File Relink Issue - Is there a way to force relink?

When relinking to original media, fcpx is giving me this error:

"The original file and new file have no shared media range. Relinked files must have the same media type and similar audio channels as the original files, and must be long enough to cover all the clips that reference the files.The original file and new file have no shared media range. Relinked files must have the same media type and similar audio channels as the original files, and must be long enough to cover all the clips that reference the files."

Is there a way to force relink?

No shared media range means the files don't have matching timecode, so FCP has no idea which section of the new clip to use.

menykash wrote:

When relinking to original media, fcpx is giving me this error:

"The original file and new file have no shared media range...

It must not be the original media or an FCP-generated proxy file, otherwise the timecode would match. You can import (not relink) that file, then export a clip XML from it and a clip XML from the current file to which you're trying to relink. Then use a diff tool to compare the two XML files. The tool I prefer is Beyond Compare:  www.scootersoftware.com/

That will show what lines of XML are different and which chracters are different in each line. It could be the timecode values but knowing the values from each version of the file can help understand what's happening.

In some cases you can update the clip timecode using the 3rd-party tool QTChange, but you must first know what value FCP is looking for:  www.videotoolshed.com/handcrafted-timecode-tools/qtchange/

When a file is first imported, FCP stores within SQL tables in the library metadata for that file. That includes starting timecode, duration, audio config, etc. When you try to relink to a new file, the metadata of that new file must match the metadata from the previously imported file. 

There are several possible scenarios. Maybe the original timecode when the clip was first imported starts with 00:00. In that case You can have QTChange set the new clip timecode to 00:00, then try the relink.

Another scenario is the timecode when the clip was first imported is a non-zero value but FCP thinks the new clip you are trying to relink has timecode starting with 00:00 because it is a Sony MP4 file or similar. In that case QTChange can read the clip and rewrite the non-zero timecode in Quicktime metadata format, which should make relink possible.

There is no single method which will work but it can often be worked around with the right tools and knowledge. It is best to have backups of everything and proceed carefully on a single clip until the situation is understood.

Another useful tool for these cases is Invisor, which allows displaying the metadata from multiple clips in a side-by-side spreadsheet-like format. That makes it easy to spot differing metadata between two or more media files:  apps.apple.com/us/app/invisor-media-file...or/id442947586?mt=12

I found *a* solution.

I was having the same issue as described above. Mostly referencing some MP4's ripped from the web - i.e., all kinds of random codecs and containers. And some were of silent movies, so there was no audio track - or no audio in the track - I'm not even really sure. Anyway, when I transferred the Library and media to a new RAID, a bunch went offline. I tries all the usual tricks to relink, I tired all the suggested strategies, tried the XML Shuffle - and they just would. not. re-link. Same errors as described above.

So I gave up and just tried Transcoding -- and it worked.

Just right-clicked and transcoded to Optimized Media. Even though the Browser showed the clips as Offline, it transcoded it just fine.

Note: I had previously transcoded these files, and all the Optimized Media was still in the selected folder. (Relinking to the Optimized files didn't work.) When I selected the Offline clip and Transcoded it to Optimized media, the Background Tasks window shows the activity, then the clip is Online again. In the Optimized Media folder, there is only one copy of the Optimized files - and it's the same file as I initially transcoded, the creation date had not changed. So, the new transcoding is really just sort of rebuilding the link to the previously transcoded Optimized media.

I guess - I don't know - it worked this time… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I found *a* solution.

I was having the same issue as described above. Mostly with some MP4's ripped from the web - i.e., all kinds of random codecs and containers. And some were of silent movies, so there was no audio track - or no audio in the track - I'm not even really sure. Anyway, when I transferred the Library and media to a new RAID, a bunch went offline. I tried all the usual tricks to relink, I tired all the suggested strategies, tried the XML Shuffle - and they just would. not. re-link. Same errors as described above.

So I gave up and just tried Transcoding -- and it worked.

Just right-clicked and transcoded to Optimized Media. Even though the Browser showed the clips as Offline, it transcoded it just fine. Note: I had previously transcoded these files, and all the Optimized Media was still in the selected folder. (Relinking to the Optimized files didn't work.)

When I selected the Offline clip and Transcoded it to Optimized media, the Background Tasks window shows the activity, then the clip is Online again. In the Optimized Media folder, there is only one copy of the Optimized files (no duplicate was made) - and it's the same file as I initially transcoded, the creation date had not changed. So, the new transcoding is really just sort of rebuilding the link to the previously transcoded Optimized media.

I guess - I don't know - it worked - this time… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯