Cameras · DJI exFAT microSDXC card
Recover deleted DJI MP4 or MOV files from microSDXC
How can I recover deleted DJI videos?
Short answer
Yes, if you stop flying with that card: DJI records MP4 or MOV, and deleted clips stay on the microSDXC card until new footage overwrites them. Power down, remove the card and scan it read-only. A flight that ended on a dead battery may leave the last clip unclosed; repair that one separately on a copy.
The situation
Drone or action-camera clips are missing after deletion, formatting, or battery interruption.
Two different problems often arrive together after a flight. Clips deleted or formatted away still lie in the free area of the microSDXC card, while the last clip of a flight that ended abruptly may exist as a file that was never closed properly.
01 / Diagnose
Work out what actually disappeared
DJI aircraft and action cameras record MP4 or MOV, depending on model and setting, at bitrates that fill a card quickly. A deleted clip has lost only its directory entry. An interrupted flight is a different fault: the container was still open when power failed, so the moov box describing the frames was never written and the file will not play although the data is present.
DJI can record MP4 or MOV, and an interrupted flight may leave the final container unclosed.
Check the last known path, trash and backups without writing to the original device.
02 / Protect the source
Preserve the best recovery chance
- 1
Land, power the aircraft down, and take the microSD card out rather than reviewing the footage in the app on the controller.
- 2
Sort the problem first: list which clips disappeared entirely and which ones exist but refuse to play, because they need different treatment.
- 3
Scan the card read-only for MP4 or MOV, whichever the device was set to record, and leave the card unwritten throughout the session.
- 4
Export to a computer drive, then treat any unclosed final clip on a copy with a remux or repair tool that uses an intact reference clip.
Do not fly again with this card, and do not let the app or the aircraft format it to clear a reported error. One new high-bitrate clip overwrites several gigabytes, usually more than the footage you are trying to get back.
03 / Choose the method
Match the tool to the source
For stable, readable exFAT, NTFS and FAT16/FAT32 or uncompressed IMG, DD, RAW and BIN images.
Unconfirmed exports are marked .UNVERIFIED.
Deleted clips return while their blocks are still free; footage overwritten by a later flight does not. File Recovery Hero recovers files from the exFAT card read-only, but repairing an unfinalised MP4 or MOV is a separate job for a repair tool working on a copy.
04 / Verify
Check the recovered content, not just its name
Play every exported clip to its final second in a desktop player and confirm the duration matches the flight log or the recorded timestamps. Footage that freezes partway, or that reports a duration of zero, points at a container whose index is missing rather than at a successful result.
Keep the source until two verified copies exist. One working preview is not enough.
Sources and technical references
FAQ
Questions about this recovery case
Can DJI exFAT microSDXC card be recovered in this situation?+
Two different problems often arrive together after a flight. Clips deleted or formatted away still lie in the free area of the microSDXC card, while the last clip of a flight that ended abruptly may exist as a file that was never closed properly. The result still depends on what remains readable on the source.
What should I avoid before scanning?+
Do not fly again with this card, and do not let the app or the aircraft format it to clear a reported error.
Does scanning write to my memory card?+
Your memory card is only read. Nothing is saved to it.
How do I know whether the result is complete?+
Play every exported clip to its final second in a desktop player and confirm the duration matches the flight log or the recorded timestamps.