Close all applications.
Last updated on
Apr 12, 2023
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Also applies to Adobe After Effects, Adobe Audition, Adobe Bridge, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premiere Pro, Creative Suite, Encore, Flash Professional, Media Player, OnLocation CS, Photoshop Elements, Photoshop Extended, Premiere Elements, Soundbooth, Ultra, Visual Communicator
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This document describes how to troubleshoot installed video and audio codecs on Windows 7 and Vista.
Codecs are software components that define the methods that applications use during encoding to compress media files, such as songs or movies. Applications also use codecs to decompress encoded media files during playback.
Several codecs are included with Windows 7 and Vista. These codecs are unlikely to cause problems in Adobe applications.
Additional codecs can be installed on the computer to add support for more types of media files. (For example, codecs can be downloaded from the Internet to install, or applications installed on the computer can add codecs to the computer.) Poorly written, damaged, or incompatible codecs can cause problems in Adobe video and audio applications, Adobe Photoshop, Photoshop Extended, and Photoshop Elements.
Adobe applications load codecs from different sources, and this document has separate sections for troubleshooting each of the sources that are most likely to cause problems. It's possible that some of the sections don't apply to the problem that you are troubleshooting.
Before you begin
Make sure that you have administrator access on the computer so that you can complete the tasks in this document. These tasks sometimes initiate a User Account Control dialog box that asks for your permission to continue. Read the details in the dialog bpx to determine if you want to continue. If you choose to cancel, then you can't continue with that troubleshooting step.
Some of the steps in this document require you to identify whether the computer is running a 32-bit or 64-bit edition of Windows. To identify the edition installed on the computer, see Determine whether your computer is running a 32-bit or a 64-bit edition of Windows (kb407673).
Remove codec packs
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Choose Start > Control Panel.
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Do one of the following:
- If the Control Panel is in a Control Panel Home view, then click Uninstall A Program under Programs.
- If the Control Panel is in Classic View, then double-click Programs And Features.
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In the list of installed programs, select a codec pack (for example, K-Lite Codec Pack or Vista Codec Pack), and then select Uninstall or Change.
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Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the removal.
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If there are other entries for codec packs in Programs And Features, then repeat Steps 4 and 5 for that codec pack.
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Restart the computer.
After you remove codec packs, start the Adobe application and try to re-create the problem.
If the problem does not recur, then one or more of the codecs that were installed as part of codec packs is the cause. Contact the developer of the codec pack for additional support.
If the problem recurs, then codecs installed with codec packs are not the cause. Close the Adobe application and then reinstall the codec packs.
Identify problematic QuickTime components
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Close all applications.
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Do one of the following:
- If the computer runs a 32-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Program Files\QuickTime\QTComponents.
- If the computer runs a 64-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Program Files (x86)\QuickTime\QTComponents.
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Do one of the following:
- If the QTComponents folder is empty, then no third-party QuickTime components installed. Skip the remaining steps in this section.
- If the QTComponents folder is not empty, then move all files and folders from QTComponents to a temporary location. (For example, move the files and folder to a new folder on the Desktop.)
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Start the Adobe application and try to re-create the problem.
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Do one of the following:
- If the problem recurs, then third-party QuickTime components are not the cause. Close the Adobe application and move the files from the temporary location back to the QTComponents folder. Skip the remaining steps in this section.
- If the problem does not recur, then one or more of the components that you removed are the cause. Close the Adobe application and continue to Step 6 to identify the problematic component.
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Move one component from the temporary location back to the QTComponents folder.
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Start the Adobe application and try to re-create the problem.
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Do one of the following:
- If the problem does not recur, then close the Adobe application and repeat Steps 6 through 7.
- If the problem recurs, then the third-party QuickTime component that you most recently moved back is the cause. Remove this component from the QTComponents folder and then contact the component's developer for additional support. Close the Adobe application and repeat Steps 6 through 7 until you have tested each of the components. (More than one component could be causing the problem.)
Repair the installation of QuickTime
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Close all applications.
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Choose Start > Control Panel.
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Do one of the following:
- If the Control Panel is in a Control Panel Home view, then click Uninstall A Program under Programs.
- If the Control Panel is in Classic View, then double-click Programs And Features.
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In the list of installed programs, select QuickTime, and then select Uninstall or Change.
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Follow the onscreen instructions to complete the removal.
Important: Do not restart the computer if you are prompted to do so.
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If there are other entries for QuickTime in Programs And Features, then repeat Steps 4 and 5.
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Do one of the following:
- If the computer runs a 32-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Program Files.
- If the computer runs a 64-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Program Files (x86).
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Delete the QuickTime folder, if found.
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Do one of the following:
- If the computer runs a 32-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Windows\System32.
- If the computer runs a 64-bit edition of Windows, then navigate in Windows Explorer to C:\Windows\SysWOW64.
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Delete the QuickTime.qts file and the QuickTimeVR.qtx file, if found.
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Restart the computer.
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Download and then install the latest version of QuickTime from www.apple.com/quicktime/download.
Identify problematic windows codecs
To identify problematic Windows codecs, disable one codec at a time and try to re-create the problem after you disable each one. Don't disable codecs that were included with Windows 7 or Vista. See Video and Audio Codecs Included with Windows 7 and Vista below for a list of such codecs.
Disclaimer: This task requires you to modify the Windows registry. The registry contains system-related information that is critical to your computer and applications. Before modifying the registry, always make a backup copy of it. Adobe doesn't provide support for problems that arise from improperly modifying the registry. For information about the Windows registry or the Registry Editor, see the documentation in Windows or contact Microsoft Technical Support or your computer's manufacturer.
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Close all applications.
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Choose Start, type regedit in the Search textbox, and press Enter.
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In the left pane of the Registry Editor, navigate to the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Drivers32 -
Select Drivers32.
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Choose File > Export.
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In the Export Registry File dialog box, select Selected Branch under Export Range, enter a name and location for the backup registry key, and then click Save.
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In the right pane of the Registry Editor, double-click the name of a codec. (For example, double-click vidc.msvc.)
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In the Edit String dialog box, enter a colon (:) at the beginning of the Value Data, and then click OK. (For example, the value data would now be :msvidc32.dll.)
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Start the Adobe application and try to re-create the problem.
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Do one of the following:
- If the problem does not recur, then the codec that you disabled in Step 8 is the cause. Close the Adobe application and the Registry Editor. Leave this codec disabled and then contact its developer for additional support.
- If the problem recurs, then the codec you disabled in Step 8 is not the cause. Close the Adobe application and then repeat Steps 7 through 9 for a different codec.
Once you have identified the problematic codec or codecs, re-enable any other codecs that you disabled.
If the problem recurs after you have disabled all of the codecs listed in Drivers32, then Windows codecs are not the cause. You can reenable them.
To re-enable Windows codecs:
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In the right pane of the Registry Editor, double-click the name of a disabled codec. (For example, double-click vidc.msvc.)
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In the Edit String dialog box, remove the colon (:) from the beginning of the Value Data, and then click OK. (For example, the value data would now be msvidc32.dll.)
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Repeat Steps 1 and 2 for any other codec that you disabled. (Do not re-enable any codecs that you determined were causing the problem in Step 10 above.)
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Close the Registry Editor.
Video and audio codecs included with Windows 7 and Vista
The table below lists video and audio codecs that are included with a standard installation of Windows 7 or Windows Vista.
The information in the Name and Data columns appears as it is listed in the Windows Registry Editor. The Kind column lists whether the codec is for video or audio.
| Name | Data | Kind |
| aux | wdmaud.drv | Audio |
| midi | wdmaud.drv | Audio |
| midimapper | midimap.dll | Audio |
| mixer | wdmaud.drv | Audio |
| msacm.imaadpcm | imaadp32.acm | Audio |
| msacm.l3acm | C:\Windows\System32\l3codeca.acm | Audio |
| msacm.msadpcm | msadp32.acm | Audio |
| msacm.msg711 | msg711.acm | Audio |
| msacm.msgsm610 | msgsm32.acm | Audio |
| vidc.cvid | iccvid.dll (See note below.) | Video |
| MSVideo8 | VfWWDM32.dll (See note below.) | Video |
| vidc.i420 | iyuv_32.dll | Video |
| vidc.iyuv | iyuv_32.dll | Video |
| vidc.mrle | msrle32.dll | Video |
| vidc.msvc | msvidc32.dll | Video |
| vidc.uyvy | msyuv.dll | Video |
| vidc.yuy2 | msyuv.dll | Video |
| vidc.yvu9 | tsbyuv.dll | Video |
| vidc.yvyu | msyuv.dll | Video |
| wave | wdmaud.drv | Audio |
| wavemapper | msacm32.drv | Audio |
Note: The video codec vidc.cvid is installed by default only on 32-bit editions of Windows 7 and Vista. MSVideo8 is installed by default only on 64-bit editions of Windows 7 and Vista.
