What happens to Zoom recordings when my computer freezes

Forum|Forum|3 months ago
October 9, 2025
2 replies
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Hey there,

I've been using Zoom for recording podcast interviews, saved locally.

My main work computer, which I have been using for all my podcasting activity, freezes occasionally, usually right after I log in. It's a long story and not a huge problem - certainly not worth clearing my hard drive and reinstalling everything - but it does mean that it's possible that it freezes while I'm in the middle of recording an interview.

My question: What actually happens to my recording if the computer freezes? Is it gone forever? Is there anything I can do to back them up so I will have something to convert even if my computer freezes or crashes?

Grateful for any tips - thanks

Ian

Best answer by storyhub

Using Zoom to make local recordings will corrupt the mp4 file if the computer freezes.

When a computer freezes during an MP4 recording, the file is often corrupted and unplayable because the necessary index data is not written to the end of the file, which is the final step in the MP4 format. The recording may become partially or completely unusable, and attempts to repair it might result in a file with glitches or blank sections. It is often recommended to record in formats like MKV, which are more resilient to crashes. OBS Studio records to an MKV format first then converts that to an MP4.

If this works please click accept as a solution.

storyhubAnswer

Community Super Champion | Customer

Using Zoom to make local recordings will corrupt the mp4 file if the computer freezes.

When a computer freezes during an MP4 recording, the file is often corrupted and unplayable because the necessary index data is not written to the end of the file, which is the final step in the MP4 format. The recording may become partially or completely unusable, and attempts to repair it might result in a file with glitches or blank sections. It is often recommended to record in formats like MKV, which are more resilient to crashes. OBS Studio records to an MKV format first then converts that to an MP4.

If this works please click accept as a solution.