"Failed to open."

Hudson555x · February 3, 2019, 6:49pm

Did you ever make a backup copy of this file?
If so, did you try to open the backup copy?

ncsink · February 3, 2019, 7:13pm

No, I didn’t make a backup.

Hudson555x · February 3, 2019, 7:28pm

Upload your MLT file here and I’ll take a look at it. I don’t have a Mac though, I believe @shotcut does.

ncsink · February 3, 2019, 8:01pm

Here’s the file: NOT DONE Desk for Music Room.mlt (109.5 KB)

Thank you for offering to help!

Hudson555x · February 3, 2019, 8:09pm

Not sure what happened, and this has come up before but nobody has a solution.
The file you have is not repairable, sadly to say, as far as I know.
2019-02-03_15-04-26

This is a healthy MLT file.
2019-02-03_15-05-26

ncsink · February 3, 2019, 8:31pm

That’s what I was afraid of. Thanks for confirming. It took a really long time to save the last time I saved it. I guess it was just busy wiping out all of my hard work.

shotcut · February 3, 2019, 8:38pm

I am sorry for your trouble. Until I can find the root cause, for the next version, I will make Shotcut first save to a temporary file, check if the temp file is all NULs, and only move the temp file to the target location once it is OK. If it fails, then there will be a message that saving has failed. This might require an app restart to resolve and the loss of some work since the last successful save, but it is better than losing all work.

ncsink · February 4, 2019, 4:15am

Thank you. Sounds like a practical and sound approach to solving the problem. It’s nice to have this kind of support from an open source program.

Kojo · February 8, 2019, 10:29am

@shotcut Good day sir and good day to all.

I just hopped on here as Im encountering a similar problem, yet It’s not so much to do with opening an mlt file. It is more so to do with exporting a finished video, but this is the nearest thread topic to my problem.

So once my project is done and I want to export (using default settings for an mp4 that ive always used) it exports the file in 00:00:01 time.

But when I try to open the file I receive a similar ‘failed to open’ message: ‘Failed to open C:/Users/Asiedu.SOIL-KASIEDU.000/Desktop/aretha.mp4’, and when i try to locate the file it in the folder it’s not been Exported/saved.

Please Help, I’m that guy that said yes to putting the video together for her 1st birthday - she wont remember if i dont get it done but Mommy and Daddy sure as hell wont forget

Ps her birthday dinner is in 6 hours and ive got 150 photos and short clips to make magic with for lil ol Baby Aretha!

Keno40 · February 8, 2019, 12:39pm

You seem to load MLT file from temp folder.

Can you first start recording the MLT file in the Video folder for example and retry ?

Kojo · February 8, 2019, 12:52pm

Thanks so much for getting back to me.

I probably should’ve made mention that i’m not the most tech savvy fish… However I have found said folder but I have no idea how to do what you suggested.

Could you please help walk me through it?

Keno40 · February 8, 2019, 2:07pm

The thing that you create a project.
The MLT file is the recipe.
You have to Ctrl + S (= save) this file and name it “projectBirthday.mlt” and put it somewhere.
Then it should be able to export it.

Kojo · February 8, 2019, 5:44pm

You are an absolute legend!!!

Sorted it right out! … FYI this is the first time i’ve ever used a chat forum for a solution and the 1st has turn out to be a winner thanks to you! When she’s old enough to remember and she looks back on this video and she says “thanx for the memories Unc” I’d say dont thank me thank @Keno40

Keno40 · February 8, 2019, 8:48pm

AHAHA, cool. Happy you did it !

ROMANTIC_MOVIES_msg · April 18, 2019, 2:51pm

i am also having same problem did u find any fix