Video analysis · upload troubleshooting

Video upload failed or timed out? Check before retrying

Before exporting again or clicking Analyze a second time, identify what stopped: file selection, transfer, video preparation or report generation. Each needs a different next step.

Published October 1, 2026 · Updated November 8, 2026 · 9 min read

Current workflow: AdScanVideo accepts uploaded files only. Video-link analysis is no longer available. Choose an MP4, MOV, WebM or MKV file up to 200 MB. Free daily and credit analyses allow up to 10 minutes; Monthly Premium allows up to 45 minutes. The file-size cap applies to every plan.

Open the file uploader · Get the troubleshooting checklist

If you only have a video link

A YouTube watch URL or Google Drive sharing page is not the video file. Opening it successfully in a browser does not put an authorized copy on your device. For your own YouTube uploads, YouTube documents downloading your uploaded videos through Studio. For a teammate's recording, request the original export or an approved review clip. Do not make private footage public or bypass access controls to analyze it.

Once you have the file, play it locally, check its size and duration, then upload it. Do not keep looking for an AdScanVideo Paste a link option: the current workflow uses a file.

Match the symptom to the next check

What you see	What to check	Next step
“Choose a video file first.”	No file is selected.	Select the actual recording on your device, not a web shortcut.
“Choose an MP4, MOV, WebM or MKV video up to 200 MB.”	The filename extension or file size is outside the uploader's checks.	Export a supported review copy and inspect its actual size. Renaming a file is not conversion.
“The uploaded file is empty.”	The selected file contains no video bytes.	Finish downloading or exporting the source, then confirm it plays locally.
“Maximum video size is 200 MB.”	The uploaded file exceeds the server's size limit.	Trim or compress a review copy. Keep the original master.
“Videos must be 10 minutes or shorter” or the 45-minute equivalent.	The file exceeds the active plan's duration allowance.	Use a shorter focused segment or check the plan before retrying.
“The request timed out.”	The transfer or request did not complete in time; this alone does not identify the cause.	Check whether a job started, then try a smaller authorized clip on a stable connection.
“Video preparation took too long” or “The report could not be completed.”	The problem happened after submission, during preparation or generation.	Record the stage and time. A shorter focused clip may help; repeated failures belong with support.

Error wording can include additional guidance. A report-generation failure is not proof of a damaged file, and a successful file transfer is not proof that a report finished.

When the upload says connection error or timed out

A connection message does not identify a codec problem. Browser, device, network and website conditions can produce similar connection symptoms; Chrome's troubleshooting guide checks those separately. A timeout also does not prove that the server received nothing: if the connection breaks before the browser gets a response, the final state can be unclear. MDN's 408 explanation shows that request data may not arrive in full before a server closes a connection.

Before you submit again: reload the page once and check whether the analyzer shows a report or job that already started. If you can see one, open its status instead of sending the same clip again. If no result appears, record the exact error and local time. A missing confirmation does not, by itself, prove the request never reached the service.

To narrow down the next check, change one condition at a time. These outcomes are clues, not proof of a root cause:

One controlled check	What a changed result may suggest	What it does not prove
Play the original locally and compare its actual size and duration with the uploader's limits.	A local playback or limit problem points back to the file or plan constraint.	An MP4 extension alone does not prove the streams inside are readable.
Retry once in a current private window or another supported browser, on the same network.	If that changes the result, browser state or an extension may be involved. Chrome recommends this as a diagnostic step.	It does not identify which extension or browser setting caused the error.
Use the same permitted file and browser on a different trusted network.	If the result changes, the original network path may be relevant. On managed Wi-Fi, ask the network administrator before changing firewall settings.	It does not prove the file or service is otherwise healthy.
The same error appears across browsers and networks with a locally playable file under the published limits.	Share the repeatable conditions and error with support so the service path can be checked.	It still does not establish a single cause or make your file defective.

Do not disable security software on a work device just to test an upload. Avoid repeated submissions solely as a diagnostic. If a job is not visible after refresh, send support the error, approximate time and time zone, browser/device, file size and duration, and the checks you tried. You do not need to include the private video in your first message.

Check format, size and duration separately

1. Format: inspect the file, not just the name. MP4 and MOV are containers. The video and audio encodings inside them are separate, as MDN's container guide explains. Changing recording.mov to recording.mp4 does not re-encode it. If local playback fails or a preparation error repeats, make a fresh MP4 export from your editor. Preserve readable screen text and clear speech; no export preset guarantees analysis success.

2. Size: verify the finished export. All plans have a 200 MB upload limit. A file under ten minutes can still exceed it. Trim unused material or export a smaller review copy, then check the file size again. For a long recording, use the 45-minute preparation guide. Compressing until labels or speech are unusable defeats the review task.

3. Duration: check your active allowance. Free daily and credit analyses support up to ten minutes; Monthly Premium supports up to 45 minutes. Sign in with your email link to restore an existing paid account before relying on its allowance. A subscription does not remove the 200 MB cap.

4. Transfer: change one thing at a time. Try a smaller clip that still contains the relevant context. Check your connection and keep the upload page open. General upload guidance from Vimeo identifies connection and file factors as separate checks; its platform limits are not AdScanVideo's limits. If a job has already started, check its status before submitting another copy.

Inspect the container and video codec before exporting again

A filename ending in .mp4 tells you the expected container, but not the video and audio streams inside it. Checking those properties can narrow down what to try next. It cannot prove that a remote analysis will succeed, and it does not replace playing the complete file locally.

On a Mac: In Finder, select the file and choose File > Get Info to review its size and basic details. Open it in QuickTime Player, then choose Window > Show Movie Inspector for duration, dimensions, compression format and frame rate. Apple documents these views in its Finder file information guide and QuickTime Movie Inspector guide.

With ffprobe, if it is already installed: Run this locally and replace the quoted path with your file name. The command prints container, duration, size and stream codec fields; it does not upload or convert the video.

ffprobe -v error -show_entries format=format_name,duration,size:stream=codec_type,codec_name,width,height -of default=noprint_wrappers=1 "my-video.mp4"

Read format_name as the container, codec_name as the encoding reported for each stream, and codec_type to distinguish video from audio. The official ffprobe documentation describes probing media containers and streams. If the file plays locally but the same report-stage error repeats, preserve the original and share the exact error and file properties with support. Do not rename the extension and assume the encoding changed.

A published file you can inspect

Our published umbrella example is an MP4 containing H.264 video: 25 seconds, 720 × 1280, 3,105,534 bytes (about 3.11 MB). It has no audio stream. These are inspected file properties, not a new analysis result or a promise that every MP4 will work.

This small example passes the size and duration checks for a free analysis. Its missing audio means there is no spoken dialogue to extract. Compare it with the existing shot-list walkthrough.

A silent source and an upload failure are different cases. If the report lacks a quote, replay the original and check whether speech is actually present. See the dialogue verification guide before attributing missing words to a failed transfer.

Download the upload troubleshooting checklist

Use this manual CSV to record the failed stage, the exact message and one change before retrying. The filled umbrella row is a file-inspection example; blank rows are for your checks. The worksheet does not upload media or run an analysis.

Download the free CSV checklist

Failure stage and exact message:
Approximate time and time zone:
Browser and device:
File extension, size and duration:
Can the original play locally?
Did an analysis job start?
One change made before retrying:
Outcome and next check:

If the same error repeats, send support the message, approximate time, browser, file size, duration and whether a job started. A screenshot with private content hidden can help. You do not need to send the private recording itself in your first support message.

What happens to the allowance and the report?

An empty or oversized upload is rejected before an analysis allowance is reserved. A started job that fails restores its allowance. If the balance looks wrong after an error, refresh and contact support rather than buying another credit just to repeat a failed analysis.

Once a report finishes, replay important moments in the original before using its observations. A completed report is not an exhaustive frame-by-frame record. Free reports remain readable without signup; email sign-in enables free watermarked exports. Paid access removes the watermark for eligible reports. See report sharing and export options.

Temporary source-processing files are cleaned up when jobs finish, fail or time out; analysis text and limited operational metadata are retained. Read the data handling policy before uploading sensitive material.

Common questions

Can I paste a YouTube or Google Drive link into AdScanVideo?

No. The current analyzer accepts uploaded video files, not video-link analysis. Use an original file you own or have permission to analyze. A platform watch page is not an uploaded file.

Why can an MP4 file still fail?

MP4 identifies the container, not every encoding inside it. A damaged file, an unsupported encoding or a preparation problem can still prevent analysis. Play the file locally and try a fresh export from your editor; renaming the extension does not convert it.

How can I check a video's codec and duration before upload?

On a Mac, Finder Get Info shows basic file details and QuickTime Player's Movie Inspector shows compression format, dimensions, duration and frame rate. If ffprobe is already installed, it can report the container, streams, codecs, size and duration. These checks do not guarantee that a file will process successfully.

Can I analyze a video longer than ten minutes?

Free daily analyses and credit analyses allow videos up to ten minutes. Monthly Premium allows up to 45 minutes per video. Every upload is limited to 200 MB. Check the active allowance before uploading; duration and file size are separate limits.

Does a failed upload or report use my allowance?

An empty or oversized upload is rejected before an analysis allowance is reserved. If a started analysis fails, its allowance is restored. If the displayed balance does not recover, refresh and contact support with the error and approximate time.

Should I keep retrying when the report fails?

Check the failure stage first. A report-generation failure is different from a file-transfer failure. Confirm whether a job has already started, try a focused shorter clip when appropriate, and contact support if the same error repeats. Do not pay again simply to repeat a failed job.

Does a connection error mean the video was not received?

Not necessarily. A browser may lose the response after a request has started, so the final state can be unclear. Refresh once and check whether a job or report is already visible before sending the same clip again. If no result appears, record the error and time and contact support if it repeats.

Sources and further reading

Ready to try the file?

Choose a focused clip up to ten minutes and 200 MB for one free daily on-screen analysis. Select the report that matches your task, then verify the result against your original.

Upload a video and analyze it