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Best Way to Fix Offline Clips in DaVinci Resolve

Direct methods for finding disconnected hard drives, deep searching missing files, and fixing red offline clips in DaVinci Resolve.

The best way to fix offline clips in DaVinci Resolve is to use the dedicated Relink Media tool with a Deep Search targeting the master storage drive.

Here are the direct methods to best fix offline clips in DaVinci Resolve.

What is the fastest way to reconnect offline clips?

If your timeline displays large red "Media Offline" graphics, DaVinci Resolve has lost the exact file path to the original footage because the files were moved or renamed.

To quickly reconnect offline clips:

  1. Open the Media Pool in the Edit Page.
  2. Select the bright red offline clips, right-click, and choose Relink Selected Clips.
  3. A file browser window will appear. Navigate to the top-level folder on your hard drive that contains the missing video files.
  4. Click Open. DaVinci Resolve will instantly scan the folder, match the file names, and reconnect the footage.

How do you deep search a disconnected hard drive?

If an entire external hard drive was disconnected and reconnected under a different drive letter, you must force DaVinci Resolve to scan the entire drive.

To deep search a disconnected hard drive:

  1. Right-click the offline clips in the Media Pool and select Relink Selected Clips.
  2. Select the root level of the newly connected external hard drive.
  3. Click the Deep Search button in the relink window.
  4. DaVinci Resolve will automatically comb through every subfolder on the drive to locate the missing files and reconnect them.

How do you force replace renamed clips?

If you renamed the original source files in Finder or Windows Explorer, DaVinci Resolve will refuse to relink them because the names no longer match the project database.

To force replace renamed clips:

  1. Import the newly renamed files into the Media Pool.
  2. Select the red offline clip on your timeline.
  3. Select the matching newly renamed clip in the Media Pool.
  4. Press F11 to trigger the Replace Clip command. The new file will replace the offline clip while maintaining your timeline edits.