have.
| Version | Best for | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | Basic arithmetic, percentages, simple accounting | Check that you can do the operations your exam needs |
| Scientific | Courses needing functions beyond basic arithmetic | Practice with it before exam day if you can |
If your instructor offers a practice quiz with LockDown Browser required, use it. That’s the best way to learn how the calculator behaves.
Open the calculator once in the first minute of the exam, so you know it works before it matters.
Step 3. Fix a missing calculator icon
When the icon is missing, the cause is usually one of two things: the instructor didn’t enable it, or your network is blocking the connection it needs. The calculator has to reach Respondus’s server at smc-service-cloud.respondus2.com. If your computer or network blocks that address, the icon won’t appear.
Rule out the network first
Campus Wi-Fi, workplace networks, and some VPNs or security tools often block unfamiliar domains. Switch to your home network if you can, and turn off any VPN. A network administrator can allow the address above, but you won’t have time to arrange that mid-exam, so test beforehand.
Work through this checklist
Go in this order and stop when the icon shows up:
- Close LockDown Browser completely and relaunch the exam.
- Disconnect any VPN.
- Switch from a work or campus network to home Wi-Fi.
- Pause your firewall or security software, if you’re allowed to, and relaunch.
- If it’s still missing, message your instructor before you start the exam. Describe what you see and ask them to confirm the setting.
Don’t try to get around the lock by opening another calculator. LockDown Browser blocks those apps on purpose, and tampering with the setup can create problems you don’t want during a proctored exam.
A missing icon usually means a setting or a blocked network, so fix those before you start, not after.
Step 4. Use Desmos or your own calculator
Neither Desmos nor a handheld calculator works by default. Both need explicit permission from your instructor, and Desmos also needs a specific setup on the instructor’s side.
How Desmos works in LockDown Browser
For Desmos, the instructor adds a clickable link to https://www.desmos.com/ inside a quiz question. Students click it during the exam, and Desmos opens in a new tab while the quiz stays open in the original tab. The instructor also enables Allow Access to specific external web domains under Advanced Settings and enters *.desmos.com as the allowed domain.
One detail catches students out. This setup supports logging in with a Desmos account, but not through Google or Apple. If you want your saved graphs, create a Desmos account with an email and password beforehand.
Using a physical calculator
Whether you can use a handheld calculator depends entirely on the instructor’s policy. Basic and scientific models are the ones most commonly approved, while programmable graphing calculators are more often restricted. If you’re on webcam, ask whether you need to show the calculator during the room check, and follow the instructions you’re given.
| Option | Who decides | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Built-in toolbar calculator | Instructor setting | Icon visible, server reachable |
| Desmos | Instructor setting plus quiz link | Link in question, *.desmos.com allowed, Desmos account login |
| Handheld calculator | Instructor policy | Written approval, specific model if required |
Your instructor’s written policy, not your assumption, decides which calculator you can use.
Know your setup before exam day
The Respondus calculator is simple once you know the rules. It exists only when your instructor enables it, it appears on the LockDown Browser toolbar, and it depends on a network connection that campus and work networks sometimes block. Desmos and handheld calculators need separate approval. Ask early, test early, and keep the answer in writing.
If you’re facing a remotely proctored exam and want more support, visit takemyproctoredexam to see how we help students, including with WGU OA help.