Help Center/ Video On Demand/ Troubleshooting/ Failed to Transcode a Media File
Updated on 2026-03-12 GMT+08:00
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Failed to Transcode a Media File

Symptom

When you use a transcoding template to transcode an uploaded file, the transcoding fails. You can view the transcoding failure message on the VOD console and perform further checks based on the failure cause.

Check Whether Your Account Is in Arrears

  1. Log in to Huawei Cloud Billing Center.
  2. On the Overview page, view the available credit. Click Top Up if your account has any outstanding amount.
  3. On the Resource Packages page, check whether the transcoding package has been used up.
    Figure 1 Resource Packages

    If your account is in arrears but the transcoding package has not been used up, the transcoding template may not match your purchased transcoding package. In this case, the fee needs to be deducted from your account balance. You are advised to write off the arrears and then use the transcoding template that has the same specifications as the purchased package for transcoding.

  4. Log in to the VOD console. In the navigation pane, choose Management > Audio and Video Management, select the media file, and transcode it again.

Check the Input File

  1. Download the VLC player to your local PC and install it.
  2. Play the input file using the VLC player.
    • If the file fails to be played, the file is damaged or encrypted. If such a file is uploaded to VOD, the transcoding will fail.
    • If the playback is successful, go to the next step.
  3. On the menu bar of the VLC player, choose Tools > Codec Information to view the codec of the input file. See Figure 2.
    Figure 2 Viewing codec information
  4. Check whether VOD supports the formats of the input file.
    VOD supports the following formats:
    • File formats: MP4, TS, MOV, FLV, MPG, MXF, WMV, ADTS, AVI, MKV, and MPEG
    • Video codecs: H.264, H.265, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, MJPEG, WMV1/2/3, and ProRes 422
    • Audio codecs: AAC, AC3, EAC3, HE-AAC, MP2, MP3, PCM (s16le, s16be, s24le, s24be, DVD), and WMA

Check the Transcoding Template

If the input file is an audio file but a video transcoding template is used, the transcoding will fail. Select an audio transcoding template and transcode the file again. For details about how to configure a transcoding template, see Transcoding Settings.

The preset transcoding template of VOD is not applicable to audio files. You are advised to use a custom audio transcoding template.