OBS stopped recording.
Start with the format.

Keep a copy before doing anything else

Keep the original recording and make a separate working copy. Check the recording folder for another completed segment or copy. Note the OBS version and the recording settings if you still have them. Do not repeatedly save repair attempts over the damaged file.

The extension alone does not settle the recovery path. An .mp4 can have a different recording structure from another .mp4. Changing the extension does not change that structure.

Ordinary and Hybrid are different cases

OBS describes Hybrid MP4 and Hybrid MOV as combining fragmentation with a final “soft-remux.” That design changes the starting point after an interruption; it does not prove that every damaged file, codec combination or storage failure will be recoverable. Consult the official OBS Hybrid format explanation.

For MKV and fragmented formats, do not assume a missing-index procedure intended for ordinary MP4 is the right first step. The OBS audio/video formats guide explains their recording and compatibility differences. If the recording remains playable but an editor rejects it, a compatible remux may be more relevant than reconstructing damaged media.

Identify the settings you actually used

Look at the OBS recording settings and any saved log from the affected session. Current settings can differ from the ones used for the damaged recording, so do not treat a setting changed afterward as evidence of the original configuration.

Record what you can establish:

• The recording container, including whether Hybrid was selected.
• The video codec, resolution and frame rate.
• The number of recorded audio tracks and their codec and channel setup.
• Whether the recording stopped normally, OBS crashed, power was lost or storage filled up.

If FFmpeg is already installed, this read-only command can show what a copy still exposes:

ffprobe -v error -show_format -show_streams "obs-recording-copy.mp4"

A probe that fails to read the container does not establish that all media is gone. A probe that lists streams does not establish that those streams cover the complete session.

Choose the next step from what you find

The file plays, but the editor rejects it

Try the recorder’s normal remux route on a copy, using a new output name. If the input is readable and the codec combination fits the target container, rewrapping may avoid unnecessary re-encoding. Check the output’s audio tracks and timing before treating it as finished.

An ordinary MP4/MOV reports a missing movie index

Read the missing moov atom guide. The relevant question is whether usable recorded media remains and whether the parameters needed to read it can be recovered. Moving an existing index for playback is different from rebuilding absent information.

A Hybrid recording was interrupted

Identify it as Hybrid when seeking help. Preserve its original structure and check the official format guidance rather than treating it as an ordinary unfinalized MP4 by default. MendVid does not claim verified repair coverage for every Hybrid recording.

Make the reference match the OBS session

A healthy short clip can help a recovery method infer missing parameters. Reproduce the affected session’s encoder, resolution, frame rate and audio setup as closely as possible. A single-track reference is not an adequate description of a damaged recording that used multiple tracks.

If you changed OBS settings after the crash, restore the relevant setup only if you know what it was. Otherwise explain what changed. A reference that opens successfully can still describe the wrong recording configuration.

The supplied engineering record includes one OBS case with two AAC audio tracks. Recovery required detecting their arrangement and rebuilding the video clock; the final route re-encoded video and copied audio. That documented case supports a specific recovery path, not a claim that all OBS recordings are supported or that repairs are always lossless.

Review audio, duration and synchronization

A screen recording may contain several sources or isolated tracks. Check every track you expected to preserve, rather than listening only to the default playback mix. Make sure important scenes and the end of the session are present, and look for audio drifting away from on-screen events.

Clean decoding and matching frame counts are valuable checks, but they cannot prove that content missing from the damaged source has been restored. If the result is shorter, an audio track is absent or timing remains uncertain, the result needs a partial label.

MendVid is intended for MP4/MOV users generally, including some OBS scenarios. It is a repair attempt for existing recorded media, not an image enhancer or a way to recreate events that were never captured.

If you choose a repair attempt

In the intended MendVid flow, payment is confirmed before any attempt or preview. The repair-attempt fee is US$9.99 per video, with applicable tax shown at checkout. The fee purchases an attempt, not guaranteed recovery; it is not refunded if recovery is unsuccessful.

A required matching reference stays attached to the same paid job. Keep your own original recording when reviewing any result.

Sources reviewed 31 October 2026: the linked OBS knowledge-base pages and the supplied local automatic-repair and router-validation documents. The current engine evidence is for a local CLI; actual recovery depends on the usable data that remains and the recording settings.