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PDR / Legal and insurance work / Export files, containers, players

Video evidence · getting the file to open in the first place

CCTV exports and players, Plymouth. You received a disc that will not open in any software you possess.

Video recorded by a CCTV system is not just any type of video. The recorder takes the image and places it into a container that it created, indexes it by channel and time, and provides its own software that plays the video back. These playback applications are typically Windows-based. A few require the original recorder that made them. On a Mac, these applications do absolutely nothing. As such, the disc remains on the desk and the matter goes nowhere. Our solution is plain and effective. Identify the actual format of the file by looking at its internal structure. Copy the video stream into a format that all computers can open. Leave the original file intact. Hash both files and document what was done to convert one to the other, so that other examiners may verify it. None of this improves the video itself. If someone else owns the recorder, we need that owner's authority before proceeding.

On most jobs, no files means no fee An exhibit from the start The recorder is overwriting it

A quiet word first?
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Why no player touches it.

This is not ordinary videoWhat a recorder produces is not a file that your computer has encountered before. The video images go into the maker's container, along with stream markers that were never published, and the frames are organised by time. If a generic player is used to view this data, the frames will appear out of sequence.
The recorder's own fileIt stores the timestamps the recorder wrote, with the channel data alongside them. During re-encoding, both of those items disappear and take a small amount of quality away from the video.
The disc's playerTypically, a Windows-based application is burned onto the same disc as the video files. On a Mac, most likely nothing will happen. Some versions require the exact model of recorder they came from. And in many cases, no player is supplied at all. That is where the disc goes into a drawer and the matter stops moving.
What happens hereThe actual format is determined by analysis of the file itself. The video stream is copied into a format readable by all computers, without re-encoding it. The original file is left unchanged. Both files are hashed, and the method is documented so that the conversion can be checked.

Format, player and clock in turn.

Not on this list? Call us →
What is in front of youWhat that points toWhere to start
A file ending .dav or .264Original video data stored in a container devised by the manufacturer and kept to itselfInclude the player when you send it
A disc that came without a playerThis happens often. The format then has to be read out of the file itselfSend the entire folder over
An .exe that only runs on WindowsDoes not work on a Mac, and often not on newer PCs eitherRequest a converted version
A phone recording of a screenOnce it has passed through a monitor, a lens and another encode, it is no longer the recordingGo back and ask for the export
The clock in the recorderThey drift, they are set incorrectly during installation, and nobody adjusts them when the clocks changeAlways compared to a standard reference clock. Never assumed. Always reported as a number.
Sending it to us: once you have your quote, our intake lab in Bristol takes tracked, insured post, and we pay to send it back to you. If you'd like to talk packing through with an engineer before you post it, give us a call. There's more detail on our contact page.

Each stage, in turn.

Every job written up →
01

A number on arrival, then the free diagnosis Free

Whatever is delivered is booked in using a unique reference (case number) on the date it arrives at the bench. The engineer will identify the actual fault at no charge. This gives a straightforward answer on what can be recovered from the drive and what cannot, plus one written quotation. There will be no further activity until you have read and accepted the quotation.

Diagnosis at no chargeA single written figureYou owe nothing yet
02

Establish what the file really is

An extension does very little to identify anything, whether it is .dav, .264, .dat, .vid, or an .mp4 whose contents have been rearranged. The format depends on how the internal structure of the file is laid out. Encrypted exports need the password file that belongs to them. Without it, nothing will open them at all.

Format taken from the fileAn extension proves almost nothing
03

A version that will play

Instead of re-encoding the stream, it is copied directly into a standard container (no additional data are created, nor anything discarded). The file as originally produced by the recorder remains here as well.

Stream copied across, not re-encodedThe original stays
04

The clock is measured, not assumed

The time of the recorder is compared against a reference time source and the difference is noted. Most of the issues come from British Summer Time. Whatever the difference is, it goes into the report as a number, so nobody has to estimate it later.

Measured against a reference clockRecorded as a figure, not assumed
05

You give the word, and it ships back

Give yourself time to consider it. It costs you nothing. We list all of the files we recover for you before sending out an invoice, and we only ask for payment once you have authorised it. We also buy media specifically for your recovery and send it back to you, with the return postage paid by us. The case stays here on our bench until we have your confirmation that the files open properly on your own machine.

You see the list and decideWritten to fresh mediaWe pay the postage home

What the work keeps showing

  • No problem with the file, only the player: recorders embed H.264 or H.265 within containers which the manufacturers did not document, identify their own streams and order them by time rather than by stream. A generic decoder pairs frames with the wrong neighbours, and the errors spread.
  • Using the manufacturer's player does not get you out of the issue: it may alter images in unreported ways, and when it reads past the disk index the images will include no date or time information.
  • Re-exporting creates a new file: an AVI generated from an H.264 recording came back two frames short over an hour boundary, even though its metadata still matched. Images recorded at 944 by 1080 display stretched to widescreen, and all the proportions in them change.
  • We keep redactions small and separate: when people with no part in the matter need to be hidden before the clip is handed on, we can blur faces and number plates across a short export, and the masked version leaves under its own exhibit reference, never as the master. We don't deal with hours of multi-camera video.

What goes back inside the package: the recorder's own file, unchanged; a second copy which any ordinary computer can open; a hash for each; the clock offset as a numeric value; either the player itself, or documentation describing the container if none was provided; and a note showing the origins of the footage and every hand it has passed through. The report states on page one that this is not an accredited lab.

A job out of the casebook.

PL · PLY-2026-0872FILED ✓

Two weeks before a licensing hearing, and nothing could open it

Two weeks before a licensing hearing, a bar on Union Street gave its solicitor a disc containing four video files, plus a player which would not install, in an office where everyone works on a Mac. The format was determined from the files themselves, the stream was copied into a standard container that played, the original remained intact, and both were hashed. The recorder's clock was more than 30 minutes ahead of actual time and had never been adjusted when the clocks changed, so the offset went into the report.

Claim settledCourt-ready export

Before you seal the box.

Get these done

  • Ask for the export itself, not a clip
  • Have the player put on the disc as well
  • Write down the recorder's make and model
  • Copy the entire folder across, not just the video

What to avoid

  • Re-encoding it so that it plays
  • Filming the screen and presenting this recording as the file
  • Renaming the files into something tidier
  • Expecting the conversion to sharpen anything

The questions callers ask most.

My computer will not open the disc. Can someone tell me what might be causing this?

It's because the contents of the disc are not typical video. When the recording was created, the image was placed in a container created by the recorder itself, complete with stream markers that were never shared publicly. This makes it impossible for standard players to understand. The actual file itself is usually intact. The problem lies with the software being used to open it.

Nothing happens when I run it on a Mac.

That is usual. Most of these applications are Windows-based, and a couple only work with the model of recorder they came from. Get a quote, then send us the disc, and we'll send it back to you along with a copy of the file that virtually any machine can open, with the original exactly as it arrived.

Will converting it improve the picture?

No, and if anyone tells you otherwise, be cautious. Detail the camera never recorded cannot be added after the fact. A successful conversion is faithful to the original recording, but no more than that. A poor conversion may result in lost frames or distortion of the proportions of objects within the frame, which is why we send your original back with your new copy.

Can I trust the time on the footage?

Often not. Recorder clocks can drift, are often set incorrectly upon installation, and are rarely updated when the clocks change. The deviation from a reference clock is measured and noted as a figure.

Pages people open after this.

Footage off a recorder → Dashcam and bodycam clips → Expert witness reports → Evidence and reports →

Every minute it runs, less is left.

Every single minute the recorder continues to record, the clip you want becomes more and more likely to be recorded over for good and your deadline does not change. Begin here. Your first look is free of charge and any information we receive from you is held in confidence.

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