MOV Files Not Playing: How to Repair Corrupt MOV Videos

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Introduction

A few days ago, I was scrolling through my gallery to enjoy some of my recent videos from our company Christmas party last month. However, I was devastated to find some of my MOV files not playing on my device. I did not see this coming and unfortunately, I had no backup for the same. The videos were important so I could not let it go just like that.

Thankfully, with some research and smart work I was able to fix this issue and play the corrupt MOV videos. If you also want to know how I fixed corrupt MOV videos, then please continue reading this blog and in the end I am sure you will be know how to play a MOV file that is corrupt.

What Causes MOV Files Not Playing Issue?

MOV is a video file format developed by Apple for use in their videos. So like me if you shoot any video from your iPhone device it’s probably an MOV file and usually has the “.mov” file extension. Like most video formats, MOV files also face playback issues sometimes due to various reasons.

One of the major causes of MOV files not playing is corrupted data. Just like any other file, video files stored on your device can also become corrupted due to several factors like sudden power loss, file system errors, virus attack, hard drive bad sectors, etc. Even a single bit of corrupted data in a MOV file can cause it not to playback properly.

Improper closing of video editing software while exporting can also lead to partially written MOV files that become unplayable. Whereas, transferring unfinished video uploads or downloads also results in corrupted MOV files.

Using outdated or incompatible video players is another reason why MOV files refuse to play. Not all players support all MOV codec variations. So you need to ensure your player supports the exact codec and format of the problem MOV file. Even faulty codec installations can prevent playback.

3 Proven Ways to Repair Corrupt MOV Videos:

You might have already executed the basic troubleshooting fixes for the MOV files not working issue – like restarting your device, or transferring MOV files to other device, or changing the media player, and checking file permissions for the video player.

Well, if you did not try any of the basic troubleshooting steps to fix the corrupt MOV files you can try your luck once and see if any of these works for you. If not then do not worry, as I share the same ordeal, I’ll let you know the effective methods to fix corrupt MOV files, and guide you through them step-by-step.

1. Stellar Repair for Video

I know that you are most probably looking for some in-device or free methods to fix MOV not playing issue. Surprisingly, this MOV video repair tool is the most effective one that helped me not just fix the MOV files but other file format too. I tried Stellar Repair for Video tool on a couple of other corrupt videos from my video library and irrespective of the video file format and it worked like a hot knife through butter and fixed all of them.

Stellar Repair for Video is a powerful and effective video repair tool. It can handle multiple file types and corrupt MOV files in batches, making it a choice for heavy users. I’ll explain how you can give it a try to resolve your problem in four simple steps.

Download and install Stellar Repair for Video on your system.
Then, click ‘Add File’ and select your corrupted MOV files.
Next, click ‘Repair’ and let the software work its magic.

Finally, click ‘Save Repaired Files’ to save your repaired MOV file at the desired location.

Stellar Repair for Video is not just effective but also saves your time and effort dealing with such corrupt MOV files. This software is free to use, hence, you can repair and preview corrupt .mov files before purchasing the software. Once satisfied you can proceed with saving the result.

Method 2: Fix Corrupt MOV File using VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player is a popular media player that supports almost all file formats, including MOV files. It has built-in repair features that help fix AVI file playback issues. Hence, if your .mov video file or any other file format is corrupt or not playing, you need to convert it first to AVI and then fix it. Though it is one of the suggested methods however, this is time taking and has a lesser accuracy and success rate.

With the below steps you can convert the MOV file into AVI file and then repair it with VLC.

Open VLC Media Player and go to File> Convert/Stream.
Now Open Media to select the video files you want to Convert. Then click on Customize.
Next, go to Encapsulation tab and select AVI from the list of options and click on Apply.
Next click on Save as File in the Convert & Streamwindow and select the location where you want to Save the file.
Once you have successfully converted the file, Open the file.
Go to ‘Tools’ then ‘Preferences’ and click ‘All’ at the bottom left.
Under ‘Input/Codecs’ find ‘Damaged or Incomplete AVI file’.
Change the settings to ‘Always Fix’ and click ‘Save’.
Now try opening the file again, this should work.

Method 3: Update or Reinstall the Media Player

An outdated or corrupted media player can also be a key issue for MOV files playback problem. Check if your media player needs an update or reinstallation to resolve the MOV file playback issue.

Follow the steps provided here to fix this:

Check for updates of your current media player. If an update is available, download and install it.
Uninstall the media player and restart your system.
Download the latest version of the media player and install it.
After installation, try opening the MOV file again to see if the problem persists.

Conclusion

Though there may be more methods to fix this issue, however, the effectiveness of these tools and methods are not known to me. For me Stellar Repair for video worked magic and I was able to fix the MOV file not playing issue and other non playing video files with its simple and guided user interface. I recommend you to try this software to fix unplayable MOV files as it is free to use and you only need to pay once your video is repaired.

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