Video File Corruption

[LaunchPad]

Hey everyone,

So, I'm trying to figure out what happened. I shot some video, and when I went to put the media on my computer, it was corrupt, the transmission had some break up not much, but I've had it before, and it was just the transmission that wasn't good, but the recording was fine. Now, the video files are corrupted, like the transmission wasn't fully received and recorded correctly. I'm trying to find out if anyone else has had this issue, and to see how to solve it.

 

[FlushVision]

Hey everyone,

So, I'm trying to figure out what happened. I shot some video, and when I went to put the media on my computer, it was corrupt, the transmission had some break up not much, but I've had it before, and it was just the transmission that wasn't good, but the recording was fine. Now, the video files are corrupted, like the transmission wasn't fully received and recorded correctly. I'm trying to find out if anyone else has had this issue, and to see how to solve it.

Just a swift though ran through my muddy brain. You did stop the recording before you turned the aircraft off I presume?

I say this because that is the number one reason why it would appear a video file is corrupted. Video files that have not been 'finished off' by stopping the recording can often be recovered by putting the sd card back into the camera and start recording again for a few seconds. Doesn't work every time but it's your best bet if you've forgotten to stop the recording.

 

[LaunchPad]

Well, that's a good thought. I never paid attention to notice that. I do believe I did. It's not just one, it's all the files that I recorded that day.

 

[Steve Carr]

Well, that's a good thought. I never paid attention to notice that. I do believe I did. It's not just one, it's all the files that I recorded that day.

It's most likely the sd card went bad. You can put it back in the camera and turn on the H and take another pic and another short video inside the house. Then recheck the files to see if they are any good. If they are still bad, format the card and give it another try.

These cards need to be formatted after a few flights. They get fragmented after recording and deleting files and formatting will fix that.

 

[Eagle's Eye Video]

I'm sure that's related to the file size... the fact that the files are automatically split into 5 minute chunks means they are pushing the upper end of that file system. Would be a bit difficult to fragment a 15 Kb Word file...

 

[Steve Carr]

As I recall, that information came for the sd card association regarding corrupt video files on a card. A 5 min 4K video may be pushing the limit but fragmentation could slow down the write speed and cause the problem. Or the card might be corrupt. Or the card might be bad.

 

[LaunchPad]

It's most likely the sd card went bad. You can put it back in the camera and turn on the H and take another pic and another short video inside the house. Then recheck the files to see if they are any good. If they are still bad, format the card and give it another try.

These cards need to be formatted after a few flights. They get fragmented after recording and deleting files and formatting will fix that.

I'll have to check it out.

 

[Stas_T]

Do a quick-format of your SD card before shooting important videos, so that there is enough free space to allocate for new files without fragmentation.

 

[jandjfrench]

Unless my understanding of how data is stored on an SD card reformatting defies logic. All data blocks are the same size. Each block has the address of the next available block which can be anywhere on the card and the time it takes to access any block is the same regardless of physical location. That's my understanding and if anyone could provide information regarding an authoritative source that says otherwise I would sincerely appreciate it.

 

[Stas_T]

Correct. But if something unexpected happens (e.g. you've accidentally deleted a valid video from the SD card), it will be much easier to recover video when it is not fragmented. Otherwise, "undelete" tools may miss some chunks of the file scattered across the card.

 

[jandjfrench]

Correct. But if something unexpected happens (e.g. you've accidentally deleted a valid video from the SD card), it will be much easier to recover video when it is not fragmented. Otherwise, "undelete" tools may miss some chunks of the file scattered across the card.

And the source of this information is? I'm not trying to be provocative but to learn. I can think of an analogy where what you're saying is true. I imagine a series of adjacent rooms that contain information. You get the info from one room but the number of the next room is missing. But you know it's adjacent so you just go to the next room etc. But imagining something doesn't make it so.

 

[Stas_T]

And the source of this information is?

Well, for example, you can read what these guys have to say about this. Also, there are lots of support forums of various "undelete" tools where users claim they can't recover video files (mp4, mov, etc.). Unlike still images, video files are quite large and usually split into many fragments. This is quite a common reason why "undelete" tools can't handle recovery of video files properly.

 

[AH-1G]

What about Recuva?

 

[jandjfrench]

Well, for example, you can read what these guys have to say about this. Also, there are lots of support forums of various "undelete" tools where users claim they can't recover video files (mp4, mov, etc.). Unlike still images, video files are quite large and usually split into many fragments. This is quite a common reason why "undelete" tools can't handle recovery of video files properly.

I always prefer information from a source that doesn't have a horse in the race. I could address several considerations here but we are going off on a tangent. The discussion is with regard to the benefits of regularly reformatting. I believe that a discussion of data recovery would best be covered in a different thread with an appropriate title that could easily found by Searching.
Edit: It seems we were actually getting back on track. I got so involved in the formatting discussion I forgot the original post subject.

 

[Stas_T]

What about Recuva?

Recuva is a great free app. But I don't think there is much difference compared to other similar tools, since the underlying technology for recovering files is pretty the same.

Regardless of the tool you use, I'd only suggest you to create a RAW image out of your SD card, so that you can use it as a backup. Also, make sure to not write anything or modify existing files on your SD card once you found out that your files have been accidentally deleted. Otherwise, you may overwrite the files beyond recovery.

Once you have the image file, you can try and test different recovery apps to see what works best.

 

[Vegasrobbi]

I say this because that is the number one reason why it would appear a video file is corrupted. Video files that have not been 'finished off' by stopping the recording can often be recovered by putting the sd card back into the camera and start recording again for a few seconds. Doesn't work every time but it's your best bet if you've forgotten to stop the recording.

Great tip that I will try. Several times while flying low the camera.... ah. departed the vehicle. I can see the recording and file size in explorer but it will not open.

I've noticed similar behavior if I power down before stopping recording.

I will say to the OP many of my green screens and video corruption were due to s bad SD card or not formatted properly.