Are you having issues playing a downloaded video in AVI file format? Then it could be because of corruption to your AVI file index. Although some AVI media players can fix your AVI index errors, this is not always the case as the players can be limited in their ability to repair. If this is your case, you are in luck because there are solutions for fixing the corrupt AVI index. This article is going to provide you with the solutions so you can be able to play your videos smoothly.
Part 1: What is an AVI index?
Meaning of AVI Index: An AVI file is an Audio Video Interleave with the file extension .avi. It is a trendy video format that can play both video and audio. This video format is the standard used for Windows-based systems.
Meanwhile, the AVI file index is used to go through the AVI file to time the video track and the audio track properly. It is the set of rules which make it possible for you to brush through and choose a particular time range in your AVI video.
Signs and causes of AVI index corruption: AVI files tend to be susceptible to index corruption. Once you open a video file with a broken AVI index, an error message will appear below.
A corrupt AVI video file will display the following symptoms:
- The video will freeze or completely cease to function.
- It might keep playing but will be interrupted by constant stuttering.
There are major factors responsible for the broken AVI index, and they include:
- Media Player Malfunction: If your chosen media player has issues, it may corrupt your file index. Also, a media player that is incompatible with your AVI format could cause errors to the index.
- Use of Unreliable Tools: The use of insecure or unreliable tools to convert AVI files can be a source of errors that will damage the file index. Therefore, your AVI file index may become broken when you try to convert it from one AVI video format to another.
- Interference during Transfer: An interference occurring during your video file transfer may be a result of poor network connection, abrupt system shutdown from power failure, and so on.
- Bad sectors on a hard drive: If there are bad segments in your computer hard drive, it could affect your AVI index and stop the video from playing.
- Use of Insecure Editing Tools: If you are not careful enough about the editing tool you use for your videos, there is a possibility that such a tool may bring with it viruses or errors that will corrupt your AVI file index.
- Downloading from the Internet: Your AVI index may get damaged by issues on the site you download your AVI file from.
Part 2: How to Repair Broken AVI Index Easily
You can easily repair the broken AVI index with some solutions, which will be discussed here. You can trust Wondershare Repairit Video Repair as the recommended tool for you to use in light of this.
1. Repair AVI Index with Wondershare Repairit Video Repair
Recoverit has introduced this software to help you repair videos in formats such as MOV, FLV, M2TS, 3GP, and of course, AVI. It performs video repair in two repair modes, namely, quick repair and advance repair. Quick repair fixes the video errors found in your AVI video file. On the other hand, Advance repair fixes the video corruption by analyzing the technology and data of a sample video shot from the same device as your corrupt video. Wondershare Repairit Video Repair is capable of repairing videos corrupted from:
- Attacks by virus
- Errors from memory card or file transfer
- Abrupt system shutdown or crash
- A change in video format and so on.
This software boasts of more features like:
- Ability to repair the unlimited size of videos
- Ability to simultaneously repair different video formats.
- A user-friendly and intuitive interface
- Ability to support video repairs from many different devices like computer hard drives and an external hard disk, USB flash drives, among others.
Now, you can go ahead and use this tool by following the steps enumerated below:
Step 1: Add the Corrupt Video File.
Click on the "Add" button to add any corrupt AVI file you may have.
Step 2: Start Repairing Video (for Quick Repair)
If your video file is not badly corrupted, you can go ahead and click "Repair" to let Wondershare Repairit begin the repair process.
Step 3: Preview and Save Video Files
Once Wondershare Repairit completes your videos' quick repair, a box will appear telling you to preview and save. Now, go ahead to save the repaired files.
Step 4: Add Sample Video
If the damage to your video files has still not been fixed, then you need to proceed to perform an "Advance Repair" of your severely corrupted file. Start by adding a sample video.
Step 5: Save the Repaired Video File
Once Wondershare Repairit fixes your badly corrupted video, click "Save" to save the repaired file to a destination of your choice.
2. Set Windows Media Player as Default Player
This solution involves ensuring that the files are associated with the Windows Media player. Do this by following the steps below
- Press "Win" + "I" to open "Settings" and ensure that AVI format has an association with Windows Media Player. Here, go to "Apps."
- Click on "Default apps" on the left pane.
- Go to the right pane and under "Music player," check if your file is associated with WMP or another player.
- Choose "Windows Media Player" to be your media files' default player.
This will remove the problem caused by different players being associated with your AVI files. If not, you have to read the deeper solutions further - Videos do not play on WMP.
Part 3: Different Solutions to Fix AVI Index
This part will show you some other solutions to fix your AVI index that have been corrupted.
1. Play AVI File on a Different Media Player
You can install another media player on your PC, then use it to repair your corrupt AVI index. VLC is capable of not just playing media files but repairing damaged ones. Follow these steps to repair with VLC.
- Navigate to "Tools" > "Preferences"
- Select "Inputs and Codecs"
- Choose "Demuxers" > "AVI."
- Under the drop-down menu from the "Force index creation" tab, you will see the option to "Always Fix." Click on it so that it will automatically be fixed and played any time you open a corrupt AVI file.
Note that this VLC solution is only temporary because it only repairs the memory problem to enable you to play the video.
2. Run "System File Checker."
You can repair corrupt AVI file index by running a "system file checker" using the steps below:
- For Windows 8: Go to the Start screen, right-click a space and click "All apps." Next, right-click "Command Prompt" and select the option "Run as Administrator."
For Windows 10: Choose "Start," then type "cmd" to go to "Command Prompt." Right-click on the tab and choose the option "Run as Administrator."
- In the "Command Prompt" page that will appear, type this command: SFC / scannow.
This command will check all your system files to verify the ones that are alright and replace those with issues. Your corrupt AVI file index will be fixed in the process too.
If all the solutions can't help you, honestly speaking, you need a video repair tool to help you solve all problems related to video corruption.
Part 4: Different Tips for AVI Index
Helpful Information Against Corrupt and Broken AVI Index
1. What Will Play AVI Files?
Normally, because AVI is a video file format manufactured by Microsoft, the expected player is Windows Media Player. You can open your AVI video by double-clicking the file. However, if this doesn't work, open the video with these steps:
- Right-click the video you wish to open and tap on "Open with."
- Select "Windows Media Player." Alternatively, you can select another media player, such as VLC, which effectively plays AVI files.
For Linux or macOS, Windows Media Player will not work, hence the need for another media player such as the VLC mentioned above or Apple QuickTime Player, amongst others.
2. How to Play AVI Files Properly
You can properly play your AVI files by following these pointers.
- Verify AVI File: Check that your AVI file is not corrupted before trying to play it. It is defective files within your AVI file that prevents it from playing more often than not, hence the need to be sure there are no errors. If there are, you can use the solutions provided above to repair the file before playing them.
- Update your Windows Media Player: If you are still using the old version of WMP (version 11), it is time to update it to WMP 12. This latest version can play video formats like AVI. This is unlike version 11 that was made for older versions of Windows like Vista and XP.
3. Tips to Avoid AVI Index Corruption
Below are some tips to bear in mind when it comes to avoiding index corruption; they include:
- Do not download video files from unreliable websites.
- Ensure that the media player you are using is capable of supporting the AVI codec
- Do not interrupt any video transfer process. This implies that you should ensure you eliminate any factor that could cause transfer interruption, such as the low battery on your computer. Do this by ensuring your system is always charged.
- Do not edit AVI files with any tool whose complete security you are not sure of.
- Avoid arbitrarily sharing AVI files over the internet to limit the possibilities of the files index getting corrupted.
- Regularly back-up any important AVI file you may have
Do you now see why the ways to fix the AVI index are termed "Extremely easy"? Of course, you do! Now you can enjoy playing your AVI media. It is even more preferable if you consider the tips provided to prevent any form of damage to your AVI files.
Read more about why avi files go corrupted.
