MP4 files won't play: is this a Windows 10 indexing problem?

[martinlest]

As I am not sure in which forum to post this, I'll put it here

I have a folder of mp4 files on my hard drive, contained in a dozen or so subfolders. When I single click on any of them, the Windows 10/Explorer info pane (or the file in 'details' view) shows not only the file size but also the length, frame width & height, frame rate, data rate, bitrate and a video thumbnail. I have just copied the files over to a flash drive so that I can plug it into my TV and watch the videos there.

I suspect that I messed things up though by deciding, half-way through copying these files (over 100 gigabytes worth), that I did not need to have Windows index the files on the flash drive, so I turned Indexing off for the whole drive in the properties box. Now files on the flash drive copied there after that point (I assume, I didn't note timing specifically, but seems very likely that was the cause) no longer show any of the video information I mentioned above, just the file size (+ rating & date modified & created); no thumbnail. Now, unlike the files with all the data showing, or the ones on the hard drive, which open immediately in VLC Player for instance, these mp4 files cause VLC to hang - and worse, they will not play on my TV either ('unsupported format'). The MP4s that show the video data in Explorer, as above, all play perfectly, in VLC and on the TV.

I had no idea turning off indexing would be so crucial (as I wanted the files for the TV, not PC). I have turned indexing back on for the whole flash drive , and checked in Indexing Options that the drive is included: I tried the 'modify' option + 'OK" and Indexing was running for a time, then showed 'complete'. But the same mp4 files are still missing the video data in an Explorer window, and will not play in VLC (odd) - even when I delete them and recopy them from my hard drive they end up with no video data (unindexed??) or on the TV .

How do I resolve this, does anyone know? If I can force Windows to show the video data (does that come from the indexing service in Windows??), I imagine the files will then work in VLC and on the TV. If I make a second copy of one of the files that plays fine on the flash drive, back onto the flash drive again, that second copy is now a 'bad' one - no data shows and won't it play.

I hope I don't have to start over from scratch, reformatting the drive and copying them all again - it took forever!

Thank you!!

[october262]

As I am not sure in which forum to post this, I'll put it here

I have a folder of mp4 files on my hard drive, contained in a dozen or so subfolders. When I single click on any of them, the Windows 10/Explorer info pane (or the file in 'details' view) shows not only the file size but also the length, frame width & height, frame rate, data rate and bitrate. I have just copied the files over to a flash drive so that I can plug it into my TV and watch the videos there.

I suspect that I messed things though up by deciding, half-way through copying these files (over 100 gigabytes worth), that I did not need to have Windows index the files on the flash drive, so I turned Indexing off for the whole drive in the properties box. Now files on the flash drive copied there after that point (I assume, I didn't note timing specifically, but seems very likely that was the cause) no longer show any of the video information I mentioned above, just the file size (+ rating & date modified & created). Now, unlike the files with all the data showing, or the ones on the hard drive, which open immediately in VLC Player for instance, these mp4 files cause VLC to hang - and worse, they will not play on my TV either ('unsupported format'). The MP4s that show the video data in Explorer, as above, all play perfectly, in VLC and on the TV.

I had no idea turning off indexing would be so crucial (as I wanted the files for the TV, not PC). I have turned indexing back on for the whole flash drive , and checked in Indexing Options that the drive is included: I tried the 'modify' option + 'OK" and Indexing was running for a time, then showed 'complete'. But the same mp4 files are still missing the video data in an Explorer window, and will not play in VLC (odd) - even when I delete them and recopy them from my hard drive they end up with no video data (unindexed??) or on the TV .

How do I resolve this, does anyone know? If I can force Windows to show the video data (does tyat come from indexing in Windows??), I imagine the files will then work in VLC and on the TV. I hope I don't have to start over from scratch, reformatting the drive and copying them all again - it took forever!

Thank you!!

check the instruction book that came with your TV on flash drive use, some flash drives will need to be formatted
as FAT32 for it to work on a TV and the video itself not be over 4 GIG in size.

[martinlest]

Thanks, but it's not that. As I wrote, half the mp4 files on the flash drive play just fine on the TV: the other half, the ones with no video data showing in Windows Explorer, don't. They hang in VLC on my PC as well (whereas the exact same files on the hard drive play OK).

Just to be 100% clear, here's a sceenshot of a 'good' mp4 in Windows and one that won't play. Only the files I copied to the flash drive after turning off indexing (that's my best guess for the cause) have the video data missing and won't play.

[davexnet]

Open the files in mediainfo, text view, copy the info here

[jagabo]

It sounds like a counterfeit flash drive:
https://datarecovery.com/2022/03/the-2tb-flash-drive-scam-why-high-capacity-flash-drives-are-fakes/

[martinlest]

This is the info for the (working) file on the hard drive:

Complete name                            : F:\2.mp4
Format                                   : MPEG-4
Format profile                           : Base Media
Codec ID                                 : isom (mp41/avc1)
File size                                : 1.34 GiB
Duration                                 : 1 h 13 min
Overall bit rate                         : 2 595 kb/s
Frame rate                               : 23.976 FPS
Encoded date                             : 2023-04-24 03:55:25 UTC
Tagged date                              : 2023-04-24 03:55:25 UTC
Writing application                      : vlc 3.0.16 stream output

And this is when I copy the file to the flash drive:

Complete name                            : G:\2a.mp4
File size                                : 1.34 GiB

Is that the data you were asking for?

As for the drive not being genuine.. that may be so. I can test whether it reached a limit by deleting all the non-working mp4 files on it and then one or two of the OK ones and see if the first ones I copy back are functioning properly and then the problem restarts. Maybe the indexing thing is a red herring - I was only guessing. That said, the 'bad' files do not disappear when I reconnect the drive; they seem to be there permanently.

If all else fails I will reformat the flash drive and try again.

Thanks!

[ProWo]

Check it with this first
https://rmprepusb.com/tutorials/007-all-about-fake-sd-cards-and-usb-flash-drives/
Caution: data on the stick will be lost.

[martinlest]

That's a useful link, ProWo, thank you.

I was trying what I said above - I deleted all the 'bad' files from the pen drive and was using a Robocopy script to copy the same back again from the good, hard drive files. I was fully expecting the pen drive to stop copying the full files, with complete video data, from the same point as before, and so have the same problem. But no, all the files were copying over correctly, with all the video data, and they opened immediately in VLC. But at one point half the copied files suddenly lost all the 'video data' again and refused to open once more...

I am returning the drive to Amazon for a refund - it was relatively inexpensive and I knew there was a chance that this might happen, so...

Thanks for the ideas.

[davexnet]

What is the stated size of this drive and how much did you pay for it?
Must 1TB driives seem to be US $70-130 or so

[johns0]

You can get 2tb hdd for $80 in canada.

[davexnet]

You can get 2tb hdd for $80 in canada.

Yeah great price. Do you mean external HDD ? I paid about $55 for my 1TB
drive about three years ago

[johns0]

External drive.You can always open the case and use them as internal.