What we can't repair — and where to go instead.

Intro

filefix repairs corrupted video files, but not every "broken video" problem is a file-repair job. Some need a completely different kind of tool. We would rather tell you that up front than take your money for something we can't fix. Here's what we don't handle, why, and where to go instead.

Section A — Security DVR, CCTV, and Hikvision recordings: Fixed security systems and many standalone DVRs don't save normal video files. They write footage into a proprietary format tied to that specific brand of hardware — Hikvision, Dahua, and similar. Opening one usually means disk-level recovery or the original recorder, not a single-file upload. A browser repair tool can't rebuild these, and any site that claims to is likely to disappoint you. For these, look for a data-recovery specialist that explicitly supports your DVR brand, or use the recorder's own export software.

Section B — Deleted or formatted files: If the video was deleted, or the card was formatted, this isn't a repair problem — the file isn't damaged, it's gone from the file system. Getting it back is data recovery: carving the footage off the raw storage before it's overwritten. Stop using the card immediately and use a dedicated data-recovery tool (many are made specifically for camera and SD cards). filefix repairs files you still have; it can't bring back files that were removed.

Section C — Physically damaged cards or drives: If a card or drive is cracked, water-damaged, not detected, or making noise, the problem is the hardware, not the video file. No software can read data off media that won't mount. This is a job for a physical data-recovery service. Once the data is safely copied off, if the video file itself turns out to be corrupted, we're happy to try repairing it then.

Section D — Genuinely empty (0-byte) files: If a file is truly 0 bytes, there is no footage inside it — the camera never wrote any data. There's nothing to rebuild, and no tool can recover footage that was never recorded. If your file shows a real size but won't play, that's different and often repairable — try a repair.

Try a repair

1. Try a repair Back to Video repair

If your problem isn't on this list, your file may well be repairable.

Related fixes

• Video repair
• Repair dashcam footage that won't play.
• Repair a corrupted MP4 file online — no install.
• Repair a corrupted MOV file that won't open.
• Recover a recording that stopped before it finished saving.

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