{"record":{"id":"1a52db087c914f8f","repo":"Zackriya-Solutions/meetily","slug":"ffmpeg-produced-an-empty-output-file-the-input-ma","errorCode":null,"errorMessage":"FFmpeg produced an empty output file. The input may contain no audio.","messagePattern":"FFmpeg produced an empty output file\\. The input may contain no audio\\.","errorType":"exception","errorClass":null,"httpStatus":null,"severity":"error","filePath":"frontend/src-tauri/src/audio/decoder.rs","lineNumber":374,"sourceCode":"\n    if !output.status.success() {\n        error!(\n            \"FFmpeg conversion failed (exit code: {}): {}\",\n            output.status, stderr_text\n        );\n        return Err(anyhow!(\n            \"FFmpeg conversion failed with exit code: {}. \\\n             The file may be corrupted or in an unsupported format.\",\n            output.status\n        ));\n    }\n\n    // Verify output file exists and has content\n    let output_meta = std::fs::metadata(&temp_path)\n        .map_err(|e| anyhow!(\"FFmpeg output file not found: {}\", e))?;\n\n    if output_meta.len() == 0 {\n        return Err(anyhow!(\n            \"FFmpeg produced an empty output file. The input may contain no audio.\"\n        ));\n    }\n\n    if let Some(cb) = progress_callback {\n        cb(100, \"FFmpeg conversion complete\");\n    }\n\n    info!(\n        \"FFmpeg conversion complete: {} bytes output\",\n        output_meta.len()\n    );\n\n    Ok(temp_path)\n}\n\n/// Decode an audio file (MP4, M4A, WAV, etc.) to raw samples\npub fn decode_audio_file(path: &Path) -> Result<DecodedAudio> {","sourceCodeStart":356,"sourceCodeEnd":392,"githubUrl":"https://github.com/Zackriya-Solutions/meetily/blob/0281737d87d26352fb0adc78c8c0975f691b23d1/frontend/src-tauri/src/audio/decoder.rs#L356-L392","documentation":"ffmpeg exited 0 but produced a 0-byte WAV. The command strips video with -vn, so an input whose only streams are video (screen recordings, muted video exports) yields no audio packets and an empty PCM file. The file is structurally fine — there is simply nothing audible to transcribe. An ffprobe-style stream check before conversion is the reliable way to tell users this up front.","triggerScenarios":"Importing video-only MP4s/MKVs (recorder captured no audio device), containers with metadata-only or zero-length audio streams, or muted exports.","commonSituations":"Screen recordings made with the mic muted/disconnected, downloaded clips whose audio track was stripped, security-camera exports.","solutions":["Confirm the input actually has an audio stream: `ffprobe <file>` or `ffmpeg -i <file>` and look for an 'Audio:' stream line.","If it's video-only, there is nothing to transcribe — obtain a version with audio or enable an audio device when recording.","If audio should exist, re-export from the source application.","Code fix: pre-check for an audio stream before converting (see exampleFix)."],"exampleFix":"// before\nif output_meta.len() == 0 {\n    return Err(anyhow!(\"FFmpeg produced an empty output file. The input may contain no audio.\"));\n}\n\n// after — detect a missing audio stream before converting\nlet has_audio = Command::new(&ffmpeg_path)\n    .args([\"-i\", input_str, \"-map\", \"0:a\", \"-f\", \"null\", \"-\"])\n    .output()\n    .map(|o| o.status.success())\n    .unwrap_or(true);\nif !has_audio {\n    return Err(anyhow!(\"This file has no audio track — nothing to transcribe.\"));\n}","handlingStrategy":"validation","validationCode":"// Rust — detect an audio stream before converting\nlet has_audio = Command::new(&ffmpeg_path)\n    .args([\"-i\", input_str, \"-map\", \"0:a\", \"-f\", \"null\", \"-\"])\n    .output()\n    .map(|o| o.status.success())\n    .unwrap_or(true);\nif !has_audio {\n    return Err(anyhow!(\"This file has no audio track — nothing to transcribe.\"));\n}","typeGuard":null,"tryCatchPattern":null,"preventionTips":["Warn at import time that video-only recordings cannot be transcribed.","Pre-check streams for video containers (mp4/mkv/mov) before entering the decode path."],"tags":["ffmpeg","no-audio-track","empty-output","video-import"],"backgroundTag":"empty-audio-stream","analyzedSha":"0281737d87d26352fb0adc78c8c0975f691b23d1","analyzedAt":"2026-08-16T20:57:52.567Z","schemaVersion":2},"datasetVersion":"2026-08-16T23:17:17.608Z"}