Repair Corrupt Video Files on Windows & Mac| Repair MP4, MOV, AVI Files

Summary:

 It is annoying to see your favorite videos not playing in any video players or displaying errors constantly while playing. This could be due to some underlying issue or video file corruption. When videos get corrupt, it becomes unreadable and unplayable. With the help of methods explained in the article, you can repair video files in almost all video file formats.

Table of contents

Why do video files get corrupted?
How to Repair Corrupt or Damaged Video Files? (MOV, MP4, AVI)
Easiest Way to Repair Video Files- SFWare Video Repair Tool
Tips to avoid video corruption
FAQ

Why do video files get corrupted?

Video files can get corrupted due to multiple reasons. Here are a few reasons why your videos files get corrupted-

    1. A video file can corrupt while encoding or transferring a video via networks.
    2. Corruption in storage media could lead to video file corruption on the drive.
    3. Bad sectors on the hard drive are one of the common reasons that make your video files corrupt.
    4. Viruses or malware can damage the videos, resulting in the damaged codec, broken headers, and indexes.

When videos get corrupt, videos start to get choppy. When videos get lagging and stutter, you won’t be able to play them continuously.

How to Repair Corrupt or Damaged Video Files? (MOV, MP4, AVI, other formats)

Several methods can help you repair video files. Here are a few simple yet effective techniques to help you repair video files without hassle.

Use VLC Media player to fix video files (Windows & Mac)

Using QuickTime Player to repair corrupt or damaged videos (Mac)

Use SFWare Video Repair Tool to Repair Videos

For Windows & Mac Users- Use VLC Media Player to Fix Video Files  

The VLC media player is an open-source media player with a built-in code system that helps you repair basic corruption in any video file format. In addition, the VLC media player contains a unique codec library compatible with all video file formats. Therefore, the VLC media player can work with any file format compatible with the codec it has and repair damaged or corrupted video files without any hassle.
VLC Player to repair videos

Important Note: Ensure you always use a copy of the original video for repair. Avoid working on original video files to evade further corruption during the process.

Steps to repair videos using VLC media player

First, take a copy of your videos (be it any file format other than AVI) convert into AVI or change the file extension to .AVI.

    • Download the VLC media player on your computer. Open the video file in VLC Media Player.
    • From the top menu, go to Tools > Select Preference > Input & Codecs.
    • Select Always Fix from the drop-down next to the Repair AVI file.
    • Click on Save. Now check at the saved location if the video is playing without any problem.

Note: What if your VLC is not playing? How do you fix it? Click here to learn different methods to fix VLC not playing.

Using QuickTime Player to repair corrupt or damaged videos (Mac)

QuickTime is a framework created by Apple that supports playing, streaming, encoding, and transcoding in various video formats. You can repair any corrupt video files on Mac using QuickTime player.

    • Launch QuickTime Player and open the corrupt video file or import the corrupt video file
    • Navigate to Windows tab and click on Show Movie Inspector
    •  Now, you will be able to view the properties of the video file such as Movie FPS, Movie format, pixel information, duration, data rate, size, etc.
    • If the video file is damaged, QuickTime Player will display a black screen error message with its details
    •  You can further search for the specific video error code online and find a way to fix it. Or the best way to repair a video file is to use a third-party video repair tool.SFWare Video Repair Tool is an effective tool that can repair damaged or corrupted videos easily in 3 steps. It can fix videos, errors damaged by a malware infection, a bad sector, or other reasons.

Use SFWare Video Repair Tool to Repair Video

To repair corrupt video files, download and install the professionals recommended SFWare Video Repair Tool on your computer and follow the steps given below-

Free Download for WindowsFree Download for Mac

Step 1: Select MOV/MP4 or AVI Repair from the main screen. Select video files from the screen.
repair videos using SFWare

Step 2: Provide any healthy working video file of the same format and a corrupt file that you want to repair. Click on the Repair button. The tool needs a healthy file to compare and repair the corrupt video file.
click on Repair button

Step 3: After the completion of the repairing process, Preview the repaired video file and Save the file in your desired location.

SFWare repair tool-repairing the corrupt video

Tips to avoid Video corruption

    • First, install an antivirus on your system that avoids any damage causing viruses or malware
    • If your videos are saved on the external drive, carefully insert/eject the external drive to the computer.
    • Always make sure to take a copy of the original file before you work on it
    • Make sure you are downloading or transferring videos using secure channels.

Conclusion:

With all the above methods, you can repair the video file corruption without any issues. However, avoiding videos getting corrupted for specific reasons such as viruses or malware is always recommended. If you face any such situation, you can use the SFWare video repair tool to fix any video errors.

Frequently Asked questions

Can Corrupt Files Be Repaired?

Yes, when a video file is corrupted, it is not the whole video that is corrupted. Instead, it could be a broken header or index, damage in the frame rate, or bad sectors on the drive where videos are stored. Therefore, you can quickly repair the corrupt videos with the proper codec to fix the issue. The easiest way to fix videos is by using an open-source VLC media player app.

Can VLC Fix Damaged Videos?

Yes, VLC media players can quickly fix the videos. The VLC media player has various codec library that is compatible with almost all video formats. However, along with repairing, you can also convert the video format to another video file format. If your VLC player keeps crashing while repairing, click here to fix the issue.

How do I recover a corrupted video?

Corrupt videos can quickly be recovered using any professional recovery software. However, recovering corrupt videos doesn’t make your videos play unless it is repaired. With the SFWare Data recovery tool, you can recover videos from a corrupt SD card drive or hard disk and make them play. However, to play corrupt videos, you must repair videos.

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